Georgia Southern Eagles at Coastal Carolina Chanticleers

Georgia Southern strolls into this one off a bowl win, while Coastal Carolina is starting over with a nearly unrecognizable roster — this Sun Belt East clash on Friday, October 2 is as much about program direction as it is about the final score.

Bush’s Picks

GASOCCU

GASOCCU

OverUnder

Best BetGeorgia Southern

Georgia Southern brings back a program that closed last season on a real heater and added a proven arm in Max Johnson, while Coastal Carolina is rebuilding on the fly under a first-year coach with almost no returning starters. That's a continuity edge that's hard to bet against this early, even on the road.

Georgia Southern

• +Won 4 of last 5 to close 2025
• +Bowl win over App State, 29-10
• +Portal QB Max Johnson adds experience
• −Finished a modest 7-6 overall
• −Injuries hit skill players late last year

Coastal Carolina

• +New 4-2-5 scheme built for athleticism
• +Portal additions like Daelen Alexander add power
• +Playing in front of home crowd
• −Only 5 returning starters, -10 portal net
• −Offense ranked 116th nationally last season
• −First-year coach, unproven continuity

Georgia Southern's offseason centered on the portal addition of quarterback Max Johnson, a veteran arm brought in to stabilize a group that closed 2025 hot, winning 4 of its last 5 including a 29-10 Birmingham Bowl win over App State. Coastal Carolina's setup looks nothing like that. First-year head coach Ryan Beard is running fall camp with 56 newcomers and just 5 returning starters, so who's actually starting under center in Conway by October is still an open question this early in the offseason.

The bigger story in Conway is scheme, not just personnel. Coastal's defensive coordinator LD Scott flipped the front from a 3-3-5 to a 4-2-5 to get more athletes on the field, and the offense is leaning on transfer additions like Daelen Alexander out of Rice to fix a unit that finished 116th nationally in total offense a year ago. Georgia Southern, by contrast, returns a program that already knows what it's doing — Clay Helton's group was picked 4th in the Sun Belt East, well ahead of Coastal's 5th-place preseason slot.

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GASO Georgia Southern

CCU Coastal Carolina

That gap in continuity is exactly why this reads like a lopsided spot on paper, and it'll be worth checking back on once actual game odds populate closer to kickoff. For now, this is a program with a plan facing one that's still figuring out who its playmakers even are.

Georgia Southern Eagles

Sep 25?vs Houston—

Sep 19?@ Jacksonville State—

Sep 12?@ Clemson—

Sep 5?vs Charleston Southern—

Coastal Carolina Chanticleers

Sep 24?vs Liberty—

Sep 19?@ Delaware—

Sep 12?vs Fordham—

Sep 5?@ West Virginia—

Georgia Southern's floor is a 7-6 team that found itself late — winning its bowl game is a real signal, not a fluke, and Johnson gives Helton a more proven option under center than what the Eagles trotted out for stretches of last season. Coastal Carolina's ceiling is tougher to project, since a roster this turned-over usually needs weeks, not days, to gel, and there's real risk this offense is still finding its footing by early October.

Georgia Southern Eagles

(0)

Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report

Coastal Carolina Chanticleers

(0)

Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report

Health was an issue for Georgia Southern down the stretch last year, with injuries to skill players like WR Josh Dallas biting into the passing game — worth tracking as camp opens back up. Coastal's bigger variable isn't one player, it's the whole two-deep: with a -10 net portal class and only 5 returners, Beard is banking on newcomers like DB Jalen Lee and corner Damill Bostic Jr. hitting the ground running in a brand new scheme.