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2022 Georgia Southern

6–⁠7 (3–⁠5 Sun Belt Conference), coached by Clay Helton.

Schedule and results

Georgia Southern in 2022, game by game: won vs. Morgan State 59–7; won at Nebraska 45–42; lost at UAB 21–35; won vs. Ball State 34–23; lost at Coastal Carolina 30–34; lost at Georgia State 33–41; won vs. No. 25 James Madison 45–38; won at Old Dominion 28–23; lost vs. South Alabama 31–38; lost at Louisiana 17–36; lost vs. Marshall 10–23; won vs. App State 51–48; lost vs. Buffalo 21–23+52−19Won 59–7 vs. Morgan State+52Morgan StateWon 45–42 at Nebraska+3NebraskaLost 21–35 at UAB-14UABWon 34–23 vs. Ball State+11Ball StateLost 30–34 at Coastal Carolina-4Coastal CarolinaLost 33–41 at Georgia State-8Georgia StateWon 45–38 vs. No. 25 James Madison+7No. 25 James MadisonWon 28–23 at Old Dominion+5Old DominionLost 31–38 vs. South Alabama-7South AlabamaLost 17–36 at Louisiana-19LouisianaLost 10–23 vs. Marshall-13MarshallWon 51–48 vs. App State+3App StateLost 21–23 vs. Buffalo-2Buffalo
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 3vsMorgan StateW 59–⁠787%
Sep 10atNebraskaW 45–⁠4239%
Sep 17atUABL 21–⁠3528%
Sep 24vsBall StateW 34–⁠2357%
Oct 1atCoastal CarolinaL 30–⁠3420%
Oct 8atGeorgia StateL 33–⁠4136%
Oct 15vs25James MadisonW 45–⁠3837%
Oct 22atOld DominionW 28–⁠2341%
Nov 5vsSouth AlabamaL 31–⁠3852%
Nov 10atLouisianaL 17–⁠3631%
Nov 19vsMarshallL 10–⁠2344%
Nov 26vsApp StateW 51–⁠4841%
Dec 27Bowls & playoffvsBuffaloCamellia BowlL 21–⁠2349%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Buffalo 23–⁠21 in the Camellia Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 8th in the Sun Belt Conference.

In program history: The 14th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 38 on file).

Record
6–⁠7
Conference
3–⁠5 tied for 8th in Sun Belt Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
425–⁠411
Coach
Clay Helton
Elo
1444 +6 this season
SP+ rating
-6.4 No. 88 of 131; offense No. 35, defense No. 124, special teams No. 78
SRS
−4.9 No. 85 of 131 in FBS
Returning
70% of last season’s EPA, No. 39 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 110 roster talent No. 108 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Bryan Ellis
Defensive coordinator
Will Harris
Offense
Multiple
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense42nd of 131
  • Defense124th of 131
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted35th of 131
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted130th of 131
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1646%1.2642nd of 131
Defense0.2447%1.26124th of 131
Opponent-adjusted0.16 off
0.23 def		46% off
47% def		—35th off
130th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense4.1own 2715% allowed
Defense3.8own 3013% caused

CORE rating -7.6, 98th of 131 (offense 7.8, defense 15.4).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsKyle Vantrease QB4,246 yds
Passing touchdownsKyle Vantrease QB27 TD
Rushing yardsJalen White RB915 yds
Rushing touchdownsJalen White RB10 TD
Receiving yardsKhaleb Hood WR919 yds
Receiving touchdownsDerwin Burgess Jr. WR7 TD
TacklesMarques Watson-Trent LB105 tkl
SacksJustin Ellis DL4.5 sacks
InterceptionsTyler Bride S2 INT

Top recruits in the 2022 class

Terrance Gibbs RB★★★★No. 361
Zak Rozsman QB★★★No. 1368
David Dallas QB★★★No. 1667
Da’Shawn Davis DL★★★No. 1667
Josh Dallas ATH★★★No. 1753

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2022 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks23.00.842
Running backs14.00.897
Offensive line13.00.816
Defensive line23.00.831
Linebackers13.00.813
Defensive backs23.00.816
Athletes and specialists13.00.832
Whole class103.10.833

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 134

The 2022 roster

134 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2022 line; 68 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 11

The 2022 portal
Jeremy Singleton WR★★★from Houston
Kristian Varner DL★★★from North Carolina
Kyle Toole QB★★★from Troy
Kyle Vantrease QB★★★from Buffalo
Michael Lantz K★★★from Minnesota
Wylan Free CB★★★from Fresno State
Ethan Ingram OL★★from Marshall
Colton FitzGerald QBfrom Boise State
Danny Corbett OLfrom Campbell
Ezrah Archie WRfrom Monmouth
Shamari Wingard CBfrom Elon

Transfers out 18

Chris Harris Jr. LB★★no new school on file
Seaburn Hines IV OT★★no new school on file
James Graham QB★★★★no new school on file
Cam Ransom QB★★★no new school on file
Chalon Howard S★★★no new school on file
Dexter Carter Jr. WR★★★no new school on file
John Wesley Kennedy III RB★★★no new school on file
Jordan Bennett WR★★★no new school on file
Josh Trice CB★★★no new school on file
Justin Harris CB★★★no new school on file
Michael Edwards LB★★★to East Carolina
Montae Maxwell S★★★no new school on file

And 6 more, lower-rated or unrated.

2022 Sun Belt Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Troy7–⁠112–⁠219
South Alabama7–⁠110–⁠3
James Madison6–⁠28–⁠3
Coastal Carolina6–⁠29–⁠4
Marshall5–⁠39–⁠4
Southern Miss4–⁠47–⁠6
Louisiana4–⁠46–⁠7
App State3–⁠56–⁠6
Georgia Southern3–⁠56–⁠7
UL Monroe3–⁠54–⁠8
Georgia State3–⁠54–⁠8
Texas State2–⁠64–⁠8
Old Dominion2–⁠63–⁠9
Arkansas State1–⁠73–⁠9

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.