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Pair of first-year head coaches face off looking to secure or improve their team's bowl chances.

Georgia Southern and Louisiana will face off in Sun Belt action on Thursday night in a game that is important to both teams for the same reason. With just three games remaining, the Eagles and Ragin' Cajuns won't win their respective divisions but are still fighting for their postseason lives.

Georgia Southern (5-4, 2-3 Sun Belt) needs just one victory to become bowl eligible, which is quite the turnaround after going 3-9 last season. Former USC head coach Clay Helton has come in and put his stamp on the Eagles, who have made the transition from the triple option to a spread-style offense rather seamlessly.

Louisiana was expected to take a few steps backward after losing head coach Billy Napier and a host of players from last year's Sun Belt championship-winning that won 13 games in a row after losing at Texas in the opener, but rookie head coach Michael Desormeaux has done a good job keeping the Ragin' Cajuns (4-5, 2-4) afloat. They have a little more work to do to get to a bowl game, which is why Thursday night's matchup with an Eagles team that is 2-3 on the road is so critical.

Kickoff: Thursday, Nov. 10 at 7:30 p.m. ET TV: ESPNULive Stream: fuboTV (Start your free trial)Spread: Louisiana -3Tickets: As low as $30 on SITickets.com*

After years of relying on the triple option, the Eagles have taken to the air under first-year head coach Clay Helton. He has transformed this offense, which now boasts not only the Sun Belt's top passing attack, but one that ranks fourth in the nation. With Buffalo transfer Kyle Vantrease at the helm, Georgia Southern is averaging 331.3 passing yards per game. Vantrease is third in the conference with 20 touchdown passes, but he has tossed 13 interceptions. That latter number is a little concerning going up against a Louisiana defense that is tied for third in the FBS with 14 picks.

Four different Eagles wide receivers have recorded 35 or more catches, led by Khaleb Hood's 60 for a team-high 685 yards. Derwin Burgess Jr. and Amare Jones have each posted six touchdown catches.

Georgia Southern hasn't completely gone away from its old ways, though. The team ranks in the middle of the Sun Belt in rushing offense (148.9 ypg), which is more impressive when you consider the Eagles have the second-fewest carries (276). But when you are averaging 4.9 yards per carry as a team volume isn't as important. Jalen White and Gerald Green have been a nice one-two punch in the backfield. White is third in the conference with 743 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns. Green has seen roughly half as many carries (76 vs. 142) but he's averaging 5.7 yards per attempt and has scored six times on the ground.

Louisiana's defense could be well-equipped to limit the damage Vantrease and his weapons and create. Besides the interceptions, the Ragin' Cajuns are second in passing yards allowed per game in conference play at 196.7 while holding quarterbacks to a 52.3 percent completion rate. Another key area to watch is third down. Georgia Southern is converting more than half of its opportunities (52.1 percent), a rate that ranks in the top 10 nationally, while Louisiana has held Sun Belt opponents to a 36 percent success rate on third down.

In many ways, the Ragin' Cajuns were starting over on offense following the departure of so many key pieces, as well as Napier, from last season's unit. Quarterback was one of the biggest questions entering this season and two different signal-callers shared the snaps early in Chandler Fields and Ben Woolridge. But Fields got hurt in the Oct. 1 loss to South Alabama and hasn't played since, giving Woolridge an opportunity to take over the offense. Over the last four games, the Fresno State transfer has thrown for 1,028 yards with nine touchdowns and three interceptions. He has cooled off after a hot start, throwing all of those picks in a loss to Southern Miss a couple of weeks ago followed up by just 112 passing yards in this past Saturday's loss to Troy, so he'll need to get it going again.

Michael Jefferson is the team's top receiver with 36 catches for 616 yards and five touchdowns but he's not alone. Eight other players have recorded 10 or more catches and five have at least two touchdowns so Georgia Southern will have multiple options to cover.

