Georgia Tech vs Georgia State: Key Georgia State Players to Know for Saturday's Game

Georgia State begins new era with head coach Dell McGee

© Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Georgia State's first game of the season and embarks on a new era with head coach Dell McGee at the helm. In terms of ranking, Georgia State comes in as the No. 7 team in the Sun Belt Conference Football Preseason Coaches Poll in the east division. This team will look different in 2023 after losing Darren Grainger, Marcus Carroll, Robert Lewis, and many other key players from a season ago. Here are some of the players to watch in the matchup on Saturday night. 

1. Zach Gibson- The former Georgia Tech quarterback has endured a QB battle between him and Christian Veilleux who came over from Pittsburgh throughout the spring and into fall camp. Coach McGee hasn’t named a starter or QB1 yet so it is not a sure thing that Gibson is going to be the starter. This is a big game for him in a lot of ways. One he is facing his former team, how will he fare in what will be his final year as a college quarterback? Gibson last played in 2022 for the Yellow Jackets where he threw for 589 yards, a touchdown, and two interceptions. Gibson started his career with Akron where he was their quarterback for three seasons and had his best year in 2021 throwing for 1,262 yards and 10 touchdowns. 

2. Georgia State’s WR Group- This is probably one of the most talented groups for the Panthers heading into the season. Talique Williams was the second-leading receiver for the Panthers in 2023. Williams finished with 49 catches for 615 yards and six touchdowns, posting a career year for the Panthers setting highs in catches, yards, and touchdowns. Others to watch are Cadarrius Thompson & Ja’Cyais Credel. Thompson flashed in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl in Boise finishing with five catches for 117 yards and two touchdowns averaging 23.4 yards a catch. Thompson's career numbers are 36 catches for 416 yards and four touchdowns. Credle has proven to be a versatile and reliable deep ball threat when he has played. The only thing that is stopping him from a full breakout has been injuries. His career totals are 71 catches for 856 yards and five touchdowns. He will be one to watch especially if Georgia State tries to connect on the deep ball. Overall, it is a very talented group that has a lot of experience and will look to make an impact. 

3. Georgia State Offensive line- The Panther's offensive line will look vastly different in 2024. At this critical position, the Panthers only return two players on this unit, starter Trevor Timmons and reserve Lamar Robinson. They lost Travis Glover, Jonathan Brown, and Montavious Cunningham. OL Colin Henrich transferred to Old Dominion. Georgia State hit the transfer portal hard on the offensive line bringing in four new transfers including Davor Komolafe, Kyrik Mason, William Larkins, and Romello Watson. There is nothing set in stone at this position as coach McGee will mix and match players at different spots. That could prove problematic, especially after the success the Yellow Jackets defensive line had against the Florida State offensive line in creating pressure and showing different looks. It definitely will be interesting to watch the five that trot out on Saturday night and how cohesively they will look together in their first live-game action. 

It will be great to see both Atlanta teams face off who are less than two miles from each other and who both have big expectations for this year. A pretty exciting week 2 matchup.