# 2017 Georgia Southern Eagles football team

The 2017 Georgia Southern Eagles football team represented Georgia Southern University in the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Eagles played their home games at Paulson Stadium in Statesboro, Georgia, and competed in the Sun Belt Conference. They were led by coach Chad Lunsford following the mid-season firing of second-year head coach Tyson Summers. They finished the season 2–10, 2–6 in Sun Belt play to finish in a tie for tenth place.
Following the season, interim head coach Chad Lunsford was promoted to head coach.

## Schedule

Georgia Southern announced its 2017 football schedule on March 1, 2017. The 2016 schedule consisted of five home and seven away games in the regular season. The Eagles hosted Sun Belt opponents Arkansas State, New Mexico State, Georgia State, and South Alabama, and traveled to Troy, Appalachian State, Louisiana-Lafayette, and Coastal Carolina.
The team played four non–conference games, one home game against New Hampshire from the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA), and traveled to three road games against Auburn from the Southeastern Conference (SEC), Indiana from the Big Ten Conference (B1G) and UMass (Independent). Due to the then-impending impact of Hurricane Irma on southern Georgia, the home game against New Hampshire was relocated to Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama.
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 2 | 7:30 p.m. | at No. 12 Auburn* | Jordan–Hare StadiumAuburn, AL | SECN | L 7–41 | 87,451 |
| September 9 | 4:00 p.m. | No. 12 (FCS) New Hampshire* | Legion FieldBirmingham, AL | ESPN3 | L 12–22 | 3,387 |
| September 23 | 3:30 p.m. | at Indiana* | Memorial StadiumBloomington, IN | BTN | L 17–52 | 42,886 |
| October 4 | 8:00 p.m. | Arkansas State | Paulson StadiumStatesboro, GA | ESPN2 | L 25–43 | 13,781 |
| October 14 | 6:00 p.m. | New Mexico State | Paulson StadiumStatesboro, GA | ESPN3 | L 27–35 | 16,278 |
| October 21 | 3:30 p.m. | at UMass* | Warren McGuirk Alumni StadiumHadley, MA | ELVN | L 20–55 | 10,690 |
| October 28 | 3:30 p.m. | at Troy | Veterans Memorial StadiumTroy, AL | ESPN3 | L 16–38 | 23,846 |
| November 4 | 3:00 p.m. | Georgia State | Paulson StadiumStatesboro, GA (rivalry) | ESPN3 | L 17–21 | 18,722 |
| November 9 | 7:30 p.m. | at Appalachian State | Kidd Brewer StadiumBoone, NC (rivalry) | ESPNU | L 6–27 | 23,110 |
| November 18 | 3:00 p.m. | South Alabama | Paulson StadiumStatesboro, GA | ESPN3 | W 52–0 | 12,250 |
| November 25 | 5:00 p.m. | at Louisiana–Lafayette | Cajun FieldLafayette, LA | ESPN3 | W 34–24 | 12,993 |
| December 2 | 1:00 p.m. | at Coastal Carolina | Brooks StadiumConway, SC | ESPN3 | L 17–28 | 15,951 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll (FBS) or STATS Poll (FCS) released prior to gameAll times are in Eastern time |||||||

## Game summaries
### At Auburn

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| No. 12 Tigers | 10 | 14 | 10 | 7 | 41 |
at Jordan–Hare Stadium • Auburn, Alabama
* Date: September 2, 2017
* Game time: 7:39 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Temperature: 85° • Wind: NW4 • Weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 87,451
* Referee: Ken Williamson
* TV announcers (SEC Network): Tom Hart (play-by-play), Jordan Rodgers (analyst), Cole Cubelic (sideline reporter)
Game information :
First Quarter
AUB – Daniel Carlson 50 yd field goal, 12:01 (AUB 3–0)
AUB – Kerryon Johnson 60 yd run (Daniel Carlson kick), 5:11 (AUB 10–0)
GASO – Tomarcio Reese 22 yd fumble return (Tyler Bass kick), 0:36 (AUB 10–7)
Second Quarter
AUB – Jarrett Stidham 14 yd run (Daniel Carlson kick), 8:36 (AUB 17–7)
AUB – Kam Martin 36 yd run (Daniel Carlson kick), 4:52 (AUB 24–7)
Third Quarter
AUB – Ryan Davis 19 yd pass from Jarrett Stidham (Daniel Carlson kick), 10:56 (AUB 31–7)
AUB – Daniel Carlson 37 yd field goal, 5:20 (AUB 34–7)
Fourth Quarter
AUB – Will Hastings 19 yd pass from Jarrett Stidham (Daniel Carlson kick), 9:18 (AUB 41–7)
Top Passers
GASO − Shai Werts - 4–8, 8 yds, 1 INT
AUB – Jarrett Stidham - 14–24, 185 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Top Rushers
GASO – L.A. Ramsby - 11 carries, 33 yds
AUB – Kerryon Johnson - 16 carries, 136 yds, 1 TD
Top Receivers
GASO – Obe Fortune - 1 reception, 7 yds
AUB – Will Hastings - 4 receptions, 68 yds, 1 TD :

### New Hampshire

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 12 (FCS) Wildcats | 15 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| Eagles | 0 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 12 |

### At Indiana

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 0 | 7 | 10 | 0 | 17 |
| Hoosiers | 21 | 10 | 14 | 7 | 52 |
at Memorial Stadium • Bloomington, Indiana
* Date: September 23, 2017
* Game time: 3:40 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 90 °F (32 °C)
* Game attendance: 42,886
* Referee: Don Willard
* TV announcers (BTN): Lisa Byington (play-by-play), Jeremy Leman (analyst)
* Sources:
| Statistics | GASO | IU |
| First downs | 15 | 20 |
| Total yards | 375 | 467 |
| Rushes/yards | 54–242 | 47–282 |
| Passing yards | 133 | 185 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 7–16–0 | 11–22–0 |
| Time of possession | 34:11 | 25:49 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Georgia Southern | Passing | Shai Werts | 6/14, 129 yards, 2 TD |
| Georgia Southern | Rushing | L. A. Ramsby | 18 carries, 108 yards |
| Georgia Southern | Receiving | D'Ondre Glenn | 3 receptions, 98 yards, TD |
| Indiana | Passing | Richard Lagow | 8/13, 130 yards, TD |
| Indiana | Rushing | Morgan Ellison | 25 carries, 186 yards, 2 TD |
| Indiana | Receiving | Ian Thomas | 2 receptions, 79 yards, TD |

### Arkansas State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Red Wolves | 3 | 19 | 14 | 7 | 43 |
| Eagles | 0 | 17 | 0 | 8 | 25 |

### New Mexico State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Aggies | 14 | 7 | 0 | 14 | 35 |
| Eagles | 14 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 27 |

### At UMass

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 7 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 20 |
| Minutemen | 28 | 20 | 0 | 7 | 55 |
Tyson Summers was fired as head coach the day after the game. Assistant head coach Chad Lunsford was named interim coach for the remainder of the season.

### At Troy

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 7 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 16 |
| Trojans | 14 | 14 | 3 | 7 | 38 |

### Georgia State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 7 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
| Eagles | 7 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 17 |

### At Appalachian State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| Mountaineers | 0 | 10 | 3 | 14 | 27 |

### South Alabama

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Jaguars | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Eagles | 21 | 10 | 14 | 7 | 52 |

### At Louisiana–Lafayette

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 14 | 3 | 10 | 7 | 34 |
| Ragin' Cajuns | 0 | 7 | 3 | 14 | 24 |

### At Coastal Carolina

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 3 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
| Chanticleers | 7 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 28 |