Woolridge also needs to find his rhythm again because the Cajuns have not exactly been raging on the ground. In conference games, the team is averaging 3.7 yards per carry and has just four rushing touchdowns. Leading rusher Chris Smith is coming off a 97-yard effort against the Trojans, and he may be able to continue that production against an Eagles' defense that has been by far the most generous against the run. Georgia Southern is yielding 229.4 rushing yards per Sun Belt game, including 5.7 yards per carry and 13 rushing touchdowns in just five contests.

That's part of the reason why Georgia Southern has actually given up more points (174) than it's scored (167) in Sun Belt play. This Eagles defense doesn't make a lot of stops behind the line of scrimmage (37 tackles for a loss this season, fewest in the conference), so it's critical that Louisiana avoids the negative plays and the turnovers. The Ragin' Cajuns have committed 11 (six INTs, five fumbles) in their five Sun Belt games.

Both first-year head coaches have their Sun Belt teams on the verge of bowl eligibility, but Helton has Georgia Southern a game closer than Desormeaux and Louisiana. The Ragin' Cajuns are the defending conference champs and have this game on their home field, but it's the Eagles who have surprised many by making the transition from a ground-heavy offensive approach to one of the nation's most potent passing attacks. Louisiana has done a good job of making opposing quarterbacks pay for poor throws, and Vantrease has thrown his share of interceptions, so the turnover department is something to keep an eye on. But Georgia Southern shouldn't have to rely on just throwing the ball to make things happen against a Cajuns' defense that has to carry more of the load because of their offense's issues. The Eagles' more balanced attack should be enough to allow them to leave Lafayette with a bowl-clinching victory.

*Price as of publication.

San Jose State vs Georgia Southern Prediction, Pick Against the Spread, and Latest Odds

The Georgia Southern Eagles vs. the San Jose State Spartans will tip off their seasons on Tuesday night. Let's get into my prediction, pick, and odds for this matchup.

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San Jose State vs. Georgia Southern Prediction

The Eagles are coming off a 13-16 season. The Eagles lost their leading scorer from a season ago, Elijah McCaden. McCaden transferred to Memphis in the off-season, and the leading returning scorer for the Eagles is senior Andrei Savrasov. Savrasov was also the team leader in rebounds last season, and he will have to be the guy for the Eagles this year.

San Jose State is coming off a tough season in which they won just one conference game. They went 1-17 in conference and 8-23 overall. This was a team that was extremely young last season, and they struggled to find any kind of slow.

San Jose State returns their top two scorers, Omari Moore and Myron Amery Jr. These are two young guards who will look to make an impact this season. If the Spartans want to turn things around, they need these two guys to really step up. The Spartans landed a couple of guys in the portal that they feel can help this team, especially off their bench. San Jose State comes into this game as a short home favorite tonight.

I will be backing the Spartans on the short spread tonight. This is a team that I am higher on than most coming into this season. This is a team that was extremely young last year and should be a much better team this season. I think their guard play is extremely underrated, and I like how they match up against this Georgia Southern team. Georgia Southern will struggle to score the basketball tonight, and I do not believe that they can keep pace with the Spartans. Let’s get another win tonight!

San Jose State vs. Georgia Southern Pick

Pick: San Jose State -3 -115. Bet $100 to collect $186.

Georgia Southern Eagles (0-0) vs. San Jose State Spartans (0-0)

The Line: San Jose State Spartans -3.5 / Georgia Southern Eagles +3.5 ; Over/Under: 134 (Click here for latest betting odds)

The Georgia Southern Eagles and the San Jose State Spartans meet Tuesday in college basketball action from Event Center Arena. Georgia Southern is coming off a 13-16 overall record last year, finishing near the bottom of the Sun Belt standings. As for San Jose State, they went 8-23 in 2021-22 for a last-place finish among the Mountain West Conference. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.

Georgia Southern matched their win total from the year prior in 2021-22, finishing at 13-16 overall and 5-11 in the Sun Belt Conference. The Eagles landed just two spots out of the basement with that effort, ahead of only LA-Monroe and Little Rock.

