Not only did Georgia State have its four-game winning streak broken last week, the Panthers lost standout quarterback Dan Ellington for an undetermined length of time.
Ellington suffered a sprained right knee in a non-contact injury in the final minute of the first half of Saturday's 45-31 loss to Louisiana-Monroe. Ellington is out for this week's important Sun Belt Conference game against Appalachian State.
“It’s still too early to tell (how much time he’ll miss). He won’t be back this week,” Georgia State coach Shawn Elliott said. “We’ll see how his recovery goes. We’ll proceed this week with Quad Brown and let him run our show.”
Ellington’s loss comes at an inopportune time, with Appalachian State and Georgia Southern remaining on the schedule. The Panthers are in contention to win the East Conference and reach the league championship game. Georgia State is already bowl eligible.
Among Sun Belt Conference quarterbacks, Ellington ranks third in passing yards per game (201.4), third in efficiency (147.9) and third in total offense (268.4 yards). He has twice been named Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week and engineered the season-opening upset against Tennessee.
Ellington has completed 163 of 248 passes for 1,813 yards, 18 touchdowns and four interceptions, and rushed 116 times for 603 yards and five touchdowns. He had 91 rushing yards and 42 passing yards when injured against Louisiana Monroe.
Ellington, a senior from Olive Branch, Miss., was an honorable mention choice on the 2018 All-Sun Belt Conference team. He transferred to Georgia State from Itawamba Community College, where he was a second team JUCO all-America.
“It’s just the way things happen,” Elliott said. “Each week you have to deal with injuries and move on. We’ll deal with it and move on.”
Brown replaced Ellington in the second half against Louisiana Monroe and completed 8 of 18 passes for 80 yards in his first significant appearance. Brown (6-foot-5, 180) is a lanky pro-style quarterback from Calera, Ala. He was ranked the No. 5 quarterback in Alabama and the No. 37 pro-style quarterback in the nation by the 247 Sports composite rankings.
“He’s got great talent,” Elliott said. “He’s getting thrown in the fire a little early, but let’s go cut your teeth on a good football team.”
The only other quarterback on the roster is freshman Kierston Harvey from Americus. He has not played.
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