By: Mike Anthony

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

To say that Georgia State’s tenure in the Football Bowl Subdivision has been a roller coaster ride might be a bit of an understatement.

The Panthers enter 2020 on the heels of a 7-6 record last season and the program’s third bowl appearance, however the team has been prone to big dips in performance, going 3-9 and 2-10 to follow up their previous seasons in which they reached a bowl.

A big reason for the inconsistency has been Georgia State’s struggles to build depth at quarterback.

The Panthers have had their share of impact passers, but have routinely needed a year or two to break in a new star after losing one.

That task once again presents itself this fall as two-year starter and dynamic threat Dan Ellington has moved on.

Ellington was one of the most dangerous quarterbacks in the Sun Belt Conference in 2019 before tearing an ACL two-thirds of the way through the season.

Showing plenty of toughness – and the aforementioned lack of QB depth – Ellington played out the season, but was rendered into a one-dimensional threat and the offense suffered greatly.

Mikele Colasurdo seemed to be a fitting replacement, but has opted out of the season after suffering from COVID-19. That leaves redshirt freshman Cornelius Brown as the most seasoned option available for the Panthers.

Many other pieces remain in place for a Panther offense that was potent before Ellington’s injury.

The running game has been on the upswing for the past two seasons and Georgia State returns four offensive linemen who may be a bit undersized, but who proved their effectiveness last fall.

If the Panthers are to avoid another post-bowl falloff, fixing the defense is a huge priority.

Georgia State ranked just 112th in the country against the run last season and was amongst the worst in the nation at getting to opposing quarterbacks when they dropped back to pass.

The Panthers’ seven wins in 2019 easily could have been more if not for the fact that their defense couldn’t stop any bleeding despite getting plenty of help on the scoreboard from its offense.

All four starters in the defensive secondary return, but it remains to be seen whether that will be a positive. Georgia State allowed 8.5 yards per pass attempt last season and allowed 27 yards through the air.

In a season that is certain to be remembered for its uniqueness, Georgia State has been one of the hardest hit Sun Belt teams in terms of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Panthers lost a Sept. 5 home date vs. Murray State and a Sept. 12 visit to Alabama and weren’t able to schedule any makeup games, leaving them with just 10 matchups this fall.

Overall, the Panthers seem poised to remain as a solid team and avoid too much of a drop-off this time around.

Finding a suitable replacement for Ellington should keep them competitive in most games, but making a run at the Sun Belt East division might be a bit of a stretch as Appalachian State enters 2020 as the prohibitive favorite, with Georgia Southern and Troy also widely predicted to finish ahead of Georgia State.