Want to watch or stream the Coastal Carolina-Georgia State football game? Here’s how
Coastal Carolina expects to play its second straight game without starting quarterback Grayson McCall, who has a shoulder injury and might return before one of CCU’s final two games of the regular season. Senior Bryce Carpenter is expected to start again at QB.
Coastal (8-1), which is ranked 21st in the USA Today AFCA Coaches Poll and 22nd in The Associated Press Top 25 Poll, is looking to win its third straight game following its loss at Appalachian State to at least keep pace with the Mountaineers in the Sun Belt Conference’s East Division.
“Coming after that [App State] game, the seniors kind of stepped up and said, ‘You know we’re not undefeated, we’re not the big bad team that maybe some of us thought we had been,’ ” super senior offensive tackle Steven Bedosky said. “We’ve got to go into each week with a chip on our shoulder understanding we’ve got to fight to be in the best possible position by the end of the season.”
The opponent: Georgia State Panthers
Georgia State won three straight games to improve to 3-1 in the Sun Belt before falling 21-17 to No. 24/25 Louisiana last Thursday night. The Panthers took a 17-14 lead with 5:25 to play, but allowed a touchdown with 2:32 to go and had a fourth-down pass broken up with 1:25 to play. The Panthers’ three victories came over Louisiana-Monroe (55-21), Texas State (28-16) and Georgia Southern (21-14).
Georgia State is led by redshirt junior quarterback Darren Grainger of Conway, who played at Conway High and Furman University before transferring to GSU in January. Grainger has completed 82-of-142 passes for 1,022 yards and 12 touchdowns with three interceptions. The dual-threat QB has also rushed for 416 yards and a touchdown on 90 carries.
He got his first start after the Panthers were 0-2 with blowout losses against Army and North Carolina, and has led the team to a 4-3 record in his seven starts with close losses at ranked opponents Auburn and Louisiana.
“Darren’s a great young man. He’s got a great attitude, he’s got a big smile and he’s got a contagious personality that brings people together,” said Georgia State coach Shawn Elliott, a former South Carolina interim coach. “Earlier in the year we weren’t playing so well and our quarterback situation, we probably weren’t playing as well as we’d like, and we just felt our football team needed a spark and Darren provided a spark for us.
“... I think he’s playing pretty well. He knows his capabilities. I told him (Monday) we’ve got to really really harp on our vertical throw game and put the ball down the field and he agrees 100 percent. I like what he’s done with our run game. I think he manages that real well. I’m very proud of him and who he is and I’m glad he’s here.”
Georgia State ranks 15th in FBS in rushing at 220.4 yards per game and has topped 200 yards rushing in its past four games. The backfield tandem of Tucker Gregg and Jamyest Williams has combined to gain 1,146 yards rushing with 10 TDs, but the Panthers are 89th in total yards at 376.7 per game.
“We have to establish the run and we have to do it well in order to defeat them,” Elliott said.
The GSU defense has allowed a total of six touchdowns in the past three games, while forcing five turnovers in addition to four turnovers on downs in that time, including three inside the GSU 10-yard line.
The Panthers will likely be motivated by the 51-0 beating Coastal put on them in Atlanta last season, when they won the LendingTree Bowl to finish 6-4.
“I typically don’t bring up last year’s games just because I don’t think they really have any relevance, but I will say in our team meeting (Monday) I did address that 51-0 defeat,” Elliott said. “I told them it was one of the most embarrassing losses I know we’ve had here at Georgia State, and it was one of the most embarrassing losses I’ve had as a football coach, and it does get in your craw a little bit. ... I asked the guys in that locker room to remember how it felt.”
Georgia State is playing it third consecutive road game and is 2-3 on the road, with two of the losses coming to Power 5 opponents UNC and Auburn, against whom it had a 24-12 lead 10 minutes into the third quarter. The Panthers get a fourth attempt at a ranked opponent this season, though they likely won’t have to face McCall.
“When you watch Grayson, I don’t think any team in the nation wants to face him. He’s an outstanding quarterback and a great competitor. He turns some bad plays into great plays. I could say, ‘Yeah, we want to face Grayson,’ and be one of those stubborn coaches. ... I hope he’s healthy and I hope he can play but he’s a really, really good football player.”
Coastal Carolina team notes
▪ Coastal is looking for its 13th straight home win, which would tie the program record set from 2012-14. The Chants have won 20 of their past 21 regular-season games and 13 of their past 14 Sun Belt Conference games. The Chants have defeated Troy and Georgia Southern since losing to Appalachian State on Oct. 20.
▪ CCU coach Jamey Chadwell said Wednesday that McCall won’t need surgery. “Then the second question is if he plays again will it hurt him long-term?” Chadwell said. “If the answer is yes, then he won’t play any more this season. If the answer is no through our doctors and trainers, then it comes down to a rehab, recovery and then how much pain can he play with? If the pain is to a point where he can manage it and it doesn’t affect him, then he’ll have an opportunity to return and play.”
