1985 Georgia Southern Eagles football team

1985 Georgia Southern Eagles football
NCAA Division I-AA champion
ConferenceIndependent
Ranking
APNo. 9
Record13–2
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorPaul Johnson (1st season)
Offensive schemeOption
Defensive coordinatorLen Gravelson (1st season)
Base defense4–4
Home stadiumPaulson Stadium
1985 NCAA Division I-AA independents football standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 9 ^   –   13 – 2 – 0
No. 11 Eastern Washington ^   –   9 – 3 – 0
No. 18 Richmond   –   8 – 3 – 0
Colgate   –   7 – 3 – 1
Delaware   –   7 – 4 – 0
Tennessee State   –   7 – 4 – 0
No. 16 William & Mary   –   7 – 4 – 0
Lafayette   –   6 – 5 – 0
James Madison   –   5 – 6 – 0
Lehigh   –   5 – 6 – 0
Holy Cross   –   4 – 6 – 1
Florida A&M   –   4 – 7 – 0
Western Kentucky   –   4 – 7 – 0
Bucknell   –   3 – 7 – 0
Northeastern   –   2 – 8 – 0
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll

The 1985 Georgia Southern Eagles football team represented the Georgia Southern Eagles of Georgia Southern College (now known as Georgia Southern University) during the 1985 NCAA Division I-AA football season. The Eagles played their home games at Paulson Stadium in Statesboro, Georgia. The team was coached by Erk Russell, in his fourth year as head coach for the Eagles. They went on to defeat Furman 44-42 in the Division 1-AA Championship Game to win their first of six Division 1-AA Championships and the first of two in a row.[1]

Offensive Coordinator Paul Johnson, who would go on to be the head coach at Navy and Georgia Tech at the Division 1 level,[2] specifically curtailed the offensive scheme, known as the Hambone, around quarterback Tracy Ham. Ham was an incredible athlete who can both run and pass, making the option offense of the Hambone very successful.[3] Johnson would go on to popularize and refine a similar offense to the Hambone known as the flexbone, which has had great success across college football for many coaches and teams.[4]

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 7vs. Florida A&M
W 27–2118,086[5]
September 14Middle Tennessee
L 10–359,227[6]
September 21at Troy State
W 17–106,400[7]
September 28at Chattanooga
W 19–148,892[8]
October 5Tennessee Tech
  • Paulson Stadium
  • Statesboro, GA
W 34–09,152[9]
October 12Bethune–CookmanNo. 19
  • Paulson Stadium
  • Statesboro, GA
W 46–248,063[10]
October 26NewberryNo. 8
  • Paulson Stadium
  • Statesboro, GA
W 38–1712,831[11]
November 2at James MadisonNo. 7
L 6–215,000[12]
November 9UCFNo. 16
  • Paulson Stadium
  • Statesboro, GA
W 35–187,759[13]
November 16East Tennessee StateNo. 12
  • Paulson Stadium
  • Statesboro, GA
W 46–78,142[14]
November 23at South Carolina StateNo. 10
W 43–306,543[15]
November 30No. 15 Jackson StateNo. 9
W 27–04,128[16]
December 7at No. 1 Middle TennesseeNo. 9
W 28–219,500[17]
December 14at No. 4 Northern IowaNo. 9
W 40–3312,300[18]
December 21vs. No. T–2 FurmanNo. 9
W 44–425,306[19]

[20][21]

References

  1. ^ "Championships/Postseason". Georgia Southern University Athletics. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  2. ^ "Paul Johnson College Coaching Records, Awards and Leaderboards". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  3. ^ "Throwback Thursday - First Georgia Southern-Florida Game - August 30, 1986". Georgia Southern University Athletics. November 21, 2013. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  4. ^ Hinton, Matt (April 2, 2008). "CFB Explainer: Flexbonin'". Sunday Morning Quarterback. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  5. ^ "Georgia So. outlasts FAMU, 27–21". Pensacola News Journal. September 16, 1984. Retrieved November 13, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "MTSU rambles 35–10 over Georgia Southern". The Tennessean. September 15, 1985. Retrieved December 1, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Ham paces Ga. Southern to 17–10 win". The Atlanta Constitution. September 22, 1985. Retrieved November 11, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Ham leads Eagles over UTC 19–13". The Atlanta Journal & Constitution. September 29, 1985. Retrieved December 1, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Southern routs Tech". The Daily News-Journal. October 6, 1985. Retrieved December 1, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Southern takes 46–24 victory". The Macon Telegraph & News. October 13, 1985. Retrieved September 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Georgia Southern rolls past Newberry". The Greenville News. October 27, 1985. Retrieved December 1, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "James Madison Dukes upend Georgia Southern, 21–6". The Daily News Leader. November 3, 1985. Retrieved October 12, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Georgia Southern rallies to down Central Florida". Indian River Press Journal. November 10, 1985. Retrieved December 1, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Ham leads Southern ro 46–7 win". The Macon Telegraph & News. November 17, 1985. Retrieved November 20, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Georgia Southern explosion buries S.C. State 43–30". The State. November 24, 1985. Retrieved September 7, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Georgia Southern advances". The Columbus Ledger. December 1, 1985. Retrieved April 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Georgia Southern earns date against UNI with upset win". The Waterloo Courier. December 8, 1985. Retrieved December 1, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ "Southern wins, moves into final with Furman". The Macon Telegraph & News. December 15, 1985. Retrieved December 1, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ "Erk's Eagles land with a title". The Atlanta Constitution. December 22, 1985. Retrieved March 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ "1985 Football Schedule". Georgia Southern University. Retrieved July 11, 2025.
  21. ^ "2024 Football Media Guide" (PDF). Georgia Southern University. p. 126. Retrieved July 11, 2025.
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