Boise State vs Georgia Southern | College Football Week 1 Game Preview

with college football realignment the group of five is kind of getting pushed to the side even more than it already does and that's one of the my favorite groups to watch in college football because there are underrated players bunch of underdogs that don't get the recognition that a lot of the big names the big schools do and so that's why we're going to try every single week to do a group of five game of the week and this week we have a very intriguing One Boise State against Georgia Southern boy state is going through a coaching change and is looking to get back to the top of the mountain West after what was a very interesting year in 2023 Georgia Southern is trying to get to the top of the Sun Belt and I think both teams have very intriguing players Georgia Southern is actually one of the more slept on teams in the group of five and we'll see how this game plays Out Boys stay away eight and six last year fired Andy aalos and then somehow found a way to win the Mountain West one of the more just weird seasons of any team that we saw last year this is a team that again was going through some some adversity did not look good at the beginning of the year makes a coaching change Spencer Danielson takes over as the interim and now gets the full-time head coaching job takes over there now there's an intriguing quarterback position that battle I they should say that we were going to talk about but we'll talk about that in a little bit but eight and six season the the defense has to get better that's for sure and you're going to face a Georgia Southern team that that I think could be really fun to watch in 2024 now Georgia Southern went six and seven last year averaged 30 points per game but also gave up 30 and a half points per game so we'll see how much they can handle this year but when you look at what they have coming back you feel really good about what this defense could be it's just a matter of being consistent and how do you become a defense that can shut teams down Boise state is currently favored to win by 13 so we'll see how much that line changed but I think that leads us to the biggest questions madx Masson was named the starting quarterback for Bo state which is super surprising given that they brought in former five-star Malachi Nelson from USC I think a lot of people just assumed that Malachi Nelson was going to win that job I know I was one of them I didn't really expect this to be much of a competition but Maddox Matson finds a way to win that job now can he deliver that's probably the biggest question and I think that even though Malachi Nelson did win the job I think he is very much still in the conversation I think that there is definitely something and maybe that's just me being stubborn to not admit that I knew what I was talking about but the fact that Matson already won the job tells me that I didn't obviously understand that situation but we'll see Ken Max Matson deliver we didn't see a ton from him last year he played quite a bit but I don't think we saw a lot that said man this guy is a Difference Maker but maybe that that was you know he had you you saw the experience he got maybe that's what he needed to be more confident heading into 2024 maybe that experience alone changed him and makes him a much better player for Georgia Southern is going to be can they embrace the underdog role this is a team that has plenty of talent and I think has the ability to surprise boys state a little bit I don't I just need to see it on a consistent basis and they just need to focus on nobody is expecting us to win this game we owe the underdog and we have nothing to lose if Georgia Southern can play loose and free like that not make a bunch of dumb decisions then you're feeling pretty good about your chances in this game the matchup I'm curious to watch because of that is Bo State's defensive backs against Georgia Southern's wide receivers Georgia Southern is a team that is going to want to move the football and in a quick piece pace and when you're looking at these wide receivers you have a number of players that can make big plays and now you got your quarterback in place you feel pretty good about that again Georgia Southern's also going through that quarterback battle it's been resolved obviously JC French is going to take over but the wide receivers give him plenty of options downfield and this is a boy State Defense that wasn't Elite by any means last year but at the same time you feel pretty good about what this team can do in 2024 so that's going to be a very intriguing matchup to watch and one that is definitely going to dictate how this game goes now when you look at what Georgia Southern is going to bring to the table in terms of players JC French is where everything starts and this is a group that is expecting some big things from him inexperienced but definitely has some Talent completed 81% of his passes last year even though it was very limited and had 122 yards with one touchdown and a pick the guys that are going to be next to him though are are going to make his life very easy sometimes he just has to make the smart read and guys like Jaylen white are going to help him in the rushing attack and then you have Duren Burgess and dalen Cobb coming back at wide receivers so you feel pretty good about what this team brings back and again those wide receivers Burgess and Cobb are just this start I think this is a very deep group for Georgia Southern and I'm intrigued to see how they can take a step forward because if this offense gets off to a fast start I feel pretty good about their chances to make a run in the Sun Belt as well as be one of best passing attacks that we see in college football it's just going to come down to obviously what French can do as well as can this team handle a team like Boise State now the defensive side of the ball has a number of underrated Playmakers it all starts with Justin rhods he is a good defensive tackle who is going to have to Showcase his talent when you're facing a Boise State offense that is still going to want to run the football even with their quarterback position figured out Justin rhods is going to play a big role that defensive line I think is one of the more slept on defensive lines in college football I think that they are a very fun group a group that is ready to take a step forward and showcase their talent again this group averaged 30 and a half points against per game so if you can cut that down you're feeling really good about your chances in 2024 now for Boise State everything goes through Ashton ginty and when you're looking at what he brings to the table this is an absolute stud and people didn't really pay attention to Ashton Genty last year part of that was having George helani coming back but also people just didn't pay attention to the group of five as much last year and that's really unfortunate because group of five has made college football really fun to watch it's a reason why we really like the teams like UCF and those teams that make runs that are kind of the underdog and Boise state is been that Underdog for so long but uh last few years you kind of seen them take maybe a step back they are looking get back to the top of that conversation and they are in that conversation for the group of five team to make the college football playoff group of five is going to get a spot and Boise State's in that conversation Aston Genty is going to be one of those players you have to watch if you have not watched him before you can just go watch his highlights you can go watch film you watch him all year this year he is someone that is worth the price of admission he is worth paying attention to and he is going to make Georgia Southern's life very miserable I don't care who you are he is so Dynamic so explosive and very tough to tackle now obviously you could look at madx Matson and what he needs to do he is the quarterback he is going to be a big X Factor for this team you have a couple of players that are very interesting that he's going to throw to you could look at lro CES Prince Sten he has a number of options that can make big plays and with teams focusing on Ashton Genty they're going to open things up for Matson to see a lot of one-on-one matchups and they're going to test him Georgia Southern is definitely going to send pressure they are going to load up the box because they do not trust what he can do yet he has to be a factor with that offense and he has to be able to move the ball consistently because if he cannot this is going to be a long game and this is like I said this is a Georgia Southern defense that is ready to Showcase what they can do and show that they are going to take a step forward and if you can't find ways to move the ball on them it's going to be a long night for Boise State now on defense for Boise State this is a group that needs to take a step forward as well but you have guys returning Andrew Simpson is going to be one of those guys to pay attention to Ahad hassine is another one of those guys those are two guys that are ready to step up in a big way and they were productive Playmakers they combined for 32 and a half tackles for loss as well as 19 sacks in 2023 so those are two guys that know how to get the job done they know exactly what they're doing and they have big expectations in 2024 and it's just a matter of slowing down this Georgia Southern offense if they can do that you feel really good about their chances and if they're going to need some time to figure things out then they're kind of hoping that this offense can do something to help them out now I think that you're still feeling pretty good about where Boise State sits but there are some things that definitely have to get sorted out before you feel good permanently about that Spencer Danielson has done a good job of keeping these guys focused and keeping them motivated and whatnot especially we saw that last year and now they have bigger expectations not only do they want to win the Mountain West again but they are looking to get in the college football playoff and they have a couple opportunities to play some really good teams they have to get past Georg of Southern first again we're not doing a prediction in this video this will just be a preview if you want a prediction later this week we do have a prediction video where we're going to predict every week one game so stay tuned for that and Boise State obviously is is favored by 13 right now but I think this one could be closer than a lot of people