Football Southern Conference

Georgia Southern Opens Preseason Practice

STATESBORO, Ga. - Georgia Southern officially opened its fall preseason camp Thursday with an early evening workout at the Eagle Practice Complex.

Third-year head coach Mike Sewak, who has led the Eagles to an 18-7 overall mark, a Southern Conference championship and a NCAA Division I-AA semifinal playoff appearance during his first two seasons, welcomed his 90-man preseason roster for conditioning and testing during the morning hours before guiding GSU through a two-hour session in helmets and shorts beginning at 6:30 p.m.

Georgia Southern will follow Thursday's initial session with another single workout at the Eagle Practice Complex Friday morning before starting its official two-a-day schedule Tuesday, Aug. 10.

NCAA rules do not permit contact drills until the fifth day with two-a-day practices not allowed on consecutive days. Two-a-days cannot start until after the fifth day. GSU's preseason practice schedule will culminate Sept. 4 when it visits Georgia at Sanford Stadium in Athens for its season opener.

"I can't wait to get started, especially this year," said Sewak. "Last season was obviously disappointing and there's certainly a redemption factor present. I am excited about the potential of this team and the emergence of leadership and I am confident that this team is capable of great things."

The Eagles will return nine starters each on the offensive and defensive side of the ball and a total of 49 lettermen off its 7-4 squad a year ago, including junior fullback Jermaine Austin, who as a sophomore, earned SoCon Offensive Player-of-Year honors after rushing for a league-leading 1,461 yards in 2003. In addition to the return of skill performers Austin, Chaz Williams (QB), Kevin Davis (SB), Teddy Craft (WR) and P.J. Cantrell (WR), Georgia Southern also welcomes back four of five starters on the offensive line who were instrumental in leading the Eagles to a No. 1 national rank in rushing offense with a 335.6 yards per game average.

Defensively, senior first-team All-SoCon linebacker Derrick Butler and senior second-team all-league tackle Eric Hadley are expected to key an Eagle unit under the direction of first-year coordinator Joe Tresey. In addition to Butler and Hadley, Georgia Southern also welcomes back ends Victor Cabral and Shaheen Solomon, tackle Eric McIntire, linebacker Eric White, cornerback Terence McBride and safeties James Young and Tariq Muhammad.

In addition to a workout Saturday morning, the Eagles will conduct their "Football Family Fun Day" in conjunction with the program's annual media day activities at Paulson Stadium from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.