Georgia State has only beaten one other Football Bowl Division opponent prior to today.
Dropped passes, missed tackles, missed assignments on blocks and route coverage were the main culprits in the Cardinals' loss.
"We shot ourself in the foot execution wise offensively with some basic throw-and-catch," head coach Pete Lembo said.
Two mistakes that stood out for the Cardinals were Jordan Williams's offensive pass interference which would have been a touchdown pass to Chris Shillings, as well as Cywettnie Brown's roughing-the-kicker penalty.
"It's one of America's most popular route concepts there," Lembo said. "I know we're not coaching anything that's not within the bounds of good rules."
Quarterback Riley Neal was 28-48 for 218 yards and two touchdowns. While the penalty may have put the Cardinals back, that play didn't cost them the game.
"I wouldn't say it's easy, but I don't think we have a bunch of head cases or anything on our team. We're all pretty emotionally stable guys so it's not tough," Neal said. "There's a lot of leaders on the field, ... seniors that have been there before. It's not what you want, but it's not impossible to come back from."
Lembo came in well prepared against the Panthers' rugby-style of punting, and throughout the game there were many chances to block punts. But Brown's block led to more time ticking off the clock during the Cardinals' comeback attempt.
"We wanted to be aggressive there," Lembo said. "We thought all week we had a good plan going in to get after the rugby punt. They called it on [Brown]. Upstairs, our guys in the box said that he hit him. Now, whether it should have been 15 or 5 [yards], I don't know. I'll have to see the film on that."
After the loss to the Panthers, the Cardinals will have to stay relaxed throughout the rest of the season as they still attempt to become bowl eligible.
"I'm as disappointed as I've been, but we don't panic," Lembo said. "I have always believed that you will be at your best when things are at their worst. When adversity comes, which it certainly has, you have to fall back on your foundation."
That foundation will be tested in the last five games of the season, as there is no more room for error.
The Cardinals will have their second of three straight home games on Oct. 24 at Scheumann Stadium against the Central Michigan Chippewas (3-4, 2-1).
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