By David Asbury
Return Trip from the Miracle on 49th Street
The last time the Georgia State Panthers played at SB Ballard, they jumped out to a hot 21-0 start on a cold day in Norfolk. At halftime, Ricky Rahne made each player say they would win the game and the Monarchs did just that, roaring back in a crazy comeback to leave with a victory after a walk-off touchdown that gave them bowl eligibility. It really was a miracle comeback. ODU defeated them again last season in Atlanta which brings the all-time series with GSU to 5-1 in the Monarchs' favor.
Terry Jones and Shawn Asbury bring down the quarterback for a clutch safety in an epic comeback. Photo Courtesy of CB Sports Photography.
The Panthers did not have a very good 2024 season. Last year, GSU hired head coach Dell McGee late in the process and the roster was very depleted when he arrived. He scrambled to find talent in the spring portal period and was somewhat successful but it was too late to make a huge impact. This resulted in a disappointing season, as the team finished with a 3-9 overall record and a 1-7 record in Sun Belt Conference play. It was a tough hill to climb and McGee deserves a mulligan for his first season. He hopes to show significant improvement in 2025.
In 2024, quarterback Zach Gibson had a pretty good outing but the super senior transferred to FAU in the offseason. That leaves, Christian Veilleux, the transfer from Pitt. Last season, he completed 57% of his passes for 2,047 yards and 13 touchdowns but also 11 interceptions. Against the Monarchs, Veilleux threw for 211 yards, one touchdown and one interception in the loss. He has a very quick release and does well avoiding sacks. Unfortunately, he has displayed ball security issues by forcing throws too often when it might be smarter to throw it away or just take the sack. He finished the last game of 2024 by throwing four interceptions to the CCU Chanticleers, the second four-interception game of his collegiate career. For these reasons, the Panthers brought in portal quarterbacks PJ Hatter (TXST) and Cameron Brown (TTU). Neither have much experience but Georgia State is ripe with opportunity for both quarterbacks.
The passing offense as a whole was actually pretty good averaging 255.8 yards per game (3rd in SBC). The O even averaged a respectable 389 yards per game (7th in SBC). But a lot of that was because the Panthers had to pass the ball often to stay in games or come back from deficits. Passing so often led to poor rushing numbers and a lot of turnovers. Resulting in the Panthers averaging just 23.8 points per game (12th in SBC).
Can this offense improve in '25 with a more balanced approach? That remains to be seen but there's some talent on this offense. Most notably is wide receiver Ted Hurt, who returns after flirting with the transfer portal. He is one of the best receivers in the conference and all of the G5. The 2nd-team All-Sun Belt selection finished with 56 catches for 961 yards and 9 TDs in 2024. Having him return is HUGE because there is not much more experience returning in the offense. The top running back Freddie Brock transferred to Oklahoma State but will be replaced with Rashad Amos who had a 1000-yard season for the Miami RedHawks in 2023. The line receives help from Derrell Bailey (East Tennessee) and Charlie Patterson (Virginia) to help veteran starting center Alec Johnson. Overall, the offense has talent but has a lot of room to improve to get out of the bottom half of the conference in average points. And in a conference this deep with talent, that could be a big hill to climb.
The real problems with this team last season were on defense. The Panthers struggled mightily allowing a lot of yards (418.7 per game, 11th in SBC) and points (33.8 per game, 13th in SBC). GSU especially struggled against the run allowing 210 yards per game (12th in SBC). The Panthers have to do better and that starts upfront on the defensive line. It returns good pieces with Henry Bryant, Ian Mathews, and Fuches Lewis II. However, it is still relatively undersized and lacks depth. Linebacker Josiah Robinson also returns. He was second on the team with 63 tackles, 3.5 sacks, and 7.5 tackles for loss. Then the secondary is all brand new and reloaded with guys from the portal. At this point, any improvement on the defense will be met with open arms.
Nose tackle Henry Bryant (10) will return to the Castle for the first time since the walk off touchdown in 2023. Photo Courtesy of CB Sports Photography.
Overall, expectations are low. They currently have the lowest odds of winning the Sun Belt (+4000) and Vegas set their win total at only 3.5. And other prognosticators agree. CFBudge for instance ranked the Panthers 13th in the Conference. One problem is that the schedule is just brutal. The Sun Belt is just becoming a top-tier G5 conference and the Panthers are having trouble keeping up. They will also likely go 1-3 in nonconference play having to face Memphis, Vanderbilt and Ole Miss. But do not write this team off just yet. Coach Dell McGee recruited very well in the Peach State and it is possible that we see underclassmen rise up and play very well. Not to mention, they are always good for a upset or two like when they surprisingly defeated a much improved Vanderbilt and a quality Texas State last season.
The Monarchs will finish the 2025 regular season against them at The Castle. If both teams are meeting expectations, the Monarchs may need the win to reach bowl eligibility just like they did in 2023. Whereas the Panthers may already be eliminated from bowl contention. But they will need to perform well just to show that Coach Dell McGee has the team moving in the right direction. It is crucial for McGee to show that the team is better in November than they were in August. If McGee does has the team moving in the right direction then the game may even mean that much more for both teams. It is just way too early for locked-in predictions for a game that occurs so late in the season. However, the Monarchs should be good at running the ball, meanwhile the Panthers' biggest weakness was stopping the run. So, if I had to pick the game right now, it has to be the Monarchs at home.
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2025 ODU Baseball Roster Churn