GEORGIA STATE FOOTBALL Game 9: GEORGIA STATE (2-6, 1-3 SBC) vs. TEXAS STATE (2-6, 1-3 SBC) Saturday, Nov. 14 • 4 p.m. ET • Bobcat Stadium • San Marcos, Texas • ESPN3 THE KICKOFF: Georgia State and Texas State take identical FACTS TEXAS STATE GEORGIA STATE records of 2-6 overall, 1-3 in the Sun Belt into Saturday’s 4 p.m. ET 2015 Records 2-6, 1-3 SBC 2-6, 1-3 SBC game at Bobcat Stadium in San Marcos, Texas. The Panthers suffered a 23-21 home loss to UL Lafayette in Nickname Bobcats Panthers which the GSU defense turned in a strong performance, holding Location San Marcos, Texas Atlanta, Ga. ULL to one offensive touchdown and three field goals and 307 total Enrollment 36,790 32,000 yards, despite playing without both starting inside linebackers. Nick Conference Sun Belt Sun Belt Arbuckle passed for 313 yards and two touchdowns, two of them to Head Coach Dennis Franchione Trent Miles tight end Keith Rucker, and Demarcus Kirk rushed for 85 yards on 14 Alma Mater Pittsburg State, 1973 Indiana State, 1987 carries. Texas State is coming off a 31-21 loss to New Mexico State. Record at School 41-26 (5th year) 3-29 (3rd year) Career Record 212-132-8 (29th year) 23-65 (8th year) GAME COVERAGE: Television coverage is on ESPN3. Series Record Texas State leads 2-0 Announcers are Marc Hoenig and Bucky Godbolt. Every Georgia Last Meeting Texas State 54, Georgia State 31 (2014 at GSU) State game this season will be televised, including every Sun Belt Conference game on one of the ESPN platforms. PENNY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS: One of the nation’s top Radio coverage is available on the Grady Health Systems Georgia rookies, Penny Hart was named to the Watch List for the Biletnkoff as State Radio Network, including Atlanta flagship 1340 The Fan 3. the outstanding receiver in college football. Dave Cohen is in his 33rd season as the play-by-play voice of Panther Hart ranks second among all freshmen receivers in the FBS in athletics, while Brandon Leak and Harper LeBel join him from the receiving yards (91.6 pg), third in receptions (5.9 pg) and fourth in booth, and Sam Crenshaw adds sideline coverage. touchdown receptions (4). Among all players, he is second in the Sun Belt in receiving yards and third in receptions. PASSING FANCY: In 20 games in a Georgia State uniform, The 5-8, 170-pound Hart had nine catches for 128 yards at No. 12 quarterback Nick Arbuckle is averaging 297.4 yards passing per Oregon. game. That ranks FOURTH AMONG ALL ACTIVE FBS QUARTERBACKS, That followed a record-setting game of 11 receptions for 150 trailing only Washington State’s Luke Falk, Cal’s Jared Goff and Texas yards and two touchdowns in the Panthers’ win at New Mexico State. Tech’s Patrick Mahomes. Hart tied the Georgia State record for catches in a game, while his 150 This season, Arbuckle leads the Sun Belt and ranks seventh in yards are the seventh-most in school history. He hauled in scoring FBS in passing yards (333.0 pg). He is also first in the league in total passes of 15 and 24 yards. offense (322.0 pg), second in pass efficiency (148.6) and third in Hart had a 53-yard touchdown in the season opener on his first touchdowns (16). collegiate catch, and a 58-yard touchdown vs. Liberty. He added FBS ACTIVE CAREER LEADERS - seven receptions for 128 yards at Arkansas State and then narrowly missed his fourth 100-yard game with five catches for 97 yards vs. UL PASSING YARDS PER GAME Lafayette. 1 Luke Falk, Washington State ...............373.0 As a high school senior in Atlanta, Hart played quarterback, slot 2 Jared Goff, California .............................313.3 receiver and running back at King’s Ridge Christian School in Class A. 3 Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech .............298.5 He had a remarkable performance in his final game, when he rushed 4 Nick Arbuckle, Georgia State .........297.4 for 390 yards and seven touchdowns. 5 Brandon Doughty, Western Ky. ..........284.6 SULLIVAN PICKS SIX, THEN NAMED ACADEMIC ALL- GEORGIA STATE vs. TEXAS STATE: Texas State has won both DISTRICT: Sophomore cornerback Chandon Sullivan has been meetings with Georgia State. Last season in the season finale at the named to the Capital One Academic All-District 4 team. The jour- Georgia Dome, the Panthers put up 516 yards of offense, including nalism major from Winder, Ga., sports a 3.7 grade point average. 