At 4-4 and 2-3 in Southern Conference play, the Georgia Southern Eagles are a long shot to make the playoffs, to say the least.
    With three games left, GSU could still finish 7-4, and if you ask teams like Weber State, Montana State and New Hampshire, that can be good enough to earn a spot in the postseason.
    With No. 1 Appalachian State coming to Statesboro Saturday for a 2 p.m. kickoff at Paulson Stadium, GSU coach Jeff Monken certainly won’t disagree that there’s still a chance.
    “Absolutely,” he said about whether or not the playoffs are still a possibility. “If we can beat the No. 1 team in the country and be fortunate enough to win the last two and we’re 7-4, maybe people take a look at that. Here’s a team that beat the No. 1 team in the country with three games to go, had four one-possession losses — one of them was to a Bowl team at the FBS level — maybe you’ve got something. I don’t make those decisions, but the only motivation is in hope, and I’m going to remain hopeful.”
    Beating the Mountaineers (8-0, 6-0) will be no easy task, but hosting ASU for homecoming, in Monken’s eyes, is enough motivation in itself.
    “It wouldn’t matter if we were 8-0 right now or we were 0-8. We want to beat Appalachian State just like we want to win every game,” said Monken. “Certainly having the number one team coming in, it should motivate the team. I’m sure everybody that plays them is motivated. That’s what it’s like when you’re on top. I remember those days. It was fun.”
    When Monken was an assistant at GSU from 1997-2001, the Eagles won the SoCon title each year and ASU was smash-mouth football team without a national title to its credit. Since he left, the Mountaineers have taken over as the league’s top team after switching to a spread attack and winning three national championships. The reason, he says, is simple.
    “They quite frankly have got better people than anybody else,” he said. “They’ve got better talent. They could go line up in the smash mouth right now and they’ve probably got better players and they’d win. And that’s how you do it. That’s how Georgia Southern did it. When we were winning here we were faster than everybody else in the country and better than everybody else, had better players than everyone else in the country, and we won. It’s hard to lose when you’ve got better players and you’re playing hard.”

Just another week of practice
    Georgia Southern backup quarterback Jerick McKinnon, a true freshman, has taken a lot of snaps in place of starter Jaybo Shaw for the last two weeks. For him, preparing for Appalachian State is no different than any other team on the schedule.
    They’ll set out to win as they have for the previous eight games.
    “I wouldn’t say it’s going to change the outlook of the season,” McKinnon said. “It would be a great victory for the team. They’re a great team and we don’t expect them to do anything but come out there and perform to their best. We’ll try to match that.”

Getting some PT
    Freshman Michael Spaulding played every snap at middle linebacker against The Citadel on October 23 in place of injured Josh Rowe, and started against Samford Saturday before Rowe’s return.
    He is one of 14 true freshmen who has seen significant playing time this season.
    “We’re just one big family out there,” Spaulding said, “and it was a blessing. I enjoy the opportunity, and I appreciate the coaches giving me the opportunity.”
 
    Matt Yogus can be reached at (912) 489-9408.