Georgia Southern football vs. UAB on Saturday: Kickoff, how to watch and more
The Georgia Southern Eagles (2-0, 0-0 Sun Belt Conference) play the UAB Blazers (1-1, 0-0 Conference USA) on Saturday in a non-conference matchup two Group of 5 programs. Here's how to watch and listen to the game, the second on the road in the Clay Helton era after the 45-42 win on Sept. 10 over host and three-touchdown favorite Nebraska of the Power 5 Big Ten.
New deal for AD: Georgia Southern athletic director Jared Benko getting $90,000 raise for department's success
Welcome receptions: From acrobatic catches to clutch grabs, Burgess a big-play receiver for Georgia Southern
Eat up: Patience and a healthy appetite pay off for Georgia Southern defensive lineman Trevon Locke
Commentary: Upset at Nebraska helps build back Georgia Southern football, 1 win at a time
Get Eagles news in your inbox: Sign-up for our free, weekly newsletter on all things Georgia Southern sports
What time do the Georgia Southern Eagles play the UAB Blazers?
Kickoff: 3:30 p.m. ET, Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022
Location: Protective Stadium (capacity 47,000), Birmingham, Alabama
How to watch on TV
Chris Hassel (play-by-play) and Sed Bonner (analyst) will have the call on Stadium, a digital television and internet sports network operated as a multi-platform sports network. While not available on televisions in Georgia, Stadium includes a 24/7 linear feed distributed across both digital and broadcast platforms, as well as on-demand (VOD) digital content including additional live games and events. Go to watchstadium.com or https://watchstadium.com/ for more information.
Radio for Georgia Southern at UAB
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.
Betting: Over/under & point spread
As of Friday, UAB is an 11.5-point favorite, according to the Tipico Sportsbook. The over/under was 56.5 points and the money line was +350 on GS and -450 on UAB.
Series history
Georgia Southern and UAB have never met in football.
How Eagles won: Takeaways from Georgia Southern's upset of Nebraska on Saturday night
Recap: Georgia Southern stuns Nebraska Cornhuskers with victory in Lincoln
Annual visit: Kyle Vantrease returns to hostile territory at Nebraska, this time as QB for Georgia Southern
Kenerson's season-ending injury
Georgia Southern announced Wednesday night that wide receiver Sam Kenerson will undergo surgery on his right knee Thursday to repair torn ligaments sustained in the victory at Nebraska last Saturday.
Kenerson (5-9, 170 pounds), a redshirt sophomore, will miss the rest of the season. He had eight catches for 130 yards. He was recruited to GS as a quarterback and converted to receiver during the 2021 season.
Game notes
The Eagles lead the Sun Belt in rushing touchdowns (nine) and passing yards per game (388). They are ranked near the top of the nation's FBS programs in total offense (second, 573 yards per game), passing offense (fourth, 388 average), pass attempts (second, 51 average) and scoring (fifth, 52 points a game) ...
GS is 13-6 all-time against current members of Conference USA, 23-14 against teams from Alabama and 11-10 in games playing in Alabama. ...
Eagles offensive line coach Richard Owens came from UAB this season after coaching the Blazers from 2019-21 and also 2012-14. Offensive coordinator Bryan Ellis was a QB at UAB (2007-11). In 2010. Ellis had nine starts for the Blazers with 2,940 passing yards and 25 TDs in 11 total games. He was a graduate assistant at UAB in 2012-13. Georgia Southern special teams coordinator Turner West was an intern for the Blazers in 2011.
UAB linebacker Reynard Ellis (6-foot, 240 pounds) made his collegiate debut at Furman in 2017, then transferred to GS and sat out the 2018 season. He played for Georgia Southern in 2019 and 2020, earning all-conference honors each season. He has seven total tackles in two games for UAB this season.
Bryant Vincent was named the UAB interim head football coach on June 27. He enters his sixth year at UAB and served as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for five previous seasons (2014, 2018-21). ...
Despite four turnovers on offense in the 21-14 loss last Saturday at Liberty, UAB's defense allowed zero points off those turnovers. The Blazers, who opened with a 59-0 win over Alabama A&M, are allowing 312.5 yards per game and 169.0 passing yards per game. Additionally, UAB ranks 12th nationally in third-down defense, holding opponents to 6 of 27 (22.2%) through two games. ...
Georgia Southern quarterback Kyle Vantrease earned the Sun Belt's Offensive Player of the Week honor for his performance in the win at Nebraska. The sixth-year QB completed 37 of 56 passes for 409 yards and a touchdown, before running 8 yards into the end zone for the winning touchdown with 36 seconds to play. Vantrease’s 56 attempts tied the program record, while his 37 completions and 409 passing yards were the second-most in program history. Vantrease, a transfer this season from the University of Buffalo, became the first Georgia Southern QB to post back-to-back 300-yard passing games. ...
After missing the first game due to illness, UAB's DeWayne McBride returned to rush for 177 yards and a TD against Liberty. McBride is sixth nationally among active players with a career average of 99.4 rushing yards per game and is averaging 7.3 yards per carry for his career. Teammate Jermaine Brown Jr. added 91 rushing yards and is 10th on UAB's career rushing list. Both McBride (seventh, 1,987 yards) and Brown Jr. (10th, 1,532) rank top 10 in rushing all time at UAB.
They said it
Georgia Southern head coach Clay Helton on his 2-0 team's confidence:
"We saw that confidence in the second half of our first game, and it really carried over to the second game. I saw a lot of poise. It was about making the most of the opportunity; whether it was that game or that last drive, they just wanted the opportunity. For the offense to go out there when the lights were the brightest and it was the most important part of the game, they made huge plays down the stretch. That's who they are and that's what they're developing into is a confident football team that knows they can accomplish some great things together."
UAB interim head coach Bryant Vincent on connections between UAB and Georgia Southern:
"(GS offensive line) coach (Richard) Owens and I worked together for six years. We have a strong relationship. (GS offensive coordinator and former UAB QB) Bryan Ellis — I have known Bryan for 10 years and have a strong relationship with him. I have a lot of respect for Bryan, I have a lot of respect for Richard. They are good friends of mine. They do a great job. Obviously, Richard Owens coaching here and Bryan Ellis playing quarterback here, it adds a little twist to the story. At the end of the day, we have to prepare."
UAB center Will Rykard, a graduate of Colquitt County (Georgia) High, on playing GS:
"I am from South Georgia. I know a lot of people from Southern, so it means a lot playing a Georgia team. I am proud South Georgia boy, but I am definitely an Alabama native this week, I can promise you that."
Twitter follows
Follow Georgia Southern beat writer Nathan Dominitz of the Savannah Morning News/savannahnow.com @NathanDominitz for GS updates. You can follow the teams' official Twitter accounts at @GSAthletics_FB and @UAB_FB
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 team to play UAB: When is it on TV?