356 yards passing and four touchdown passes by Nick Arbuckle, Sullivan enjoyed his best game in a Panther uniform against but Texas State won 54-31. In 2013 at Texas State, Georgia State fell Arkansas State as he made history with his 25-yard interception 24-17. return for a touchdown at Arkansas State. That play marked the first “pick six” in GSU’s six-year football log. 2015 SCHEDULE & RESULTS (All times Eastern) Date Opponent Time TV Site Series Result Sept. 4 (Fri.) CHARLOTTE 3:30 p.m. ESPNU GEORGIA DOME 0-1 hL 20-23 Sept. 12 at New Mexico State 8 p.m. ESPN3 Las Cruces, N.M. 1-1 aW 34-32 Sept. 19 at Oregon (12/13) 2 p.m. Pac-12 Eugene, Ore. 0-1 aL 28-61 Oct. 3 LIBERTY (Homecoming) 3:30 p.m. ESPN3 GEORGIA DOME 0-1 hL 33-41 Oct. 10 APPALACHIAN STATE 3:30 p.m. ESPN3 GEORGIA DOME 0-2 hL 3-37 Oct. 17 at Ball State 3 p.m. ESPN3 Muncie, Ind. 1-0 aW 31-19 Oct. 31 at Arkansas State 7 p.m. ESPN3 Jonesboro, Ark. 0-3 aL 34-48 Nov. 7 UL LAFAYETTE 2 p.m. ESPN3 GEORGIA DOME 0-3 hL 21-23 Nov. 14 at Texas State 4 p.m. ESPN3 San Marcos, Texas 0-2 Nov. 21 SOUTH ALABAMA 2 p.m. ESPN3 GEORGIA DOME 1-3 Nov. 27 (Fri.) TROY TBA ESPN3 GEORGIA DOME 0-2 Dec. 5 at Georgia Southern 2 p.m. ESPN3 Statesboro, Ga. 0-1 2015 GEORGIA STATE FOOTBALL NOTES, PAGE 2 GAME 9: GEORGIA STATE vs. TEXAS STATE GENERAL INFORMATION Before his touchdown gave the Panthers yards and no pass longer than 19 yards. Full Name Georgia State University a 20-13 lead, Sullivan also made another The performance was especially gratifying big play with a third-down sack that forced to GSU defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, Location Atlanta, GA a punt, leading to another GSU touchdown whose father, Rick Minter, served as Ball Founded 1913 two plays later. State’s defensive coordinator from 1985-91. Enrollment 32,000 Jesse Minter spent much of his childhood Nickname Panthers FOUR SCORES IN TWO GAMES FOR living just outside Muncie, and he attended RUCKER: Junior tight end Keith Rucker the same high school, Yorktown, as Ball State Colors Blue & White caught two touchdowns each in back-to- starting quarterback Riley Neal. Affiliation NCAA Division I FBS back games. Last game against UL Lafayette, the GSU Conference Sun Belt Conference Against Arkansas State, he caught touch- defense held the Ragin’ Cajuns to 307 total President Mark P. Becker downs of nine and 25 yards. He finished yards with one offensive touchdown and Director of Athletics Charlie Cobb with five receptions for 61 yards and was three field goals in the Panthers’ 23-21 loss. an honorable mention selection for John Mackey Tight End of the Week. THROWN FOR A LOSS: With 10 COACHING STAFF He added touchdowns of eight and three tackles for loss, junior linebacker Alonzo Head Coach Trent Miles yards vs. UL Lafayette, the second one a one- McGee has already broken the Georgia State Assistant Head Coach/ Harold Etheridge handed grab in the end zone worthy of the season record. He is fourth in the Sun Belt. SportsCenter Top 10. Offensive Line McGee broke the record Tarris Batiste set Stepping in after a season-ending injury last season with 9.5 TFL. Offensive Coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski to all-conference tight end Joel Ruiz, Rucker But now Batiste has a chance to grab Defensive Coordinator Jesse Minter responded with 17 receptions for 170 another record. The senior safety has 19.5 Wide Receivers Tim Lappano yards and four touchdowns over the last TFL in his career, and his next one will break Quarterbacks Luke Huard two games. For the season, he is the team’s the Panthers’ career mark of 20 set by Jarrell third-leading receiver with 24 catches for 277 Robinson. Secondary Eric Lewis yards, and he is fourth in the Sun Belt with Outside Linebackers Larry Knight five touchdown receptions. ARBUCKLE HONORED BY SUN Defensive Line Tony Samuel BELT: Quarterback Nick Arbuckle was Linebackers/Recruiting Coord. P.J. Volker KIRK, SMITH STEP IN AT RB: After named Sun Belt Conference Offensive injuries to the team’s top three running Student-Athlete of the Week on Oct. 19 after Graduate Assistants Ben McLane (off.), backs (Kyler Neal, Taz Bateman, Kendrick leading the Panthers to a 31-19 victory at Chris O’Leary (def.), Reid Sanders (off.) Dorn), redshirt freshman Demarcus Kirk and Ball State. Liam Smith (def.) sophomore Glenn Smith have taken over in Arbuckle passed for 412 yards and Strength & Conditioning Scott Holsopple the backfield. accounted for three touchdowns. He Athletic Trainer Bob Murphy Kirk, a transfer from UAB, rushed for 85 completed 28 of 38 passes with one Equipment Manager Nick Vogt yards on 14 carries vs. UL Lafayette. One touchdown and no interceptions while Director of Operations Dusty Bennett game earlier, he scored his first touchdown scoring twice on 1-yard runs.