Marshall football 2023 opponents: Georgia State hopes for rebound year

The last time Georgia State finished a season with a losing record, the Panthers more than tripled their win total the following year.
In 2018, Georgia State finished a measly 2-10, but it improved to 7-6 in 2019 with a bowl appearance. That sparked a run of three consecutive winning seasons and bowl appearances, included a program record eight-win year in 2021 before winning just four games last season.
With seven starters back on offense and five on defense, there’s enough continuity to assume that things should be looking up again for the Panthers, but it’s anything but a given.
Darren Grainger, the leading rusher and only quarterback to throw a pass for Georgia State a season ago, is the biggest retention for Panthers coach Shawn Elliott as he enters his seventh season at the helm of the program.
The former Furman signal-caller has shown growth in each of the past two seasons under Elliott and completed more than 58% of his passes for 2,443 yards, 18 touchdowns and seven interceptions, to go with 164 rushing attempts, which produced 734 yards and another six scores.
The offense goes as Grainger goes, and that might be especially true this season after losing second-leading rusher Tucker Gregg, who graduated, and leading receiver Jamari Thrash, who transferred to Louisville.
Thrash’s 61 catches for 1,122 yards were each more than triple of the closest receiver behind him, and he also led Georgia State in receiving touchdowns. But many of the role players on last year’s receiving corps are back, including Robert Lewis and Ja’Cyais Credle, who caught at least 20 passes for more than 300 yards and a combined eight touchdowns.
Georgia State has some questions in the backfield as it replaces Gregg, who became the school’s all-time leading rusher last season. Grainger is always a threat to run and Marcus Carroll is an experienced back after tallying 622 yards and six scores in 2022.
They’ll run behind on offensive line that returns 86 career starts and added Tyden Ferris (Central Michigan) and Lamar Robinson (Norfolk State) from the transfer portal.
Defensively, the Panthers re-upped their strength and depth on the defensive line, a group that collected 27 sacks last season but lost staples Jeffrey Clark and Thomas Gore.
In the secondary, Georgia State loses a pair of All-Sun Belt Conference players in Quavian White and Antavious Lane, who both set school records with 11 interceptions.
The Panthers' new defensive coordinator, Chad Staggs, is no stranger to the Sun Belt Conference, joining Georgia State after spending the last four years in the same position at Coastal Carolina. He inherits a defense that returns less than half its starters from last season, but six of the eight leading tacklers.
This will be just the second meeting between Marshall and Georgia State. The first was in the 2022 season finale, a 28-23 win for the Thundering Herd in a game which Georgia State led by double digits early but surrendered the lead in the fourth quarter to finish the year 4-8.