The Georgia Southern offense South Alabama will face on Saturday in Statesboro will bear little resemblance to the one it has seen since the Eagles joined the Sun Belt Conference in 2014.

Gone is the triple-option attack the Eagles made famous during their days as an FCS powerhouse in the 1980s and have kept largely in place in the four decades hence. First-year coach Clay Helton has installed a pass-heavy attack that puts the ball in the air more than 45 times per game and on nearly 60 percent of all offensive snaps.

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“It was easy for all of us to sit there and say ‘Well they’re going to change from the triple-option system and they’re going to go in this other direction, so it will take them a long time [to transition] because they don’t have the offensive linemen they need or the receiving threat they need,’” South Alabama coach Kane Wommack said. “But that hasn’t been the case. Great coaches though find great ways to best use their personnel. Clay has seen a lot of football. He doesn’t have all the pieces to the puzzle across the board, but they’re going to continue to recruit at a high level and get better both in their depth and their overall talent of their roster. They’re utilizing their personnel really well right now though.”

Georgia Southern (5-3, 2-2 Sun Belt Conference) averages 338 passing yards per game, which is nearly 50 yards per game better than anyone else in the conference. That number ranks tied for fourth nationally with Texas Tech, and behind only Washington, Tennessee and Arizona.

Buffalo transfer Kyle Vantrease is the Eagles’ trigger man, having completed 232 of 374 attempts for 2,704 yards and 18 touchdowns in eight games while being sacked only twice. South Alabama (6-2, 3-1) is third in the Sun Belt in total defense and among the best in the country against the run, but has occasionally been victimized in the passing game.

“It’s a huge challenge,” South Alabama defensive coordinator Corey Batoon said. “The quarterback is seeing the field well. I think he has a good understanding of what they are trying to do. He distributes the ball very quickly, I think they are number two in the country in giving up sacks, only two on the year. Teams have brought pressure and he seems to handle all of those situations well. I think he really understands the offense and is in-sync with the play-caller.”

Georgia Southern has three players in the top 7 in the Sun Belt in receptions: Khaleb Hood (53, 2nd), Jeremy Singleton (46, 4th) and Derwin Burgess (45, 7th). That depth has allowed the Eagles to sustain the loss of the versatile Amare Jones, who had 35 receptions and a team-best six touchdowns before suffering a season-ending injury Oct. 22 vs. James Madison.

Georgia Southern can be forced into occasional mistakes, however. Vantrease’s 12 interceptions are easily the most of any quarterback in the conference.

“They throw a lot, so the ball’s going to be in the air a lot,” South Alabama safety Jaden Voisin said. “We’re going to have to capitalize on those opportunities and cause turnovers on defense and get the ball back to our offense.”

Not that Georgia Southern won’t try to run the ball. Running back Jalen White has 678 yards and nine touchdowns this season.

South Alabama is coming off perhaps the best defensive game in program history, however. In a 31-3 victory at Arkansas State on Saturday, the Jaguars limited the Red Wolves to 158 total yards and minus-19 rushing, totaling 11 tackles for loss and four sacks.

“Our guys played with a lot of passion, energy and effort,” Wommack said. “Our physicality certainly showed up, but we were also in the right spots over and over. That to me is what makes a great defense, and we’ve been a pretty consistent defense [this season] because we do our job and we’re in the right position.”

South Alabama has never won at Georgia Southern, going 0-4 and losing by scores of 55-17 in 2015, 52-0 in 2017 and 48-13 in 2018 before staying within 24-17 in 2020. The Jaguars pounded the Eagles 41-14 in Mobile last season, their lone win in eight overall meetings.

This year’s South Alabama team has already secured bowl-eligibility and remains alive for the Sun Belt West Division championship with four games to play. But while playing in the postseason was a goal for the Jaguars this season, it’s not the only goal.

“We’re happy about being bowl-eligible,” safety Yam Banks said, “but we are still taking it game-by-game and focusing on what’s in front of us.”

Kickoff for South Alabama-Georgia Southern is set for 3 p.m. Saturday at Paulson Stadium. The game will stream live via ESPN+.