If Georgia Southern football fans weren’t sure who Steve Cundari was prior to Saturday, they certainly know him now.
The 6-foot-3, 190-pound redshirt freshman out of Roswell was stunning in the annual Blue/White game Saturday, reeling in eight catches for 179 yards and two touchdowns. Cundari, along quarterback Kyle Collins – who showed commendable poise for a redshirt freshman – teamed up to lead the White team to a 17-7 victory before 5,400 fans at Paulson Stadium. The intersquad scrimmage culminated spring practice.
Cundari’s first touchdown catch, a 34-yard diving grab in the end zone, put the White team ahead 10-7 in the third quarter. He scored again in the fourth, hauling in a 50-yard pass from No. 1 quarterback Travis Clark to provide the final margin.
“He’s a guy who hadn’t done a whole lot this spring to get our attention but has been a solid player,” first-year Eagle coach Chris Hatcher said of Cundari. “Today he really made some great plays. He’s one guy I was really proud of today. I thought he played an outstanding ballgame.”
Said Cundari: “This is the first time showing the new offense, so as a receiving corps, I think we did a pretty good job today. The new offense has only been in for about two weeks now, and I think after today we are all clicking.”
Collins, the team’s second-string signal caller, made a push for the starting job, completing 24 of 47 passes for 300 yards and one score.
“I’ve been impressed with Collins all spring,” Hatcher said. “I’ve said all spring that he’s probably improved as much as anybody at any position.”
Collins started strong, hitting 10 of 18 attempts in the first quarter for 152 yards.
“We’ve been working really hard all spring,” he said. “I was trying to come in and put things together with my receivers, and my line did a great job today. We were really clicking today, and we were on the same page. It felt really good. It was a lot of fun.”
Clark directed the Blue team for most of the afternoon and was 17-for-29 for 138 and one interception. Ronnie Wiggins rushed for a game-high 68 yards on 13 carries for the White squad, and Lamar Lewis led the Blue with 66 yards and one score on six tries. For the most part, the Blue squad featured the first-team offense, while the White team had the first-team defense, although a few players were mixed in on both teams.
“The way I do things is everyday you are fighting for a starting position,” Hatcher said. “Whoever practices the best during the week, that’s who plays on Saturday.”
Hatcher applauded the defense, specifically the first-team, which he said turned in its best performance of the entire spring. Junior linebacker David Morris recorded a game-high nine tackles for the Blue team, while Jabarious Talmadge, E.J. Webb and Justin Callaway had seven tackles apiece.
The teams combined for four fumbles lost and one interception — sophomore defensive back Brandon Echols picked off a Clark pass and returned it 18 yards in the second quarter.
Senior playmaker Jayson Foster caught three passes for 13 yards and gained 12 yards on six totes. He saw action at quarterback late in the game, completing 3 of 5 attempts for 49 yards, including a 28-yarder to Arthur Morris. Foster took an option pitch 38 yards in the second quarter, but the run was negated by a holding call.
“Offensively, today went well except for a few turnovers,” Foster said. “We moved the ball fairly well, especially between the 20s. Our offense is fast-paced, we like it and I think we’re going to score a lot of points out of it. The defense knew most of the plays, so it was a little different today.”
The Eagles, who ranked dead last in the Southern Conference in field goals (9 of 18) and point-after-attempts (20 of 25) made last year, converted 1 of 3 field goals and 3 of 3 PATs Saturday.
Junior Patrick Bolen nailed a 22-yard attempt to put the White team up 3-0 in the first quarter, but junior Jesse Hartley missed a 35-yard try two seconds before halftime and redshirt freshman Brett Peddicord’s 42-yarder sailed wide left late in the final quarter. Senior Bo Galvin, Bolen and Hartley each hit a PAT. Senior Dan Jordan averaged 43.5 yards a kick on six punts.
“We didn’t execute like I’d like for us to all the time, but we did some good things, some positive things that we can take away from this game and this spring going into next fall,” Hatcher said. “After Friday, as far as we were concerned, the rigors of spring training were over with. Today was a day to have a good time and let the fans get a little football in them.”
Georgia Southern’s season opener is slated for Sept. 8 against West Georgia at Paulson Stadium.