Carpenter will likely start for the 10th time in his CCU career. Last week he was 13-of-20 passing for 85 yards and a touchdown, and gained 44 yards rushing and scored a touchdown on 13 carries in the 28-8 win at Georgia Southern played through a torrential rain.
Though he lost his chance at the starting QB job when McCall took it over at the beginning of last season, Carpenter said his love for his teammates and the program kept him from seeking a transfer. He has even caught two passes as a wide receiver last year.
“I’m dedicated to this team. I’m committed to this team, this program, this university,” Carpenter said. “... I just loved everything about this place, so I knew I wanted to stay here and be a part of this.”
Without McCall last week, Coastal’s defense and special teams stepped up with four turnovers and a blocked punt for a touchdown. Georgia Southern’s triple-option attack was held to 80 yards rushing and 227 yards of total offense. “I felt we played a clean game, very assignment-sound,” super senior linebacker Silas Kelly said.
▪ Spectators are encouraged to wear teal for both homecoming and Athletics Hall of Fame weekend. The Chants have had announced attendances of more than 15,000 in four of their five home games, the exception being less than 12,000 for the last home game against Troy on a rainy Thursday night. The program record of 18,674 could be challenged Saturday.
▪ Chadwell said CCU will be without running back Reese White due to an ankle injury and senior outside linebacker Jeffrey Gunter is day to day with a leg injury. “I think he can play, it’s just how effective can he be if he’s not completely healthy,” Chadwell said of Gunter.
▪ Coastal enters this weekend tied with Old Dominion for the most blocked kicks in FBS this season with five after the blocked punt last week by CCU’s punt return team, nicknamed “Joy.”
“They’ve been tremendous,” Chadwell said. “In the offseason we ... said how can we make some game-changing, positive-momentum plays, whether that’s a big return, a touchdown return or block punts, trying to get an identity where our guys embrace, ‘Hey we’ve got an opportunity to go make some plays happen.’
“Every week we’ve got a block in where we feel we’ve got an opportunity. Those guys believe they can go get it, and it’s become something they look forward to.”
Last meeting: Chanticleers vs Panthers
CCU won 51-0 on Oct. 31, 2020 in Atlanta. (CCU is 2-2 vs. Georgia State all-time but 0-2 at home, losing 31-21 in 2019 and 27-21 in 2017 at Brooks Stadium).
Coastal vs. Georgia State betting line
Coastal Carolina is favored by 10.5 points. The over/under is set at 52 points.
Score prediction
Coastal Carolina 34, Georgia State 27: Motivated by CCU’s beatdown last season and taking advantage of McCall being out, the Panthers will likely battle CCU to the end before coming up short.
Coastal Carolina vs Georgia State on Saturday: Watch, listen
- Who: No. 21/22 Coastal Carolina (8-1, 4-1) vs Georgia State (4-5, 3-2)
- When: 2 p.m. Saturday
- Where: Brooks Stadium, Conway, SC
- Occasion: Homecoming and Hall of Fame Weekend
- Streaming: ESPN+ (through www.espn.com/watch)
- TV talent: Jeff McCarragher (play by play), Nate Ross (Analyst)
- Radio: WRNN 99.5 FM
Tickets: Are available at the stadium box office on game day, Chanticleer Athletics Ticket Office in Arcadia Hall at 132 Chanticleer Drive West, by calling 843-347-8499 (TIXX), or through the tickets@coastal.edu email
- Weather: Temperatures are forecast to be about 71 degrees at kickoff and 63 at 5 p.m. under sunny skies with winds at 8 mph or less and a negligible chance of rain, according to weather.com.
- Live stats: Through www.Coastal.statbroadcast.com and GameTracker
What is a Chanticleer?
Coastal Carolina has one of the more unique nicknames and mascots in all of sports. The Chanticleer is featured in Geoffrey Chaucer’s “The Canterbury Tales” and is a rooster that rules the barnyard with cunning and wit. He battles to the end using his brain to come out victorious.
The rooster is a play off the University of South Carolina’s Gamecock, as CCU was part of the USC system until becoming independent in 1993. It’s pronounced “SHON-ti-cleer” and the school doesn’t take kindly to mispronunciations.
What’s up with CCU’s teal ‘Surf Turf’?
Don’t try to adjust your TV settings, it’s just that color.
After playing on natural grass at Brooks Stadium for the first 12 years of the program’s existence, Coastal Carolina installed an artificial teal-colored “Surf Turf” prior to the 2015 season, reflecting one of the school’s primary colors and its proximity to the beach.
Where is Coastal Carolina located?
CCU is in Conway, South Carolina, a neighboring town to the better known Myrtle Beach. The college is east of the center of Conway and is only about 12 miles from the beach along the Atlantic Ocean.
Conway is a more quaint town with a riverfront along the Waccamaw River compared to Myrtle Beach’s vibrant and bustling tourism businesses featuring nightlife, shopping, restaurants, beachwear stores and miniature golf courses.
This story was originally published November 12, 2021 at 10:55 AM.