Georgia Southern came out of non-conference play at a decent 7-4 overall, then hit a 2-5 stretch over the next half-dozen games. The Eagles had another six-game losing streak late in the season, and ultimately lost to Appalachian State in the conference tourney.

Over on the San Jose State side, they had quite the forgettable campaign last year as well. The Spartans managed an 8-23 overall record with a rough 1-17 record in the Mountain West. That left San Jose State in last place by a margin of three games.

San Jose State was 7-5 coming out of the non-conference schedule. The Spartans hit a 14-game losing streak as soon as the Mountain West games began, though. San Jose State’s season ended with a loss to Fresno State in the Mountain West Tournament.

PICK: I’m going to take a stab on San Jose State. There’s not much to like about this matchup however, and it’s tough knowing what to think until we see these teams in action. That said, San Jose State returns a handful of names from last year’s squad. That group includes Alvaro Cardenas and Mountain West honorable mention Omari Moore. With Ibrahima Diallo back from injury, San Jose State should be able to improve with blocks and rebounds. If that fresh defensive look comes through in this opener, the Spartans should be fine.

Georgia Southern had entered its bye week in late October with momentum from two consecutive Sun Belt Conference victories and the prospect of earning bowl eligibility with one win in its final four regular-season games.

Now, two defeats later, the Eagles have two games to improve on their 5-5 overall record and 2-4 league mark.

"We're working to get bowl eligible," first-year head coach Clay Helton said Thursday night on the Georgia Southern Sports Network, minutes after GS lost at Louisiana 36-17.

Analysis:Defensive shortcomings and other takeaways from Georgia Southern's bad loss at Louisiana

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"I think about how hard these kids have worked to be able to put themselves in this position," said Helton, who then noted some of the upperclassmen in their probable final seasons. "I think about the Dillon Springers, the Justin Ellises, the Todd Bradley-Glenns, Amare Jones, the kids that are hurt. The ability to earn a postseason game is important to this team. I know it's important to our fan base, too.

"Coming off of a three-win season last year, to have the opportunity to be on the precipice of a bowl game, it's important to all of us," he added.

Georgia Southern closes out the regular season in Statesboro with two games at Paulson Stadium: Nov. 19 against Marshall and Nov. 26 against its biggest rival, Appalachian State. Both are 5-4 overall, 2-3 and fighting to get bowl worthy.

The Eagles' first game after their bye week was at Paulson on Nov. 5, when South Alabama rallied from deficits of 14-0, 21-7 and 31-17 to score the last three touchdowns and win 38-31.

If the players were mad about blowing a 14-point second-half lead, that wasn't the scenario on Thursday. They had one tie (7-7) but never led Louisiana, which rolled from the start on defense, offense and special teams.

The Ragin' Cajuns (now 5-5, 3-4 SBC) played with playoff intensity, having this final home game at Cajun Field before two road games to collect two wins and qualify for a bowl game.

Despite a short week of practice, Louisiana looked sharp in recording 435 total yards — 193 through the air and a season-high 242 on the ground as it averaged 6.2 yards per carry. The numbers were slowed a bit with the team protecting a 30-7 lead early in the third quarter by chewing up the clock.

On the other side of the ball, the Ragin' Cajuns limited the Eagles to 72 net yards rushing on 25 attempts, an average of 2.9 yards a carry. Trailing by such a large margin caused the Eagles to pass the ball, with quarterback Kyle Vantrease finishing 25 of 49 (57.6%) for 325 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions.

True freshman OJ Arnold completed a halfback pass to Derwin Burgess Jr. for a 32-yard touchdown to add to the 358 passing total. But other trick plays did not work as well as offensive coordinator Bryan Ellis tried to call plays to spark a flat performance from the offense.

"Tonight's a tough one for sure," Vantrease said on the postgame show. "It really comes down to attitude, effort and execution. We lacked in those areas throughout the game."

Sequence that undermined Eagles

One series of plays might have summed up the Eagles' futility on Thursday night.

