Thursday, September 19th, 2024 7:30pm EST
TV/Video: ESPN
Radio: FLAGSHIP 97.3 FM (North Wilkesboro),1060 AM/97.3 FM, & 1030 AM/99.1 FM (Charlotte), 96.3 FM (Greensboro), 96.3 FM (Winston-Salem), 1350 AM/96.1 FM (Asheville), 790 AM/93.7 FM (Johnson City), 1450 AM107.7 FM (Hendersonville), 1250 AM/103.9 FM (Marion); The Varsity Network App, Sirius/XM 990
Kidd Brewer Stadium
Capacity: 30,000
Surface: Astroturf
Jeff Sagarin Ratings
App State: 69.61
South Alabama: 63.62
Home: 3.26
App State is favored by the Sagarin ratings by 9.25 points
VegasInsider Line: App State -7.5
Series: App State leads 4-1
Last Meeting: App State 31 South Alabama 7, November 13, 2021, Boone, NC
We almost did that thing again. But this time it was different. After a whirlwind first quarter that resembled the previous week, the Mountaineers settled into their groove. It will be a memorable win in a series that divides households and workplaces. Any road win is a big one, but a road win in state means a little more. Those celebrations cannot last long, because we get right back after it a couple days earlier this week. On top of the quick turnaround, this game also means a lot more than just any other game. It’s an all important conference game, a ring game, that will count towards the ultimate goal of playing for a championship in December. South Alabama will pose a good test, especially on short rest. But coming into Boone is not an easy assignment for anyone. Especially when you get the energy of The Rock on a school night.
For the second time this season, Appalachian will face a team with a first year head coach at the school. Major Applewhite assumed the role when Kane Wommack left South Alabama to become the defensive coordinator at Alabama. Applewhite has been around the block, even for a guy who is yet to reach his 50th birthday. The former Texas quarterback still has many active Longhorn records, but spent most of his time as a quarterback’s coach and offensive coordinator at his many stops. Just like his first coaching gig at Houston, he had spent time as the play caller before getting the top job. Applewhite coached the 2016 Las Vegas Bowl for Houston and two more seasons in 2017 and 2018 before being fired for losing three bowl games. He resurrected his career like most coaches and became an analyst for Alabama before landing in Mobile in 2021. He was once again a QB coach and offensive coordinator before getting the head job this past offseason. The beginning of 2024 has been slow for the Jaguars, with two losses to peer schools in North Texas and Ohio before rolling up 87 points on FCS Northwestern State last Thursday night.
Freshman Gio Lopez is the starting quarterback for South Alabama. He handled all the passing downs in the first game against North Texas. However, he suffered an injury and did not start against Ohio. Bishop Davenport started the Ohio game. Both Lopez and Davenport played against Northwestern State, but it’s Lopez’ job. Both quarterbacks are dual threats. South’s offense looked pretty much the same in those first two games. Lopez lit up North Texas with 432 passing yards and added another 62 yards on the ground. However, the Jaguars fell short in a 52-38 defeat. South Alabama allowed a punt block for touchdown that they could not overcome in the third quarter that forced their offense to the air. Even in the Ohio game, South Alabama looks to be quarterback centric. Davenport shared the rushing opportunity lead with Fluff Bothwell. Both were credited with ten carries. There is no question that South Alabama has an offense that can move the ball, but their balance seems slightly off and their season could be dictated by their health at quarterback.
App State started slowly again before they eventually settled down and let the game come to them. The Mountaineers quickly fell into a hole the same way they had done the week before, by giving up a long touchdown pass on the opening drive. The lead swelled to 16-0 before the Mountaineers finished the first half scoring three times in the second quarter to draw within two points. The Mountaineers took the lead they would not surrender on a 36-yard touchdown pass from Joey Aguilar to Makai Jackson, who has now scored in every game this season. Aguilar threw for a career high 424 yards through the air, ranking as the third best passing output in Appalachian history, while completing 68% of his passes on the day. Aguilar hit his top three options, Jackson, along with Christian Horn and Kaedin Robinson for a combined 18 completions for 323 yards, at nearly 18 yards per reception. The run game did enough at the right time, as Anderson Castle once again paved the way for 40 tough yards.
The Mountaineer defense faced some big time adversity on Saturday. Besides being down several starters for injury prior to the game, and losing two more impact players due to targeting calls, they bucked up and kept the Pirates out of the end zone outside of the first drive. East Carolina finished the game with 324 yards, which is a fantastic effort in this era of college football. Only 199 of those yards came after the first quarter. In the third quarter, the East Carolina’s offense ran 24 plays that covered 104 yards and they had three points to show for it. This game came down to making winning plays when they needed to be made, and not caring who made the play. Thursday night will be another huge test for the App State defense. In addition to playing on a short week, South Alabama can get the ball down the field in multiple ways. Running back Fluff Bothwell had a big game against Northwestern State, but was also productive against North Texas and Ohio, with 16 carries for 100 yards in those two games.
We have alluded to the fact that South Alabama has a decent offense and it looks like they might be able to score some points. The Northwestern State game has to be completely dismissed when discussing what we think the Jaguars can do. That game is not great for college football. Besides that game, South Alabama probably played two teams that are complete opposites. North Texas has always thrived as a “basketball on grass” kind of football team. They love their passing offense and defense has always been optional. Last year North Texas went 5-7, and in their 5 wins, they averaged 42 points a game. In their seven losses, they gave up 41.8 points per game. So should a 52-38 game between North Texas say more about a typical Mean Green game or does South Alabama have it? Let’s revisit the other game the Jaguars played this year. Ohio has always played an old school type of football. Good defense and a strong running game has always been the their forte. South Alabama played that game with a backup quarterback. The final score was 27-20. The 27 points represents the most points in three games that Ohio has scored. They scored 22 in a loss to Syracuse and only managed 21 points against FCS Morgan State. Ohio ran for 200 yards on South Alabama on 40 attempts. Ohio ran for 148 yards on 38 attempts against Morgan State. So it seems, that the South Alabama defense has some holes. They look like a team that might prefer a high scoring game compared to one where defenses have a chance. So that is where the question marks pop up. Which App State defense will we see on a short week? The Mountaineers clamped down on East Carolina last week after the first couple drives, and arguably, won the game. Or do we see an App State defense that has given up explosive plays for touchdowns in every game this season? The Jaguar defense can also be had. Ohio quarterback Parker Navarro, in his first year as a starter since high school completed 20 of 28 passes for a season-high 204 yards against the Jags, and added 62 yards and a rushing touchdown. North Texas signal caller Chandler Morris completed 32 of 41 passes for 415 yards, three touchdowns with zero interceptions and zero sacks. The Mean Green also had a wide receiver complete a 31 yard pass in the game. If you add up all those attempts over those two games, South has allowed a 75.7% completion rate. Joey Aguilar also had a season high completion rate against East Carolina. I can see another 300+ yard passing day for the Apps, and if that happens, the running game should get its opportunity to feast in the second half.
The First Pick
Salamanders 21
Mountaineers 36
