BOONE, N.C. – Appalachian State on Thursday tries for its 14th straight victory when it hosts Georgia Southern - the last team to defeat the No. 20 Mountaineers - in a Sun Belt Conference game. Appalachian State has outscored its last three opponents 99-17, including a 30-3 victory at South Alabama on Saturday in which it allowed 139 yards of total offense.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, ESPNU. LINE: Appalachian State -16.5
Recommended Videos
The Mountaineers received their first Top 25 ranking in school history last season and lost to the Eagles 34-14 the following week. Thursday's game marks the 35th meeting between teams that have won a combined nine FCS/Division I-AA titles and have played every season since 1993, with Appalachian State holding a 19-14-1 edge - 13-4-1 at home. "...If we want to get to where we want to go, which is to win the Sun Belt Conference championship and a bowl game with class, integrity and academic excellence, this team stands in our way,'' Mountaineers coach Eli Drinkwitz told reporters. Georgia Southern - with heavy hearts - routed New Mexico State 41-7 on Saturday after freshman offensive lineman Jordan Wiggins was found dead in his dorm room earlier in the week.
ABOUT GEORGIA SOUTHERN (4-3, 2-1 Sun Belt)
The Eagles boast the No. 7 rushing offense in the nation at 259.9 yards per game and are led by juniors J.D. King (457 yards, four touchdowns) and Wesley Kennedy III (312, five). Junior quarterback Shai Werts (22-for-44, 179 yards, two TDs) has a school-record 161 consecutive pass attempts without an interception dating to 2017. Werts has rushed for 303 yards this season and needs 67 to become the seventh player in school history to pass for 2,000 and run for 2,000.
ABOUT APPALACHIAN STATE (7-0, 4-0)
Junior defensive lineman Demetrius Taylor (five sacks, three passes defended, three forced fumbles) is the only FBS player to record at least one interception, sack, forced fumble and fumble recovery this season. Junior Zac Thomas (65.3 completion percentage, 11 touchdowns, three INTs) has won 17 straight games as the team’s primary quarterback. Junior running back Darrynton Evans (722 yards, 11 total touchdowns) paces the nation’s No. 14 rushing attack (244.1 yards).
EXTRA POINTS
1. The Mountaineers are ninth nationally at 41.0 points per game and 18th defensively (19.0).
2. Georgia Southern is the only FBS team to have six players rush for at least 100 yards in a game this season.
3. Only third-ranked Clemson (23) and No. 4 Ohio State (14) have longer active winning streaks than Appalachian State.
PREDICTION: Appalachian State 31, Georgia Southern 14