Trailing 24-7 late in the second quarter, Arnold returned a kickoff 58 yards to the UL 35, only to see a holding penalty move the ball to the GS 12. There's never a good time for a penalty, but the timing appeared particularly bad.

Still, the GS offense drove to the Louisiana 11 and called a timeout with 43 seconds remaining in the half. On third-and-5, center Logan Langemeier incurred a 5-yard penalty for a false start.

Commmentary:For run to bowl season, Georgia Southern football team seeks to improve run defense

On third-and-10, Vantrease probably never saw linebacker Andre Jones crashing in from his blind side. Two things happened at once that have rarely happened to GS in 10 games: a sack and a lost fumble. The QB fumbled when he was hit and UL's Mason Narcisse picked up the loose ball and headed toward the end zone before GS offensive lineman Brian Miller of Savannah made a touchdown-saving tackle with 33 seconds left before halftime.

Georgia Southern, one of the best red zone offenses in FBS, had needed a touchdown or even a field goal down to chip away at a 17-point deficit.

GS got zero and now UL had time for one more score before halftime. The Cajuns moved in position by the final play of the half for Kenneth Almendares to kick a 32-yarder, one of his school record-tying five field goals on the night.

Louisiana had scored 20 straight points for a 27-7 halftime lead, and was up 30-7 early by scoring on the opening drive of the third quarter.

Consecutive bad halves

Georgia Southern, to its chagrin, had picked right up where it left off against South Alabama on Nov. 5, when the Eagles were outscored 21-7 in the second half.

They had a quick turnaround for the nationally televised (ESPN2) game in Lafayette, including a travel day.

"They really worked hard to prepare for this game," Helton said. "It didn't turn out our way. I feel for them. The fact of the matter is we made enough mistakes tonight to lose a couple of ballgames."

Georgia Southern looks ahead to a couple of ballgames at home, two chances for a critical sixth win and the possibility of a winning overall record with two wins.

Vantrease said on the postgame show that the team's only option is to prepare for the Marshall game.

"There's adversity we're going through right now, whether it's a couple of losses, injuries, things not going our way," he said. "But that doesn't mean anything in our culture. If anything, that should be fuel to the fire for us. We've got to get back to work, get healthy. We've got a great game coming up at home. We've got to finish the season out strong at home."

Nathan Dominitz is the Sports Content Editor of the Savannah Morning News and savannahnow.com. Email him at ndominitz@savannahnow.com. Twitter: @NathanDominitz

The Georgia Southern football team had played in eight consecutive close games decided in the fourth quarter.

The contest Thursday night was not one of them.

It was no contest as host Louisiana surged from an early 7-7 tie to score the next 23 points and beat Georgia Southern 36-17 in a nationally televised game on ESPN2 from Cajun Field in Lafayette.

Here are key takeaways as the Ragin' Cajuns improved to 5-5 overall and 3-4 in the Sun Belt Conference in their final home game, and the Eagles fell to 5-5, 2-4 in the SBC.

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Georgia Southern's defense exploited

The Eagles' struggles stopping the run this season are well-chronicled, but the defense as a whole had no answers for a Ragin' Cajuns attack that hadn't exactly sparkled this season.

Louisiana scored the last 20 points of the first half and it could have been more if not for GS nickelback Derrick Canteen's interception at the goal line to stop UL in the red zone.

By halftime, Louisiana had 295 total yards, 147 rushing and 148 passing. By the end of the third quarter, the numbers were 405 total yards, 219 rushing and 186 passing.

Louisiana went into a clock-chewing offensive mode to protect its large lead, and took advantage of favorable field position for short scoring drives. When it was over, the Ragin' Cajuns has totaled 435 yards on 193 passing and a season-high 242 yards rushing.

On the other side, Georgia Southern's running game was anemic as the offense had to play catch-up and relied on a shorthanded passing game.

The Eagles gained just 72 yards rushing and averaged 2.9 yards per rushing play, compared to 6.1 for the hosts.

Georgia Southern's final numbers for total offense were 430 yards with 358 passing.

