Georgia Southern enters season with No. 2 ranking

Despite leading Georgia Southern to 11 wins and its sixth straight Southern Conference championship last season, Coach Mike Sewak was not left with a sense of fulfillment. <br> <br> ``I think we all still have a sense that we have some unfinished business to take care of from last season,&#39;&#39; said Sewak, who opens his second season with the Eagles Saturday at 6 p.m. with a home game against Savannah State. <br> <br> Georgia Southern, ranked second in the Sports Network I-AA Top 25, has won six national championships, so last year&#39;s 11-3 finish did not meet the highest standards of recent success in Statesboro. <br> <br> Georgia Southern is one week away from a showdown against No. 1 McNeese State, but Eagles quarterback Chaz Williams had his focus on Savannah State last weekend. <br> <br> Williams drove to Jacksonville to watch Bethune-Cookman beat Savannah State 62-12 last Saturday. <br> <br> ``I think (Savannah State) got their first-game jitters out of the way,&#39;&#39; Williams told the Statesboro Herald. ``I expect Savannah State to be a lot better this week when they come here.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Georgia Southern finished 11-3 last season and advanced to the I-AA semifinals, and Sewak returns 12 starters six on offense and six on defense. <br> <br> As a sophomore first-year starter last season, Williams was named Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Year after he rushed for 1,422 yards and a NCAA-record 27 touchdowns. <br> <br> Savannah State (0-1) is only in its second season of I-AA and will be challenged to stop Williams and the Eagles. <br> <br> ``Now we jump from the frying pan into the fire,&#39;&#39; said Savannah State coach Ken Pettiford. <br> <br> Savannah State was 1-9 last season. <br> <br> In other state games Saturday, Albany State will visit Miles; Clark Atlanta will play host to Kentucky State; Morehouse will visit North Carolina Central; Valdosta State will play at Florida Atlantic; West Georgia will visit Presbyterian and Fort Valley State will play host to Winston-Salem State. <br> <br> Miles should provide a stiff challenge for Albany State (0-1), which is coming off a 21-3 loss to Valdosta State last week. Miles opened with a surprising 43-11 trouncing of SIAC favorite Tuskegee. <br> <br> Florida Atlanta, coached by Howard Schnellenberger, opened with a 20-19 win over Middle Tennessee State, which visits Georgia Saturday.

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