SERIES HISTORY
Overall Series Record: First Meeting
Albin vs. GS: Never Met
Helton vs. Ohio: Never Met
Helton vs. Albin: Never Met
GS vs. current MAC Members: 5-2
GS vs. teams from Ohio: 2-3
GS in state of South Carolina: 27-15
GS at Brooks Stadium: 3-3
GEORGIA SOUTHERN EAGLES NOTES:
OF NOTE
• This will be the ‑ rst meeting between Georgia Southern and the Ohio Bobcats. It’s the fourth GS/Mid-American Conference matchup in a bowl game (GS is 2-1). • Georgia Southern will be making its sixth bowl appearance when it participates in the Myrtle Beach Bowl. The Eagles are 3-2 in ‑ ve previous bowl games, knocking o Bowling Green (2015 GoDaddy Bowl), Eastern Michigan (2018 Camellia Bowl) and Louisiana Tech (2020 New Orleans Bowl). The Eagles lost to Liberty in the 2019 Cure Bowl and to Bu alo in the 2022 Camellia Bowl. • The Eagles are 3-3 all-time at Brooks Stadium, home of Sun Belt brethren Coastal Carolina. They are 2-3 all-time against teams from Ohio (1-0 against Bowling Green and 1-3 against Youngstown State) and 27-15 in games played in the Palmetto State. • Georgia Southern has seven players from South Carolina, including starting tight end Jjay Mcafee (Charleston). • GS is one of four current FBS schools to never have a 1,000- yard receiver in a season. Khaleb Hood (917) needs 83 yards for 1,000 yards and six catches for 100 for the year.
TIES THAT BIND
• GS – Fifth-year Khaleb Hood and Ohio redshirt junior Shedrick Rhodes Jr. both attended Eagles Landing Christian Academy in McDonough, Georgia. • Quarterback Davis Brin played in the 2021 Myrtle Beach Bowl, leading Tulsa to a 31-17 win over Old Dominion. He threw for 295 yards and two touchdowns to earn game MVP honors. • Both schools feature an Australian punter. GS goes with 24-year-old true freshman Alex Smith from Melbourne while Ohio counters with redshirt junior Jack Wilson from Lance‑ eld. Both came through ProKick Australia.
NOTABLE STREAKS AND TRENDS ENTERING THE GAME
• Georgia Southern has had a 100-yard rusher in 83 of its past 124 games dating back to its move to the FBS in 2014. • Dating back to the start of the 2018 season, Georgia Southern has won 28 of its past 37 games when having a 100-yard rusher. • Since the start of the 2018 season, Georgia Southern has had 43 100-yard rushing performances, coming from nine di erent players. • GS has outrushed its opponent in 78 of the past 124 games dating back to its move to the FBS in 2014. • GS has won 24 of the past 32 games dating back to the start of the 2019 season when winning the rushing battle. • The Eagles have won 47 of the past 50 games when they’ve rushed for 300 yards or more. • The Eagles have a +22 turnover margin since the start of the 2017 season, taking the ball away 137 times against 115 turnovers. • GS has forced at least one turnover in 62 of its past 87 games dating back to the start of the 2017 season. • Dating back to 2017, the Eagles have won 22 of their past 29 games when not committing a turnover. • Dating back to 2014, the Eagles have won 40 of their past 56 games when winning the turnover battle. • The Eagles are 212-34 in the modern era (since 1983) when winning the turnover battle in a game, 68-104 when losing it, and 72-32 when the margin is tied. • Georgia Southern is +37 in turnover margin since joining the FBS in 2014 (+45 in Paulson Stadium, -8 away from home). • In the modern era, GS is 248-211 when scoring 30 or more points, 104-149-1 when scoring less than 30 points. As a member of the FBS (since 2014), the Eagles are 47-8 when scoring 30 or more points, 18-50 when scoring less than 30 points. • GS is 219-1 all-time when having a lead of 18 or more points at any point in the game. That lone loss came in 2005 when the Eagles led at Texas State 35-16 in the third quarter and lost 50-35. • The Eagles have won 70 straight games when holding a lead of 17 or more points at any point in a game dating back to that 2005 Texas State game. • Since 1983, Georgia Southern is 200-16 when allowing 17 points or less. The last time the Eagles lost a game when allowing less than 18 points was in 2013, a 16-14 loss to Furman at home. The current streak of victories when allowing 17 or less points is at 31. • Georgia Southern has won 90 games in a row when scoring 40 or more points since losing at Oregon State in 1999 (48-41 in Corvallis). Overall, the Eagles are 149-2 all time, including 98-0 at home. The only other loss was to UMass in the 1998 FCA National Championship Game (55-43 in Chattanooga)
OHIO BOBCATS NOTES:
THE OPENING KICK
The Ohio football team (9-3, 6-2 MAC) is set to take on Georgia Southern (6-6, 3-5 SBC) in the Myrtle Beach Bowl on Dec. 16. Kickoff is set for 11:00 AM ET at Brooks Stadium in Conway, S.C. The game can be seen on ESPN with Drew Carter, Dustin Fox, and Stormy Buonantony on the call. The Bobcats’ matchup can also be heard on the Ohio Sports Network from Learfield. Russ Eisenstein returns for his 16th season as the “Voice of the Bobcats” and will be joined by Rob Cornelius, who has been a part of the broadcasts for two decades.