Alex Pellegrino can be reached at (912) 489-9413.
The 6-foot-3, 190-pound redshirt freshman out of Roswell was stunning in the annual Blue/White game Saturday, reeling in eight catches for 179 yards and two touchdowns. Cundari, along quarterback Kyle Collins – who showed commendable poise for a redshirt freshman – teamed up to lead the White team to a 17-7 victory before 5,400 fans at Paulson Stadium. The intersquad scrimmage culminated spring practice.
Cundari’s first touchdown catch, a 34-yard diving grab in the end zone, put the White team ahead 10-7 in the third quarter. He scored again in the fourth, hauling in a 50-yard pass from No. 1 quarterback Travis Clark to provide the final margin.
“He’s a guy who hadn’t done a whole lot this spring to get our attention but has been a solid player,” first-year Eagle coach Chris Hatcher said of Cundari. “Today he really made some great plays. He’s one guy I was really proud of today. I thought he played an outstanding ballgame.”
Said Cundari: “This is the first time showing the new offense, so as a receiving corps, I think we did a pretty good job today. The new offense has only been in for about two weeks now, and I think after today we are all clicking.”
Collins, the team’s second-string signal caller, made a push for the starting job, completing 24 of 47 passes for 300 yards and one score.
“I’ve been impressed with Collins all spring,” Hatcher said. “I’ve said all spring that he’s probably improved as much as anybody at any position.”
Collins started strong, hitting 10 of 18 attempts in the first quarter for 152 yards.
“We’ve been working really hard all spring,” he said. “I was trying to come in and put things together with my receivers, and my line did a great job today. We were really clicking today, and we were on the same page. It felt really good. It was a lot of fun.”
Clark directed the Blue team for most of the afternoon and was 17-for-29 for 138 and one interception. Ronnie Wiggins rushed for a game-high 68 yards on 13 carries for the White squad, and Lamar Lewis led the Blue with 66 yards and one score on six tries. For the most part, the Blue squad featured the first-team offense, while the White team had the first-team defense, although a few players were mixed in on both teams.
“The way I do things is everyday you are fighting for a starting position,” Hatcher said. “Whoever practices the best during the week, that’s who plays on Saturday.”
Hatcher applauded the defense, specifically the first-team, which he said turned in its best performance of the entire spring. Junior linebacker David Morris recorded a game-high nine tackles for the Blue team, while Jabarious Talmadge, E.J. Webb and Justin Callaway had seven tackles apiece.
The teams combined for four fumbles lost and one interception — sophomore defensive back Brandon Echols picked off a Clark pass and returned it 18 yards in the second quarter.
Senior playmaker Jayson Foster caught three passes for 13 yards and gained 12 yards on six totes. He saw action at quarterback late in the game, completing 3 of 5 attempts for 49 yards, including a 28-yarder to Arthur Morris. Foster took an option pitch 38 yards in the second quarter, but the run was negated by a holding call.
“Offensively, today went well except for a few turnovers,” Foster said. “We moved the ball fairly well, especially between the 20s. Our offense is fast-paced, we like it and I think we’re going to score a lot of points out of it. The defense knew most of the plays, so it was a little different today.”
The Eagles, who ranked dead last in the Southern Conference in field goals (9 of 18) and point-after-attempts (20 of 25) made last year, converted 1 of 3 field goals and 3 of 3 PATs Saturday.
Junior Patrick Bolen nailed a 22-yard attempt to put the White team up 3-0 in the first quarter, but junior Jesse Hartley missed a 35-yard try two seconds before halftime and redshirt freshman Brett Peddicord’s 42-yarder sailed wide left late in the final quarter. Senior Bo Galvin, Bolen and Hartley each hit a PAT. Senior Dan Jordan averaged 43.5 yards a kick on six punts.
“We didn’t execute like I’d like for us to all the time, but we did some good things, some positive things that we can take away from this game and this spring going into next fall,” Hatcher said. “After Friday, as far as we were concerned, the rigors of spring training were over with. Today was a day to have a good time and let the fans get a little football in them.”
Georgia Southern’s season opener is slated for Sept. 8 against West Georgia at Paulson Stadium.
Alex Pellegrino can be reached at (912) 489-9413.
