By: Alex Mathis

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

Tyson Summers had a really interesting 1^st season at Georgia Southern.

He saw his team finish the season 5-7 and received a lot a backlash from fans. Tom Kleinlein, Georgia Sothern’s AD, even drafted a letter of support for Coach Summers.

There were a lot of changes at GSU last year. The Wing-T offense, that we were used to seeing at GSU, was put aside for more of a spread offense. That experiment didn’t last a year.

GSU will be going back to their Wing-T attack and a whole new offensive staff. The coaching staff will have their work cut out for them this year. The Eagles will have to replace 15 starters and hope that some underclassmen step up and make this season better for the Eagles.

Offensive Preview: Tyson Summers brought in Bryan Cook to help run the Wing-T offense. Cook has spent the last four seasons with Paul Johnson at Georgia Tech.

There is no doubt he has background to get the offense rolling, but the task is finding the Jimmy’s and Joe’s to make it go. The offense will be losing a lot of productivity this year.

Georgia Southern lost three key components to their offense this year. Kevin Ellison, Favian Upshaw and running back Matt Breida will greatly be missed.

They combined for nearly 3,000 offensive yards last year. GSU will have to replace these studs and also have to find a QB.

It looks like the Eagles will have to start a redshirt freshman, Shai Werts, after the departure of hopeful starter Seth Shuman. Some positivity for the offense is that the Eagles will be returning three starters on the offensive line. Though blocking schemes change in the Wing-T offense, the in-game experience up front will be vital for the Eagles.

Defensive Preview: Georgia Southern’s defense lost three top linebackers and seven top defensive linemen. This will be very hard to replace. That type of depth and experience can keep a team in games.

The Eagles will have their hands full next year up front. There will be a lot of opportunities for someone to make a name for themselves up front for the Eagles. The weak spot on defense last year came in the secondary. They were really young. A year of experience will make this group a whole lot better. Hopefully they will lead this defense this year.

Predictions: I expect the Eagles to have a better season this year. The Wing-T offense will keep them in games. The Eagles will be the team that others better not look past.

If you can’t get the Eagles offense off the field you will see the clock disappear. I expect the Summers’ Eagles to improve to 7-5 this year with a trip to a bowl game.