Georgia Southern football visits Louisiana on Thursday: Kickoff, how to watch and more
The Georgia Southern Eagles (5-4, 2-3 Sun Belt) are seeking their sixth overall victory to become bowl eligible as well as improve to .500 in the Sun Belt Conference on Thursday night at the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns (4-5, 2-4 SBC). Here's how to watch and listen to the game, and more.
What time do the Georgia Southern Eagles play the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns?
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. ET, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2022.
Location: Cajun Field (capacity 41,426), Lafayette, Louisiana
How to watch Georgia Southern at Louisiana on TV
Mike Couzens (play-by-play) and Charles Arbuckle (analyst) will have the call on the ESPN2 cable network. The game originally was slated for ESPNU but moved on Wednesday.
Radio for Georgia Southern at Louisiana
Danny Reed (play-by-play), Terry Harvin (analyst), Russ Brown (analyst) and Frank Sulkowski (sidelines) have the call on the Georgia Southern Sports Network. The pregame, in-game and postgame shows can be heard in Savannah on WIXV 95.5 FM and on the network's flagship station WPMX 94.9 FM in Statesboro.
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Betting: Over/under & point spread
As of Thursday morning, Louisiana was a 3.5-point favorite, according to the Tipico Sportsbook. The over/under was 61.5. The moneyline was Georgia Southern +145 and Louisiana -170.
Series history
While Georgia Southern's first-year head coach Clay Helton and Louisiana's first-year head coach Michael Desormeaux have never met as head coaches, the Ragin' Cajuns do have a 4-1 series advantage, including the past three meetings. The teams are 1-1 in Lafayette, with the Eagles emerging with a 34-24 victory in 2017 under then-interim head coach Chad Lunsford.
Game notes
Georgia Southern is averaging 36.22 points per game (nine games, 326 total), which ranks first in the Sun Belt Conference and 23rd in the FBS. Louisiana has scored 279 points for a 27.9 avearge, 74th in FBS.
Georgia Southern senior receiver Khaleb Hood needs four receptions to break the school record for career catches. Hood has 124 receptions, trailing only Raja Andrews, who had 127 catches from 2005-08.
Quarterback Kyle Vantrease has thrown at least one touchdown pass in all nine GS games this season, which is a school record. Vantrease ranks second in the FBS in passing yards per game (331.33 over nine games); and third in passing yards (2,982 on 258 of 419 attempts) and completions per game (28.67). He's tied for 20th in touchdown passes (20).
The Eagles are second in FBS in fewest sacks allowed (three total, 0.33 per game).
Louisiana's Eric Garror is tied for first in FBS with two punt returns for touchdowns. His 14.8 return average (19 returns, 282 yards) is fifth in the nation.
Teammate Bralen Trahan, a senior safety, is tied for ninth in FBS with 0.4 interceptions per game (four in nine games). The Ragin' Cajuns are tied for 12th in turnover margin at plus 0.89 (eight more turnovers gained than lost in nine games). They have six fumble recoveries and 14 interceptions, to five fumbles lost and seven picks thrown.
Clay Helton has coached a college game only once before as a head coach on a Thursday. While coaching Southern Cal, Helton guided the Trojans to a 45-24 win over California on Oct. 27, 2016 at home.
Georgia Southern is 10-6 all-time in games played on Thursdays, 5-2 at home and 5-4 on the road. GS lost last year on the road at South Alabama.
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They said it
Georgia Southern head coach Clay Helton on Louisiana:
"The one thing I've seen in this conference is everybody plays at a very high level. Everybody plays extremely well. You look at that game last week, it's impressive. You go against Troy, which is leading that Western side (division) and (they were) doing a heck of a job. All of a sudden it's 17-0 (for Louisiana) late in the third (quarter) and they lose a heartbreaker (23-17 on a Troy touchdown with 5 seconds left in regulation). I know they've got a lot of pride in that program. .. I would expect another war on our hands Thursday night."
Louisiana head coach Michael Desormeaux on Georgia Southern:
"I think they've done a phenomenal job of completely flipping their offense from what they've been traditionally to what they're doing now. Getting players who can play in that offense effectively, that's hard to do. ...
"Their running backs still have that old-school Georgia Southern mentality. They hit it. They play physical. They present so many problems with them spreading the ball around, they're going to get a light box. They hit it."
Twitter follows
Follow Georgia Southern beat writer Nathan Dominitz of the Savannah Morning News/savannahnow.com @NathanDominitz for Eagles updates. Follow Louisiana beat writer Cory Diaz of the Daily Advertiser of Lafayette, Louisiana @ByCoryDiaz.
You can follow the teams' official Twitter accounts at @GSAthletics_FB and @RaginCajunsFB
Podcast
Listen to the new and previous episodes of the "Georgia Southern Extra" podcast at https://omny.fm/shows/georgia-southern-extra/playlists/podcast
Nathan Dominitz is the Sports Content Editor of the Savannah Morning News and savannahnow.com. Email him at ndominitz@savannahnow.com. Twitter: @NathanDominitz
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Georgia Southern Eagles football vs. Louisiana: TV, radio, kickoff
