Georgia State 41, Texas State 19: What We Learned

[caption id="attachment_17685" align="alignright" width="289"]Photo by Mary Scott McNabb Photo by Mary Scott McNabb[/caption] Strong starts must turn into strong finishes. Texas State put together a good first drive and played well to start the game, but unfortunately it couldn’t sustain its momentum. The Bobcats scored two field goals and a touchdown in the first half on the back of solid drives, but it went downhill from there. They couldn’t get anything going offensively until quarterback Tyler Jones connected with running back Robert Lowe for a touchdown with seconds left in the game. Texas State’s defense was good to start both halves, but couldn’t keep up with Georgia State’s up-tempo offense. It’s good to see the Bobcats find a way to start strong, but if you can’t keep rolling and finish, a decent start isn’t going to do you any good.  The Bobcats need more playmakers. Jones and Lowe turned in good performances, but they have to be more consistent and get some help from their teammates. Jones finished 29-of-51 with 267 yards and made a few big plays, but he also threw two interceptions and missed a few throws that could’ve changed the game. In Jones’ defense, though, some of his top receivers dropped catchable passes at inopportune moments. Lowe ran for 88 yards on 17 carries and scored both Texas State touchdowns, but overall the Bobcat ground game was unsuccessful. Texas State has talent, and those players have to find it in themselves to sell out every snap and make this disappointing season look respectable. If you’re looking for a bright spot, I’ll direct you to kicker Lumi Kaba. He hit two of three field goals, including a 50-yarder, and continued his solid punting this season by averaging 51.2 yards per boot. Texas State’s defense still needs work. The good news is there was improvement. It took nine games and a matchup against a very pass-happy team, but the Bobcats finally tabbed their first and second interceptions of the season, both by safety Stephan Johnson. Other than that, however, there wasn’t much good happening on the defensive side of the ball. Georgia State tallied 643 yards with 471 coming via the pass and had a lot of success running its air-raid style offense. Texas State gave up too many big passing plays and even allowed a few breakout runs despite the Panthers’ weak rushing game. This defense has to find a way to make stops and give its offense the ball more often.