Georgia State will hold it final scrimmage of the spring practices on Saturday at Panthersville.
The game will start at 1 p.m. Parking lots will open at 8:30 a.m. Admission is free.
The Panthers went 6-7 last season and played in their first bowl game. The team returns nine starters on defense and seven on offense.
Defensive coordinator Jesse Minter said the defense will run mostly out of its base on Saturday. There will be some mixing and matching of players to come up with teams for the scrimmage.
Here are four players to watch on defense:
Rush end Andrew Everett: The transfer played mostly as a defensive end when he was a starter for two years at Old Dominion, so he's learning the intricacies of coverage.
“We expect him to be a big-time contributor this fall,” Minter said.
The Panthers struggled to get to the quarterback last season with 18 sacks. Everett, 6-foot-5, 240 pounds, has shown enough potential that it enabled the coaching staff to move Michael Shaw from the position to strongside linebacker.
Safety Bryan Williams: Williams is trying to replace Tarris Batiste, one of the two starters from last year's defense that exhausted their eligibility. Williams is a fifth-year senior who has battled his way from a serious back injury. Minter said that Williams has become a coach on the field because of his ability to recognize formations and plays.
“Now, it’s about going and making plays,” Minter said.
Williams is the one mystery in a secondary that returns three starters, including two all-conference performers in cornerback Chandon Sullivan and safety Bobby Baker.
Weakside linebacker Alonzo McGee: In the shuffling of linebackers related to Everett and Shaw, McGee moved from strongside linebacker, where he was particularly effective against option offenses last year, to weakside linebacker, which is his natural position and what he played at Alabama-Birmingham before transferring when the program was shut down.
McGee was named all-conference last year after making 70 tackles, 12 ½ for loss with 2 ½ sacks.
“He’s a playmaker for us,” Minter said. “We need to find ways to get him into position to make plays, like Joe P. (Peterson) last year. Expect a very productive year out of ’Zo.”
Safety Antreal Allen: Allen has moved into nickelback for the Panthers, and shown the ability to play safety or cornerback if needed. The junior had two interceptions in the second scrimmage.
Allen reflects Minter’s belief that the more positions players can master, the better their chance of playing.
“He’s a jack-of-all-trades defensive back for us,” Minter said. “He’s having a great spring, particularly at nickelback. We expect him to be a good contributor, as well.”
