Georgia State put together the most prolific offensive performance in school history and twice rallied from nine points down in the fourth quarter to earn a 38-37 victory over Abilene Christian in the first FBS game in the nation for the 2014 season.
Quarterback Nick Arbuckle engineered the decisive drive to set up Wil Lutz's game-winning, 26-yard field goal with 4 seconds left. The Panthers trailed 37-35 when they took over at their own 19-yard line with 2:41 to play. Arubuckle converted a pair of 4th-and-long situations with completions to Joel Ruiz and LynQuez Blair and then covered the final 30 yards on the ground to set up Lutz's kick.
Arbuckle tied the Georgia State record with four touchdown passes while throwing for 413 yards, just one yard shy of the school record. Ruiz caught a 34-yard touchdown in the first quarter and then his 9-yard scoring reception pulled the Panthers within 37-35 with 4:31 left. Arbuckle also hooked up with Avery Sweeting for a 41-yard touchdown late in the first half and found Blair from 27 yards out in the fourth quarter.
As a team, the Panthers gained 566 yards of total offense, easily surpassing the previous GSU high of 514 yards, set in 2011 vs. Campbell.
