# 2018 Georgia State Panthers football team

The 2018 Georgia State Panthers football team represented Georgia State University (GSU) in the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Panthers were led by second-year head coach Shawn Elliott. The season was the Panthers' sixth in the Sun Belt Conference, first within the East Division, and ninth since starting football. They played their home games at Georgia State Stadium. They finished the season 2–10, 1–7 in Sun Belt play to finish in last place in the East Division.

## Recruiting
### Recruits

As of December 21, 2016, the Panthers have a total of 20 recruits committed. Eight are three-star recruits.
| Back | B | Center | C | Cornerback | CB | Defensive back | DB |
| Defensive end | DE | Defensive lineman | DL | Defensive tackle | DT | End | E |
| Fullback | FB | Guard | G | Halfback | HB | Kicker | K |
| Kickoff returner | KR | Offensive tackle | OT | Offensive lineman | OL | Linebacker | LB |
| Long snapper | LS | Punter | P | Punt returner | PR | Quarterback | QB |
| Running back | RB | Safety | S | Tight end | TE | Wide receiver | WR |
US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | 40$^‡$ | Commit date |
| Despelado Alexandre OT | Deerfield Beach, FL | Deerfield Beach High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 275 lb (125 kg) | - | Jun 27, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Danterius Ellington QB | Fulton, MS | Itawamba Community College | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 192 lb (87 kg) | - | Dec 16, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Jacorey Crawford CB | Thomson, GA | Thomson High School | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | - | Nov 3, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Diondre Champaigne WR | North Charleston, SC | Fort Dorchester High School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 194 lb (88 kg) | - | Sep 20, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 77 |||||||
| Tyler Gore CB | Little River, SC | North Myrtle Beach High School | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | - | Jul 22, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Destin Coates RB | Tallahassee, FL | James S. Rickards High School | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | - | Jan 21, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 73 |||||||
| Swift Lyle QB | Mobile, AL | St. Paul's Episcopal School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | - | Jan 31, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80 |||||||
| Sam Pinckney WR | Greenwood, SC | Greenwood High School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | - | Jan 21, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Akeem Smith DT | Virginia Beach, VA | Bishop Sullivan Catholic High School | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 295 lb (134 kg) | 5.68 | Dec 5, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Courtney Williams WR | Hogansville, GA | Callaway High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 179 lb (81 kg) | - | Feb 7, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Blake Carroll LB | Lawrenceville, GA | Mountain View High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 219 lb (99 kg) | 4.84 | Dec 10, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Cornelius McCoy WR | Deerfield Beach, FL | Deerfield Beach High School | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | - | Dec 17, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 73 |||||||
| Quavian White CB, RB | Greer, SC | Greer High School | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 178 lb (81 kg) | 4.78 | Jul 22, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Dawson Hill RB | Hoschton, GA | Mill Creek High School | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 4.58 | Jul 4, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Travis Glover OT | Vienna, GA | Dooly County High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 310 lb (140 kg) | - | Feb 7, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| D'angelo Knight S | North Charleston, SC | Fort Dorchester High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | - | Jul 27, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Jontrey Hunter S | Tampa, FL | Sickles High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | 4.50 | Jan 29, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Seth Paige RB | Glen Saint Mary, FL | Baker County High School | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | 176 lb (80 kg) | 4.47 | Dec 17, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Brandon Joseph OG | Lawrenceville, GA | Central Gwinnett High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 280 lb (130 kg) | - | Jun 19, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Herman McCray TE | West Palm Beach, FL | Oxbridge Academy | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 230 lb (100 kg) | 4.86 | Aug 13, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Mario Dungy DT | Eight Mile, AL | Blount County | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 285 lb (129 kg) | - | Aug 13, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Marlon Young LB | Opelousas, LA | Opelousas High School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 245 lb (111 kg) | 4.67 | Oct 13, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| TJ Smith DE | Laurinburg, NC | Scotland County High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 240 lb (110 kg) | - | Jul 4, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Zachary Dixon TE | Hollywood, FL | Chaminade-Madonna College Preparatory School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | 4.60 | Jan 28, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Tre Moore DE | Johnston, SC | Strom Thurmond High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 230 lb (100 kg) | - | Jun 27, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Johnathan Bass OT | Marietta, GA | Carlton J. Kell High School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 270 lb (120 kg) | 5.20 | Nov 25, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Samuel Oshodi WR | Fort Lauderdale, FL | Cypress Bay High School | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | - | Jul 23, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: 247Sports: 94 |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 27, 2018. |||||||

## Preseason
### Award watch lists

Listed in the order that they were released
| Award | Player | Position | Year |
| Fred Biletnikoff Award | Penny Hart | WR | JR |
| John Mackey Award | Camrin Knight | TE | JR |

### Sun Belt coaches poll

On July 19, 2018, the Sun Belt released their preseason coaches poll with the Panthers predicted to finish in third place in the East Division.
East Division :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | Appalachian State | 46 (6) |
| 2 | Troy | 44 (4) |
| 3 | Georgia State | 26 |
| 4 | Georgia Southern | 22 |
| 5 | Coastal Carolina | 12 |

### Preseason All-Sun Belt Teams

The Panthers had five players selected to the preseason all-Sun Belt teams.

