Panthers Open 2024 Season at Georgia Tech - Georgia State University (2024)

ATLANTA--Georgia State opens its 15th season of football (11th at the FBS level) and the Dell McGee era with the Panthers' first meeting at Georgia Tech, set for Saturday, Aug. 31 at 8 p.m. at Bobby Dodd Stadium.

> Dell McGee, a Columbus, Ga., native with 22 years of coaching experience, including back-to-back national titles as the run game coordinator and running backs coach for the Georgia Bulldogs, was named the fourth head football coach in Georgia State history on Feb. 23, 2024.
> Although this is Dell McGee's first full-time head coaching position, he is already 1-0 as a head coach. He led Georgia Southern to a 58-27 win over Bowling Green in the 2015 GoDaddy Bowl while serving as interim head coach.
> Playing just its 15th season of football and 11th at the FBS level, Georgia State has already played in six bowl games (4-2 record) and five in the last seven years, including last year's 45-22 win over Utah State in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. The Panthers have won three straight bowls over the last four years.

THE PANTHERS SQUAD:With the leadership change for the Panthers during the off season, Georgia State retained 65 returners and added 54 newcomers to the 2024 roster.

> Georgia State saw its largest influx of transfers in the offseason, with 48 transfer additions to the roster.

SERIES NOTES:Georgia State is facing Georgia Tech for the first time. This is the opening of a home-and-home. The Yellow Jackets are scheduled to visit GSU's Center Parc Stadium on Sept. 19, 2026.
> Georgia State is 10-4 against teams from the state of Georgia. The Panthers are 1-0 against Shorter, Savannah State, Clark-Atlanta and Kennesaw State, and 6-4 against Georgia Southern.

STATE-TECH CONNECTIONS:As Georgia State and Georgia Tech meet for the first time, there are numerous connections between the rosters and staffs.
> Georgia State defensive coordinator Kevin Sherrer spent the 2023 season at Tech, where he served as linebackers coach/co-defensive coordinator before being elevated to defensive coordinator on Oct. 1, 2023. GSU associate head coach for special teams/director of quality control Carter Blount also spent the 2023 at Georgia Tech.
> Conversely, a pair of Georgia Tech assistant coaches came from Georgia State. Trent McKnight was GSU's receivers coach from 2017-21 and then offensive coordinator in 2022-23. Cory Peoples coached the GSU secondary for four years (2019-23).
> Georgia State has two current players who transferred from Georgia Tech in QB Zach Gibson and CB Kenyatta Watson, while former GSU defensive lineman Thomas Gore is now at Tech.

PANTHERS VS. POWER 5:This is Georgia State's 17th game against an opponent from the Power Four or Five conference and fourth vs. the ACC. The Panthers have also faced foes from the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12 and Pac 12.
> Most notably, the Panthers' 38-30 victory at Tennessee in the 2019 season opener is the program's only win over a Power Five team. In that game, Georgia State trailed 17-14 at the half but outscored the Vols 24-13 in the second half, sealing the win on a 22-yard touchdown run by QB Dan Ellington with five minutes left.
> GSU has also held second-half leads vs. North Carolina in 2022 (scored 25 straight points to take a 28-21 lead late in third quarter), at Auburn in 2021 (led 24-19 until the Tigers scored the go-ahead touchdown on a fourth-down play with 45 seconds left) and at No. 9 Wisconsin in 2016 (led 17-13 with under eight minutes left).
> Georgia State will host Vanderbilt on Sept. 14, giving the Panthers two games against Power 5 opponents for the third time in the last four years and the fifth time overall:

2013: West Virginia, Alabama
2014: Washington, Clemson
2021:North Carolina, Auburn
2022:South Carolina, North Carolina (home)
2024:Georgia Tech, Vanderbilt (home)

> In addition to the return games with Georgia State (2026 at GSU) and Vandy (2025 at VU), the Panthers have upcoming P4 games scheduled vs. Ole Miss (away in 2025) and Wake Forest (Away 2029/Home 2030).

SEASON OPENERS:Georgia State is 6-8 in season openers, including a 42-35 win vs. Rhode Island in last year's opener.
> The Panthers are opening on the road for just the third time in 15 seasons of existence. GSU also opened on the road in 2019 (38-30 win at Tennessee) and in 2022 (35-14 loss at South Carolina).
> Georgia State is opening on a Saturday for the fifth time in the last six years. The team opened on a weeknight for its first nine years of existence and then again last season, including five Thursday games, four Fridays and one Wednesday.

NEW STARTING QB:After a GSU-record 36 consecutive games with Darren Grainger as the starting quarterback, the Panthers will have a different starter under center for the first time since he took over in Game 3 of the 2021 season.
> The Panthers are on the hunt for a new starting quarterback, with eyes on transfers Christian Veilleaux and Zach Gibson to lead the squad.
> Veilleux, a junior transfer from Pitt joins the GSU program for the 2024 season after spending one season at Pittsburgh and two at Penn States. Last season, Veilleux appeared in seven games (five starts) for Pitt, and completed 94-of-184 passes for 1,179 yards and seven touchdowns.

> Senior Gibson joined the Panthers in January 2024 as a transfer from Georgia Tech with 3,060 career passing yards. Gibson completed three seasons with Akron before transferring to Tech.