Georgia State Panthers Football

The Georgia State Panthers football team represents Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 2010, the Panthers compete at the NCAA Division I FBS level. They are a member of the Sun Belt Conference.

The team's home games are hosted at Center Parc Stadium, located just ten minutes from GSU's downtown campus. The Panthers are part of the East Division of the Sun Belt Conference.

Georgia State Panthers football team played its first season in 2010. A 2006 study showed that starting a football program was a good idea. Dan Reeves, a former Atlanta Falcons head coach, helped in 2007, and discussions started then. The program officially started in 2008 when Bill Curry was appointed head coach. In November 2008, construction began for a practice facility in downtown Atlanta. Home games are played at Center Parc Stadium. The team is currently a member of the Sun Belt Conference.

Georgia State Panthers Football History

In November 2006, Georgia State conducted a study affirming its potential to establish a college football team. The annual expenses by 2012 were estimated to be $3.1 million. Former Atlanta Falcons head coach Dan Reeves was hired as a consultant on April 15, 2007. Discussions about adding football began on November 1, 2007, with projected costs ranging from $6.2 million to $33.8 million.

On April 17, 2008, Georgia State officially launched its football program. Bill Curry was appointed as head coach in June 2008. Construction of a downtown practice facility started on November 20, 2008, and the first scholarship was awarded to wide receiver Mark Hogan in January 2009. Cheryl Levick became athletic director in February 2009, and Georgia State joined the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) in June 2009, commencing CAA play in 2012. The team practiced at an NFL facility in 2009 before playing its first game on September 2, 2010, against the Shorter Hawks, winning 41-7.

The inaugural season ended with a 6-5 record. In 2011, the Panthers recorded a 3-8 record amid quarterback shuffles. Bill Curry retired after the 2012 season, concluding with a 1-10 record. Georgia State announced its move to the Sun Belt Conference in April 2012, becoming a full member on July 1, 2013, and transitioning to Division I FBS. Postseason eligibility commenced in 2014.

Georgia State Panthers Football Coach

Georgia State Panthers Football coach's name is Dell McGee. Dell McGee was announced as the new head coach on February 23, 2024. The Georgia State Panthers football program has seen four head coaches as of May 2024. Shawn Elliott served as the head coach from December 2016 until February 2024.

He succeeded Bill Curry, the program's founding head coach, who laid the groundwork for the team's development but saw limited success on the field. Trent Miles took over from Curry and led the Panthers to their first bowl game in 2015. However, after a few seasons, Miles was relieved of his duties. Shawn Elliott's tenure saw promising recruiting efforts and notable achievements on the field, but he resigned in February 2024.

Here is a table listing all the head coaches and the duration they served as head coach:

Georgia State Panthers Football Stadium: Center Parc Stadium

Center Parc Stadium, also known as Georgia State University Stadium or GSU Stadium, is an outdoor stadium located in Atlanta, Georgia. It has been the home ground for the Georgia State University Panthers football team since 2017, taking over from the Georgia Dome, which had been their venue from the program's inception in 2010 until 2016.

The stadium was originally constructed for the 1996 Summer Olympics as Centennial Olympic Stadium, but it later transformed into Turner Field, the former home of the Atlanta Braves baseball team, from 1997 to 2016. After the Braves moved to Truist Park in Cobb County, Georgia State University acquired the stadium for campus expansion, including new housing, academic, and retail spaces, alongside the stadium's redevelopment. Center Parc Stadium is the second former Braves ballpark to be converted into a college football stadium, after Boston's Nickerson Field.

The stadium initially had an 85,000-seat capacity and hosted track and field events during the 1996 Olympics. Atlanta Braves announced their departure from Turner Field in November 2013 because the renovation cost totalled around $350 million.

Georgia State Panthers Football Rivals

The rivalry between Georgia State Panthers and Georgia Southern Eagles started in 2014 when they first faced each other on the football field. Both schools share a contentious relationship partly due to their similar abbreviations, GSU, and the claim to the title of the "real" GSU.

Georgia State emphasizes its longer history as a university, while Georgia Southern highlights its football history, which includes six national championships at the FCS level. The rivalry intensified with the hiring of Georgia State's athletic director from Appalachian State, a major rival of Georgia Southern. The inaugural football match in 2014 drew significant attention, with both fan bases expressing their rivalry on social media.

Georgia Southern won the first game decisively, but Georgia State bounced back with a convincing win the following year. Since then, Georgia State has maintained the upper hand, leading the series 6-4. Their rivalry extends beyond football, with both schools competing fiercely across various sports, leading to the establishment of a formal rivalry series within the Sun Belt Conference.

Georgia State Panthers Football Record and stats

Not much information is available.

Georgia State Panthers Football Roster

Here's the Georgia State Panthers Football Roster:

On the offensive side:

On the defensive side:

Georgia State Panthers Football Schedule

The Georgia State Panthers Football team's regular season schedule matches are as follows: