Georgia State hoped to see good things from its new quarterback, revamped rushing attack and rebuilt defense in its season opener against Clark Atlanta.
Bo Schlechter threw three touchdown passes in his first start, including two to Albert Wilson, with nary a turnover. Donald Russell led a rushing attack with two touchdowns, and the defense intercepted two passes in a 41-7 victory Friday night at the Georgia Dome.
Russell, a transfer from Kentucky, scored the first two times he touched the ball on runs of 20 and 3 yards to lead the offense. Coach Bill Curry wanted to see improvement in the area because the Panthers averaged a meager 123.3 yards per game last season.
"Donald makes a difference when he carries the ball," Curry said of Russell, who had 56 of the team's 146 rushing yards.
And that difference?
"I believe it's downhill running," Russell said. "Ive been taught at my previous school to get the yards I can get, that's good enough."
On defense, the Panthers gave up an average of 187.4 rushing yards as part of 356.9 allowed last season. They proved much better Friday. Safety Demazio Skelton and linebacker Robert Ferguson set up Russell’s scores with interceptions on back-to-back series in the second quarter. Clark Atlanta finished with 247 yards in offense.
"The turnovers were the biggest differences in the game," Curry said. "They gave us great field positions."
Schlechter, who completed 13 of his 18 passes for196 yards, showed a nice touch on the deep pass, throwing a 48-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Wilson streaking down the middle of the field with 8:09 left in the game. Schlechter also had a 30-yard touchdown strike to a leaping Wilson that gave the Panthers a 31-0 lead early in the third quarter. The play was set up by a tough, 24-yard run up the middle by Travis Evans.
Schlechter also showed good clock management by leading the Panthers on a 76-yard scoring drive, capped by a 12-yard pass to Jordan Giles, who won his man-to-man coverage battle, to take a 24-0 lead with 1:24 left in the first half. The drive started with 5:05 remaining.
"It was my first college start, but I tried to come out confident," said Schlechter, who led an offense that was 5-for-5 in scoring chances inside the 20-yard line. "I got a little confidence and felt better in second quarter."
The Panthers grabbed a 17-0 lead earlier on a 3-yard scoring run by Russell, his second touchdown in as many carries. The drive was set up by Ferguson’s interception. He picked off a T.J. Smith pass at the 34-yard line and returned it to the 3.
"My defensive back, D'Mario Gunn, told me to watch the flat route and I did what he told me," said Ferguson, who added he got some grief from his teammates because he didn't score on the play.
Georgia State took a 10-0 lead on a 20-yard scoring run by Russell. A powerfully built runner, he broke a tackle and outran the secondary to the corner.
The scoring play was set up by Skelton’s interception. He ran under a tipped Bryan Mann pass on a third-and-10 at Clark Atlanta’s 32-yard line. Schlechter hit Danny Williams for 14 yards on first down, and Russell scored on the next play.
Georgia State grabbed a 3-0 lead in the first quarter on a 44-yard field goal by freshman Christian Benvenuto. He added a 45-yard field goal with 1:29 left in the third quarter that give Georgia State a 34-0 lead.
Clark Atlanta scored on a 34-yard pass from Mann to Terrence Milton with 14:52 remaining in the game. Clark Atlanta coach Daryl McNeill said he saw a lot of positives in the defeat.
"You are talking about a team that has done a lot of good things in the past," he said. "One big positive that I love was that Rashad Lewis, freshman tailback, showing flashes of a Winston Thomas, and that was a great thing. We have a lot of positives and feel pretty good about it. Coach Curry even commented after the game that he thought we have a championship team if we stay together."
Getting the original questions answered was important for Georgia State because it has a tough five-game stretch upcoming, starting with future CAA foe Old Dominion at the Georgia Dome next weekend.
"The next one is a substantial part of our future," Curry said. "They taught us some lessons last year."
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