South Alabama Beats Panthers in Battle of the Big Cats

Georgia State fell short in a thriller against South Alabama in Atlanta, losing 38-31 to the Jaguars. The Panthers extend their losing streak to five games and are still winless in conference play, sitting at the bottom of the Sun Belt East. Cameran Brown started the entire game for a second straight week while TJ Finley did not receive any snaps.

If you’re wondering how tonight’s Sun Belt match is going, the opening kickoff got bobbled out of the end zone and out at the 2 for Georgia State. pic.twitter.com/05BiV6gHXR

— Sickos Committee (@SickosCommittee) October 23, 2025

South Alabama would take their first drive all the way for a touchdown, an 18-yard pass from junior quarterback Bishop Davenport to junior wide receiver Brenden Jenkins who would finish the game with three catches for 31 yards. The Panthers would answer back with a touchdown of their own on the ensuing drive, Cameran Brown spinning a 70-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Ted Hurst and even the score at 7-7. Hurst would finish the day with five catches for 110 yards and two touchdowns, his second touchdown moving him into fourth all-time for touchdowns at Georgia State.

Just Ted doing Ted things 😎

with his 14th GSU career touchdown, Ted Hurst places himself fourth in program history for receiving touchdowns. #LightItBlue | #NewAtlanta | @GeorgiaLottery pic.twitter.com/1pR9opZ9P1

— GSU Football (@GeorgiaStateFB) October 24, 2025

The Georgia State defense was helpless in stopping the Jaguar offense in the first half allowing twenty-eight points and not forcing a single punt from South Alabama. The defense would come alive in the second half, forcing South Alabama to punt the ball on three straight possessions and hold them scoreless in the third quarter. Junior linebacker Kendrick Walker with nine tackles and 1.5 sacks headlined the Georgia State defense along side junior safety D’Icey Hopkins who had 6 tackles and 2 passes defended. A touchdown pass to freshman tight end Grant Hollier would put Georgia State in the lead 31-28 halfway through the fourth quarter.

After allowing a game-tying field goal on the next South Alabama drive, senior running back Rashad Amos fumbled the ball and gave possession right back to the Jaguars who would score a touchdown off the turnover by the Panthers. Cameran Brown would come back into the game with just under two minutes left to go, leading Georgia State up to their own 45-yard line after a mixture of short runs and a 15-yard pass interference penalty against South Alabama. Brown would pass the ball short on 4th-and-5 that would be intercepted by junior linebacker Tirell Johnson, who forced the fumble on the prior Georgia State drive.

Defense called game 🔒#LSF | @tylerthomas2023 | @TirrellJohnson3 pic.twitter.com/IgZmOCNudJ

— South Alabama Football 🏈 (@SouthAlabamaFB) October 24, 2025

Brown finished the game going 19-for-33 with 241 yards, four touchdowns and one interception which ended up being costly. Despite splitting reps for most of the season, Cameran Brown is on track to surpass 1,000 passing yards and throw for double digit touchdowns on the year.

Georgia State head coach Dell McGee complemented the improvement in the running game against the Jaguars.

“I’m thinking the o-line came off the ball; Max broke tackles,” said McGee in his postgame press conference. “Good run reads…it was really a cohesive effort.”

McGee also expressed gratefulness for the bye week and that they need to play for pride for the rest of the season. This will be the second straight season the Panthers will miss a bowl game.

The Panthers will get some rest and heal up over the next two Saturdays before heading to the beach where they’ll face off with the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers.