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Three takeaways from Texas State’s loss to Georgia Southern

Texas State Football
Friday, October 12, 2018

Texas State made another second half near-comeback on Thursday, but came up short again as the Bobcats fell to Georgia Southern, 15-13.

A strong showing by the defense wasn’t enough as Texas State struggled to put points on the board inside Bobcat Stadium.

Here are three takeaways from Thursday’s loss:

Defense contains the triple option

The Eagles came into this game as the No. 7 rushing team in the nation with 1,376 yards on 247 carries. But the Bobcats came prepared for the option offense.

Georgia Southern took 52 carries for just 164 yards for a robust 3.2 yards per carry clip — the second lowest mark of the season for the Eagles. Junior linebacker Bryan London II led the team in tackles for the sixth-consecutive game with 11, and fellow junior linebacker Nikolas Daniels pitched in with a career-high 10.

The Texas State defense also allowed its lowest point total of the season, giving up just two scoring drives: a 13-play, 77-yarder in the second quarter, capped off by a 5-yard touchdown run by senior running back Wesley Fields, and a field goal in which Georgia Southern went nine yards on three plays on a short field.

“I thought our defense did a really good job tonight,” Withers said. “They did an unbelievable job tonight ... Now we have to build off of it, we have to enhance that and make it better. We can’t be up and down. We were really poor last week stopping the run, we were really good this week stopping the run.”

Willie Jones III returns

Freshman quarterback Tyler Vitt was named the starter for the second consecutive game. However, after throwing for 78 yards and an interception after the first half, the Bobcats turned to sophomore quarterback Willie Jones III.

It was Jones’ first appearance on the field since being sidelined with an injury early in the UTSA game on Sept. 22. Jones made plays on his feet, as usual, using 10 carries to go 37 yards. But the quarterback looked rusty throwing the ball, completing just one of his six throws for three yards.

Jones also took a sack inside Texas State’s endzone, resulting in a safety for the Eagles.

“You’re looking for a spark,” Withers said. “Tyler’s doing the best he can. We’ve got to protect him better.”

Vitt eventually returned on the last drive of the fourth quarter and found sophomore wide receiver Jeremiah Haydel for a 29-yard touchdown to cut Georgia Southern’s lead, 15-13. Vitt’s pass was off the mark on the following two-point conversion, though, and the Eagles ran out the clock on the next drive. The freshman finished the night going 13-21 for 132 yards.

Keenen Brown, leading rusher

The graduate senior is known for his big catches, and he still had plenty of those, reeling in three passes for 24 yards. But Brown’s biggest plays of the night came on the ground.

Down 15-0 late in the third quarter on the Bobcats’ 35-yard line, Brown ran a sweep from the right side of the field and charged ahead down the left sideline. Brown nearly cashed in before Georgia Southern redshirt junior cornerback Marquavion Brinson brought him down inside the five. The 61-yard rush was Texas State’s longest run of the night.

After sophomore quarterback Willie Jones III took a keeper forward for another yard on first down, the Bobcats went back to Brown. The tight end took another handoff for three yards and punched into the endzone for Texas State’s first score of the game.

“I wanted to get in (the endzone) bad,” Brown said. “I was a little tired at the end (of the first run), though … I think that was my first handoff since little league.”

Brown’s 64 yards led all ball carriers, as the Bobcats’ other five runners gained just 43 yards on 30 attempts.

San Marcos Record

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