Quarterback Chaz Williams had his 10th straight 100-yard rushing game and scored two second-half touchdowns as Georgia Southern advanced to the semifinals of the Division I-AA playoffs with a 31-7 win over Maine Saturday at Allen E. Paulson Stadium.
The Eagles (11-2) host Western Kentucky next week. The Hilltoppers advanced with a 31-28 win over Western Illinois.
“You could see on film that Maine would be physical,” GSU head coach Mike Sewak said. “We played a tough team, and we showed that our kids are tough, too.”
The Eagles needed just about every trick in their triple-option playbook to get the job done.
“I think we made them reach deep in their bag,” Maine coach Jack Cosgrove said. “They pitched it exceptionally well.”
When Williams wasn’t keeping the ball himself, he was either handing off to redshirt freshman fullback Jermaine Austin up the middle, or pitching wide to fleet slotbacks Zzream Walden or Mark Myers.
Austin rushed for 143 yards, including a 7-yard TD dash; Walden added 85 yards and Myers 73 yards.
“I think they were surprised we could run against them,” Sewak said. “I don’t think they’re used to seeing running backs like ours.”
Maine (11-3), which shared the Atlantic-10 Conference championship with Northeastern during the regular season, averaged 280 pounds across its offensive line, but the Black Bears were no match for the speed of Georgia Southern’s option attack.
“They’re as good as they looked on film,” Cosgrove said.
Jon Meczywor, who was Maine’s third-string quarterback until starter Jake Eaton and backup Chris Legree both went down with injuries three weeks ago, was held to 8-of-22 passing for 99 yards, with one interception. One of his completions, however, went to Kevin McMahan who pulled the ball down in a crowd at the goal line and tumbled across for Maine’s only score.
Williams had 106 yards on 27 carries, including TD runs of 2 and 5 yards in the fourth quarter when the Eagles broke it open, rolling to their 10th straight home win and 46th in their last 47 games at Paulson Stadium.
The Eagles, seeking their seventh I-AA title, rolled up 456 yards — 416 yards on the ground. Maine was held to 261 yards — 113 yards by tailback Marcus Williams.
After Walden gave Georgia Southern a 7-0 lead with a 23-yard touchdown run around left end with 4:28 left in the first quarter, Maine responded by driving 72 yards in 10 plays to tie it 7-7 on Meczywor’s 34-yard TD pass to McMahan. Walden had runs of 8, 10 and 17 yards in a 78-yard, nine-play drive capped by Austin’s TD run for a 14-7 Georgia Southern lead with 1:03 left in the second quarter. Scott Shelton’s 36-yard field goal put the Eagles up 17-7 with 3:54 left in the third quarter.
The Eagles got a big break early in the fourth quarter when Maine’s Maurice Garlic fumbled Shelton’s punt. The ball was recovered by Georgia Southern’s De Robinson at the Maine 45, and nine plays later, Williams dove in from 2 yards out for a 24-7 lead with 9:54 remaining.
“That was a big momentum change for us,” Williams said. “We wanted to put a dagger in their hearts, right there.”
Williams, on a keeper, scampered 52 yards to set up his own 5-yard TD run with 4:03 to play.
Georgia Southern improved to 38-7 all-time in Division I-AA post-season play, the winningest mark in I-AA history.

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