## Coaching and support staff

| Name | Position | Consecutive season at Georgia State in current position |
| Shawn Elliott | Head coach | 2nd |
| Travis Trickett | Offensive coordinator, quarterback | 2nd |
| Nate Fuqua | Defensive coordinator, outside linebackers | 2nd |
| Tim Bowens | Assistant coach, running backs | 1st |
| Chris Collins | Assistant coach, safeties | 2nd |
| Blake Gideon | Assistant coach, cornerbacks | 1st |
| Skylor Magee | Assistant coach, defensive line | 2nd |
| Trent McKnight | Assistant coach, wide receivers | 2nd |
| Josh Stepp | Assistant coach, tight ends | 2nd |
| Cedric Williams | Assistant coach, offensive line | 2nd |
| Rusty Wright | Assistant coach, inside linebacker | 2nd |
| Steve Wojcikowski | Director of football operations | 2nd |
| Scott Holsopple | Head strength and conditioning coach | 3rd |
| Bob Murphy | Associate AD, sports medicine and nutrition | 3rd |
| Reference: |||

## Schedule

Georgia State announced its 2018 football schedule on February 27, 2018. The 2018 schedule consists of 6 home and away games in the regular season. The Panthers host Sun Belt foes ULM, Coastal Carolina, Texas State, and in-state rivals Georgia Southern, and traveled to Troy, Arkansas State, Louisiana, and Appalachian State. Georgia State will not play Sun Belt foe South Alabama this year. The team will play four non-conference games, two home game against Kennesaw State, an FCS team from the Big South Conference, Western Michigan from the Mid-American Conference (MAC), and two road games against NC State from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and Memphis from the American Athletic Conference (AAC).
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 30 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 5 (FCS) Kennesaw State* | Georgia State StadiumAtlanta, GA | ESPN+ | W 24–20 | 23,088 |
| September 8 | 12:30 p.m. | at NC State* | Carter–Finley StadiumRaleigh, NC | ACCRSN | L 7–41 | 56,017 |
| September 14 | 8:00 p.m. | at Memphis* | Liberty Bowl Memorial StadiumMemphis, TN | ESPN | L 22–59 | 27,678 |
| September 22 | 2:00 p.m. | Western Michigan* | Georgia State StadiumAtlanta, GA | ESPN+ | L 15–34 | 15,264 |
| September 29 | 2:00 p.m. | Louisiana–Monroe | Georgia State StadiumAtlanta, GA | ESPN+ | W 46–14 | 14,368 |
| October 4 | 7:30 p.m. | at Troy | Veterans Memorial StadiumTroy, AL | ESPNU | L 20–37 | 22,903 |
| October 18 | 7:30 p.m. | at Arkansas State | Centennial Bank StadiumJonesboro, AR | ESPNU | L 35–51 | 18,176 |
| October 27 | 2:00 p.m. | Coastal Carolina | Georgia State StadiumAtlanta, GA | ESPN+ | L 34–37 | 15,648 |
| November 3 | 2:00 p.m. | Texas State | Georgia State StadiumAtlanta, GA | ESPN+ | L 31–40 | 11,312 |
| November 10 | 5:00 p.m. | at Louisiana | Cajun FieldLafayette, LA | ESPN+ | L 22–36 | 14,945 |
| November 17 | 2:30 p.m. | at Appalachian State | Kidd Brewer StadiumBoone, NC | ESPN+ | L 17–45 | 22,315 |
| November 24 | 2:00 p.m. | Georgia Southern | Georgia State StadiumAtlanta, GA (rivalry) | ESPN+ | L 14–35 | 20,011 |
| *Non-conference gameRankings from AP Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Eastern time |||||||
    Schedule source:

## Game summaries
### Kennesaw State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 5 (FCS) Owls | 7 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 20 |
| Panthers | 0 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 24 |

