If South Alabama football has had a nemesis over the years, a team that no matter how good or bad the record is before kickoff, a team it just can’t beat, it has to be, has to be, Georgia Southern.
In the seven times they’ve played over the years, South has yet to defeat Sun Belt rival Georgia Southern.
That doesn’t even come close to explaining this nemesis thing, how lopsided the series has been. We’ll try.
South entered its next-to-last game of the 2017 season with a 4-6 record.
Beat the winless Eagles on the road — the 0-9 Eagles — and 5-6 New Mexico State the following week and South finishes 6-6, bowl eligible and with its best season in D1 since its big boy transition in 2013-14.
The Jaguars were favored by a touchdown after upsetting Arkansas State the week before.
Then Georgia Southern 52, South Alabama 0 happened.
Two days later, head coach Joey Jones resigned. Then came the season-ending loss to New Mexico State, which even now has had just one winning season in the past 20 years. The Jags would finish 4-8.
South Alabama would be Georgia Southern’s only win that year.
Thursday night at 6:30 in Hancock Whitney Stadium on the USA campus, South (3-2) enters its eighth meeting with Georgia Southern as a 3 1/2-point favorite. The game will be televised by ESPNU.
If we’ve learned anything about this series, expect the unexpected. Going in as the favorite means about as much as last week’s line that had USA a field goal favorite over a Texas State team that came in with one win. The Bobcats would win in four overtimes, 33-31.
Our USA pick:
Georgia Southern vs. South Alabama
This is a quick turnaround for both teams. While South (3-2) was losing a marathon overtime contest at Texas State, Georgia Southern (2-4) mounted a late rally in the second half at Troy but fell 27-24 on a late Trojans field goal.
South is looking to get its first Sun Belt win against a team it’s never beaten. To do that it’s going to have to shake off a double whammy — last week’s devastating finish in a game it should have won and a lineup severely banged up with several significant players that need to play.
Southern’s dilemma is finding its identity. The Eagles have a triple-option reputation — they rank sixth in the nation averaging 256.2 rushing yards a game — but leaned heavily on the passing game against Troy. The result was 82 yards on the ground. Georgia Southern has lost four of its last five games and the Jags their last two. It has also gone through a coaching change, with head coach Chad Lunsford fired after a 1-3 start and cornerbacks coach Kevin Whitley taking over in the interim.
USA first-year coach Kane Wommack brings a defensive pedigree to the program but it Is his offense that is a concern. South does not rank in the top 74 in passing and is 90th in the nation in rushing.
If Wommack is needing an early signature win, going where no other South coach has gone, find a way to get his team to shake off last week’s emotional wreck and get past Georgia Southern.
South Alabama 28, Georgia Southern 27
Charles Hollis has covered college football for Advance Publications, including The Birmingham News, since 1983. Reach him at budcoin@msn.com
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