Pettus

Dell Pettus (31) returns an interception for a touchdown. 

After a strong showing the prior week, the Troy Trojans had another tough day this past Saturday, Nov. 7, in a frustrating 20-13 loss to Sun Belt foe Georgia Southern Eagles on the road.

The typically explosive Troy offense mustered just 235 total yards and turned the ball over twice. In fact, it was the Troy defense – that has struggled mightily for much of the past two seasons – that provided the Trojans with their lone touchdown on the day.

With Troy trailing 3-0 in the second quarter, defensive back Dell Pettus intercepted a Georgia Southern pass and raced 44 yards for a touchdown to put the Trojans ahead 7-0 with 9:25 left in the half. The Trojans would lead 10-6 at halftime after the two sides exchanged field goals before the half.

Troy kicker Evan Legassey added another field goal in the third quarter but the Trojans would not score again. The Eagles added a 69-yard touchdown run and a 5-yard touchdown run in the third quarter to ultimately pick up the win.

The Troy offense struggled all day and along with the two turnovers, Troy also had six three-and-outs on the day. Georgia Southern totaled 411 yards of offense with 326 yards coming on the ground.

After throwing for more than 400 yards last week, Brantley native Jacob Free earned his second start of the year against Georgia Southern but completed just 21-of-47 pass attempts for 201 yards and two interceptions. Kaylon Geiger caught six passes for 49 yards and Tray Eafford earned three catches for 40 yards.

The Troy running game was almost nonexistent with 44 yards on the ground.

Pettus led the Troy defense with nine tackles and one tackle-for-loss along with the interception. Carlton Martial tallied nine tackles and two tackles-for-loss.

Punter Jack Martin earned Sun Belt Special Teams Player of the Week after averaging 48.7 yards per punt on six punts and downing two inside the Georgia Southern 20-yard line.

“I’m still proud of (our team). Obviously, we didn’t play great on offense but the defense kept us in the ball game all day,” Troy coach Chip Lindsey said. “Our special teams unit did a great job. I wish we would’ve played better on the offensive side of the ball, but at the same time, I know this is a special group of kids. We are going to regroup and get ready for another big matchup next week.”

Troy hosts the No. 15-ranked Coastal Carolina Chanticleers this Saturday, Nov. 14, at 11 a.m. on ESPN2.

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