Georgia State will make change at safety

There will be at least one change to the starters on Georgia State’s defense for Saturday’s game at Appalachian State.

After the Panthers gave up a Sun Belt-record 613 rushing yards in a 69-31 loss to Georgia Southern last week, it appears that the first change made will be made at safety.

Neither coach Trent Miles nor defensive coordinator Jesse Minter would say which player, but one of the safeties was consistently out of position against the Eagles’ basic look, a look that led to several of their 10 touchdowns. Miles took responsibility for the issue, saying it’s his job to make sure that the coaches are making sure the players line up correctly, and that the players execute what is being asked.

Based upon who they didn’t include as probable starters for Saturday’s game, Nate Simon was the out-of-position player.

“Defensively, we failed to get a couple of guys to understand how they needed to line up,” Miles said. “We as a staff have to do a better job of getting guys to line up in the right spot.”

That perceived communication breakdown is what Miles referred to after the game when discussing his need to evaluate the coaching staff and players. At the time, Miles wasn’t sure if the problem was communication or execution.

“Very frustrating as a coach when adjustments you are trying to get done don’t get done,” Minter said. “Ultimately it’s my responsibility and our coaching staff’s responsibility so we have to do a better job of finding out what we can do well and giving us a chance to compete better.”