Kyle Vantrease was 28 of 49 (57%) for 325 yards and one 28-yard scoring pass to Marcus Sanders Jr. to continue his school-record of games with at least one TD pass to 10.

Connor Cigelske entered in the final minutes and was 1 of 3 for 1 yard. Freshman tailback OJ Arnold threw a 32-yard TD pass to Derwin Burgess Jr. in the second quarter that had tied the game at 7, but it was Louisiana that dominated after that score.

Beaten and beaten up

Georgia Southern, like many teams 10 games into the season, is dealing with injuries.

Thursday night was a busy night for the GS medical staff.

Long snapper Mark Langston, a redshirt junior and Savannah Christian graduate, was knocked out of the game early with a knee injury. Jackson Wheeler took over his duties.

Defensive lineman Latrell Bullard, a 6-foot, 345-pound freshman, left the game later with a knee injury. The line already was missing redshirt sophomore Trevon Locke, a Benedictine graduate who did not make the trip because of injury.

Wide receiver Derwin Burgess Jr. was sidelined with a lower leg injury in the second half and went for an X-ray, the Georgia Southern Sports Network reported near the start of the fourth quarter. Later, it announced Burgess would not be returning to the game.

The Eagles already were shorthanded at wide receiver with season-ending injuries to Sam Kenerson in Game 2 and Amare Jones in Game 8. Starter Jeremy Singleton suffered a low ankle sprain against South Alabama and saw limited action on Thursday. Then starter Burgess went down.

Receiver Khaleb Hood, who entered the game needing four receptions to become Georgia Southern's all-time receptions leader, finished with a game-high six catches for 68 yards. Raja Andrews made 127 catches from 2005-08 in the Eagles' run-heavy offense. Hood's 66 catches this season are a program high, breaking Andrews' mark of 64 set in 2008.

Special teams were special — for Louisiana

It wasn't just a great night for the Louisiana offense and defense. The special teams were big as well.

Kenneth Almendares was 5 for 5 on field-goal attempts, tying a UL record, by making kicks of 48, 34, 27, 42 and 40 yards. He also made three extra-point attempts.

Louisiana's Rhys Byrns, an All-Sun Belt Conference first-team punter last season, was a non-factor. He didn't punt until 7:45 was left in the third quarter. Byrns punted twice for 98 yards, a 49-yard average.

That's how much Louisiana was in control of the game.

Kickoff returner Chris Smith returned two for a 37-yard average. Louisiana returned four punts for a 23-yard average.

Third-down and fourth-down conversions

When Georgia Southern lost a 31-17 lead and the game last Saturday to South Alabama 38-31, Eagles coach Clay Helton pointed out the importance of converting on third down. Had a few third-and-1 situations been converted, Eagles drives could have continued and the USA offense would have been kept off the field.

On Thursday night, Georgia Southern was only 2 of 14 on third down, and Louisiana was ineffective as well at 3 of 14.

But Louisiana did so well on first and second down, as well as on fourth down (4 of 5), that diminished the importance of third down.

Georgia Southern, one of the best FBS teams in the red zone, was 0 for 2; Louisiana was 3 for 4.

Bowl implications

Both Louisiana and Georgia Southern still need to earn a sixth victory this season to becoame eligible for a bowl game. The Ragin' Cajuns might have felt even more urgency as it was their last home game, and they have road games remaining at No. 25 Florida State (6-3) on Nov. 19 and at Texas State (3-6, 1-4 SBC) on Nov. 26. Louisiana is out of the running in the West Division.

Georgia Southern is now 2-4 in the Sun Belt with no chance to catch East Division leader Coastal Carolina (5-1 SBC, 8-1 overall). The Eagles have two home games remaining against Marshall on Nov. 19 and Appalachian State on Nov. 26. Those opponents are each 5-4 overall, 2-3 in the league and making their own mad dashes for at least six victories.

Nathan Dominitz is the Sports Content Editor of the Savannah Morning News and savannahnow.com. Email him at ndominitz@savannahnow.com. Twitter: @NathanDominitz