Heading into to Saturday’s game at Center Parc Stadium, Georgia State was favored by 2.5 points over Army. Later that afternoon, the Black Knights left Atlanta with a 43-10 victory. Prior to the game, most would’ve considered it a coin toss between the two teams, but a 33 point margin was not expected, to say the least.

What Army Did Well: Sticking with the Run Game

71 plays – four pass attempts, 67 rushes. Army stuck to their identity, and it worked. The Black Knights ran the ball for 258 yards, almost on par with their season average from last year. They were able to wear down the defense, and it opened up the field for a few explosive pass plays, with two of the four pass attempts from Army resulting in touchdowns. Despite Georgia State knowing Army would rely heavily on the run, the Black Knights were still able to have an efficient game on the ground – this is a great sign for Army moving forward. 

What Georgia State Did Well: Putting Together a Couple Solid Drives

Despite a 33 point loss, Georgia State did show some reasons for optimism within the program. The Panthers put together two scoring drives, one capped off with a 16 yard touchdown run from senior running back, Destin Coates and the other with a field goal from senior placekicker, Noel Ruiz. Throughout both drives, Georgia State proved they can move the ball efficiently – now the question becomes whether or not they can do this on a more consistent basis. 

What Army Didn’t Do Well: Yards Per Play

When a team wins a football game by 33 points, more often than not, they did most things well. This was exactly the case for Army on Saturday – and clearly we’re going to be nitpicking when it comes to what they didn’t do well. With that said, Army had a lack of explosive plays, only averaging five yards per play. According to last season’s averages, that would put Army right in the middle of the pack across FBS teams in yards per play. Under head coach, Jeff Monken, Army has consistently been a traditional ground and pound team. Their play style doesn’t lend itself to large amounts of explosive plays downfield, and they’ve had a fair amount of success without those plays. Last season, the Black Knights averaged just 4.5 yards per play, while going 9-3 and earning their fourth bowl game appearance in the past five seasons. With all things considered, is this a very pressing issue for Coach Monken and his staff – probably not, but again, we’re nitpicking. 

What Georgia State Didn’t Do Well: Winning the Line of Scrimmage

On both sides of the ball, Georgia State struggled at the line of scrimmage. Offensively, the Panthers gave up three sacks and a number of quarterback hurries, giving Cornelious Brown, very little time to read the defense and make accurate throws. On the ground, Georgia State only had a total of 48 yards, averaging just 1.7 yards per carry. Defensively, the panthers gave up 258 rushing yards. Army was able to walk the Panther’s defense down on almost every possession. Due to their play at the line of scrimmage, they were unable to get anything going offensively, or stop the bleeding defensively. Improving this aspect of their team is going to be one of Georgia State’s biggest keys to success throughout the season.

Photos: Cameron Robertson/FAAZ Sports