Georgia State, a team that has only been in existence for 10 years, defied all odds and beat the University of Tennessee which has a football program that pre-dates Georgia State’s football program by more than a century.
A multitude of incomplete passes, interceptions, and fumbles was cause for both the Volunteers and the Panthers to be off their game during this season opener. However, Dan Ellington managed to throw 2 touchdown passes during this game and ran for a third touchdown as GSU beat TN in a 38-30 upset on August 31st at Neyland Stadium
In the 4th quarter, even after completing a 54-yard pass from Jarrett Guarantano to Dominick Anderson, the Volunteers had no choice but to opt for a field goal to get more points on the board. This seemed to be their only way to up their score considering they only had 3 touchdowns in the game but a total score of 30.
Tennessee’s last attempt at winning the game was meaningless because even with the touchdown and field goal, the team had no chance of completing victory over the Panthers with a final score of 38-30.
To make matters worse, Tennessee had previously agreed to pay Georgia State a cool $950,000 to come out to Knoxville and play them. So essentially, the Volunteers paid nearly $1 Million just for them to get beat. The two teams agreed to the terms way back in 2014 and it is safe to say that Tennessee had no inclination as to what the outcome of this game would be
Internet trolls and fans from all over were all too quick to poke fun at the losing team. For Tennessee to have produced NFL players such as Josh Dobbs and Alvin Kamara, it was incredibly surprising for them to lose to Georgia State.
Hopefully, the Panthers are able to keep up their momentum and sustain a winning record for the rest of their season.