SERIES HISTORY VS. GEORGIA SOUTHERN
The Myrtle Beach Bowl will be the first time the Bobcats and Eagles have faced each other. The Bobcats hold a record of 34- 28-6 against Sun Belt competition. Excluding games played against Marshall, Ohio is 1-7 in games against Sun Belt foes. Georgia Southern is 5-2 against Mid-American Conference opponents. This is the second consecutive year the Eagles will play a MAC program in a bowl game. Last year, Georgia Southern lost to Buffalo in the Camellia Bowl.
SCOUTING GEORGIA SOUTHERN
The Eagles enter the matchup with a 6-6 record and were 3-5 in conference play. In their last game on the road at Appalachian State, the Eagles lost 55-27 (Nov. 25). On the season, Georgia Southern averages 30.9 points per game while picking up 298.5 yards per game through the air and 124.3 on the ground. Senior running back Jalen White led the way for the Eagles on the ground. He ran for 891 yards and nine touchdowns while averaging 5.6 yards per carry. The senior also added 65 receiving yards and a touchdown through the air. White had four games with over 100-yards rushing on the year, including a career-high 164 yards against UL-Monroe. Sophomore running back OJ Arnold added 405 yards and four touchdowns in a complimentary role. Quarterback Davis Brin threw for 3,418 yards and 22 touchdowns this season. Brin, a transfer from Tulsa,
DOMINANT DEFENSE
With opposing offenses averaging just 15.42 points and 264.4 yards per game, Ohio’s defense leads the MAC and is No. 4 in FBS football. Individually, linebacker Bryce Houston is ranked 16th in FBS football in total tackles (119). Currently, there are three Bobcats in the top 10 in tackles for loss in the MAC— defensive tackle Rayyan Buell, defensive end Bradley Weaver and Houston. Buell and Houston have 11.5 each while Thompson and Weaver are just behind with 10. The Bobcats’ defense was lights out in Boca Raton. As a team, they held the Owls to five rushing yards, averaging only 0.3 yards per attempt. The next week, they held Power 5 opponent Iowa State to just seven points, keeping them scoreless into the fourth quarter. Against Bowling Green, the defense held the Falcons to 206 yards, averaging only 3.8 yards per attempt. During their Homecoming game, the Bobcats’ defense held Kent State to 17 points on 228 yards of total offense. The next time on the Frank, Ohio defense held WMU to their lowest number of rushing yards so far this season (79). During their first midweek game of the season, the Bobcats’ defense held the Bulls to three points in the first half and 10 total. Ohio’s defense remained strong in the final two games of the regular season. The Bobcats limited Central Michigan to 20 points and forced two turnovers. In the regular season finale, Ohio held Akron to just 183 total yards and 14 points. The Bobcats did not give up a point in the second half while Houston caught his third interception of the season.
MYRTLE BEACH BOWL HISTORY
The Myrtle Beach Bowl is a newer addition to college football’s roster; its creation was announced in 2018 and the inaugural matchup was in 2021. The game features three conference partners: Conference USA, Mid-American Conference, and the Sun Belt Conference. Notably, the Myrtle Beach Bowl is the first of its kind for South Carolina, owning the “first college bowl game in South Carolina” proudly. Since its inception, the game has been played at Coastal Carolina’s Brooks Stadium.
BOBCATS MAKING HISTORY
For the first time in program history, Ohio has recorded nine-win regular seasons in back-to-back years. The Bobcats won nine regular season games a year ago, going 7-1 in conference play. The Bobcats will look to get their tenth win of the year against Georgia Southern. Achieving the tenth win would give the Bobcats their first consecutive ten-win seasons and the fifth time the Bobcats have had ten wins in a season.