### At NC State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Wolfpack | 10 | 10 | 7 | 14 | 41 |
at Carter–Finley Stadium • Raleigh, NC
* Date: September 8, 2018
* Game time: 12:30 p.m.
* Game weather: Mostly Sunny
* Game attendance: 56,017
* Referee: David Epperley
* TV announcers (ACCRSN): Wes Durham, James Bates
* Sources:,
Game information :
First quarter
12:37 GSU TD – Destin Coates 5 yard run (Matthew Wright PAT)
09:32 NCSU TD – Ryan Finley 5 yard pass to Thayer Thomas (Christopher Dunn PAT)
03:22 NCSU FG – Christopher Dunn 25 yard field goal
Second quarter
10:41 NCSU TD – Reggie Gallaspy 1 yard run (Christopher Dunn PAT)
00:00 NCSU FG – Christopher Dunn 28 yard field goal
Third quarter
03:43 NCSU TD – Ryan Finley 1 yard pass to Trent Pennix (Christopher Dunn PAT)
Fourth quarter
03:12 NCSU TD – Brady Bodine 39 yard run (Christopher Dunn PAT)
01:12 NCSU TD – Matthew McKay 1 yard run (Christopher Dunn PAT)
Top passers
GSU – Dan Ellington: 15–28, 194 yards
NCSU – Ryan Finley: 31–38, 370 yards, 2 TDs
Top rushers
GSU – Destin Coates: 6 rushes, 43 yards, 1 TD
NCSU – Brady Bodine: 5 rushes, 50 yards, 1 TD
Top Receiving
GSU – Devin Gentry: 5 receptions, 83 yards
NCSU – Kelvin Harmon: 8 receptions, 129 yards :

### At Memphis

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 3 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 22 |
| Tigers | 21 | 17 | 7 | 14 | 59 |

### Western Michigan

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Broncos | 3 | 17 | 14 | 0 | 34 |
| Panthers | 0 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 15 |

### Louisiana–Monroe

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Warhawks | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| Panthers | 14 | 16 | 6 | 10 | 46 |
at Georgia State Stadium • Atlanta, GA
* Date: September 29
* Game time: 1:00 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: 83° · Partly Sunny · WNW – 5 mph.
* Game attendance: 14,368
* Referee: Ted Pitts
* TV: ESPN+
Game information :
First quarter
GSU - Dan Ellington 1-yard TD run, Brandon Wright kick good, 11:55 (GSU 7-0)
GSU - Tra Barnett 23-yard TD run, Wright kick good, 7:18 (GSU 14-0)
ULM - Caleb Evans 21-yard TD run, Craig Ford kick good, 4:26 (GSU 14-7)
Second quarter
GSU - Roger Carter 4-yard TD pass from Ellington, Wright kick no good, 13:00 (GSU 20-7)
GSU - Seth Paige 82-yard TD run, Wright kick good, 11:48 (GSU 27-7)
ULM - Evans 12-yard TD run, Ford kick good, 9:34 (GSU 27-14)
GSU - Wright 42-yard field goal, 1:51 (GSU 30-14)
Third quarter
GSU - Paige 1-yard TD run, Wright kick no good, 6:19 (GSU 36-14)
Fourth quarter
GSU - Wright 35-yard field goal, 14:13 (GSU 39-14)
GSU - Penny Hart 49-yard punt returned for TD, Wright kick good, 12:36 (GSU 46-14)
Leading Passers
GSU - Dan Ellington - 15/18, 179 yards, TD
ULM - Caleb Evans - 19/32, 136 yards, 2 INT
Leading Rushers
GSU - Seth Paige - 9 carries, 145 yards, 2 TD
ULM - Kayn White - carry, 46 yards
Leading Receivers
GSU - Sam Pinckney - 2 receptions, 74 yards
ULM - Marcus Green - 2 receptions, 33 yards :

### At Troy

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 0 | 3 | 3 | 14 | 20 |
| Trojans | 14 | 9 | 0 | 14 | 37 |

### At Arkansas State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 7 | 0 | 14 | 14 | 35 |
| Red Wolves | 20 | 14 | 7 | 10 | 51 |

### Coastal Carolina

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Chanticleers | 17 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 37 |
| Panthers | 7 | 6 | 21 | 0 | 34 |

### Texas State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bobcats | 13 | 0 | 20 | 7 | 40 |
| Panthers | 7 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 31 |

### At Louisiana

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 22 |
| Ragin' Cajuns | 7 | 6 | 3 | 20 | 36 |

### At Appalachian State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 7 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 17 |
| Mountaineers | 14 | 3 | 14 | 14 | 45 |

### Georgia Southern

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 0 | 13 | 15 | 7 | 35 |
| Panthers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 |