Tailgating

Aiming high

App State football looking for return to mountaintop

BY MOSS BRENNAN

Few things go together as well as crisp, fall weather and a football game. From backyard scrimmages to Friday night lights, autumn is the season of the pigskin.

Boone is where to find some of the best football in North Carolina when it plays host to the Appalachian State Mountaineers every year. When September rolls around, the students have settled, the leaves are changing and the excitement for kickoff builds.

Since moving to the FBS in 2014, the Mountaineers have established themselves as a powerhouse in the Sun Belt Conference. Heading into the 2022 season, App is looking to secure another conference championship.

Eighteen total players who started at least one game in 2021 return from a team that enjoyed a 10-win regular season and captured a Sun Belt East Division title during Clark’s second full season as head coach. Clark’s 2022 staff includes three new assistants in Kevin Barbay (offensive coordinator/quarterbacks), Lawrence Dawsey (receivers) and Geep Wade (offensive line).

“We’re not looking toward the first game right now; we’re trying to get through the first day,” App State head coach Shawn Clark said during the team’s media day. “We’ll work on us for the first two or two and a half weeks, and then we’ll get to North Carolina. I know our fans and their fans are excited about it, and it’s going to be great for college football, but the next two and half or three weeks, it’s about App State and our style of football.”

While the 2021 roster included 14 players who returned to Boone to take advantage of the extra year of eligibility granted by the NCAA following a COVID-interrupted 2020, the 2022 roster has just eight returners who have one season of eligibility remaining: LB Trey Cobb, LB Logan Doublin, LB Tyler Bird, TE Henry Pearson, RB Daetrich Harrington, CB Steven Jones Jr., P Clayton Howell and QB Chase Brice, who was an App State newcomer in 2021.

“I can’t wait for camp to start,” Jones said. “Ever since the last game of last season, I’ve been waiting for this, so I’m definitely excited and can’t wait for the first day.”

Defensively, App State returns only four full-time starters in Cobb, Jones, OLB Nick Hampton and DT Jordon Earle — although OLB Brendan Harrington, SS Nick Ross and FS Ronald Clarke did start multiple games in 2021. Hansky Paillant is the most experienced defensive end, a spot with a lot of young talent that developed behind two other departed “super seniors,” and Jones is the only returning cornerback with substantial game experience at the FBS level. Young players, newcomers and veterans who have contributed more on special teams will compete for playing time at inside linebacker, as D’Marco Jackson has moved on to the NFL after being a fifth-round pick of the New Orleans Saints.

If App is to return to the Sun Belt mountaintop, they will have to go through some stiff competition. The Mountaineers start the season off with a home game against the Tar Heels from down the mountain in UNC Chapel Hill on Sept. 3. They next move to an away game at Texas A&M the following week on Sept. 10.

The Mountaineers then get the conference season started with a hone game vs Troy on Sept. 17 and newcomer James Madison on Sept. 24 in back-toback games.

They start October with their third home game in a row with The Citadal coming to the Mountain on Oct. 1. They continue with two conference games in a row at Texas State on Oct. 8 and then vs Georgia State on Oct. 19.

The team then has a 10 day break before facing non-conference opponent Robert Morris for homecoming on Oct. 29. They then visit Coastal Carolina on Nov. 3 and then newcomer Marshall on Nov. 12.

They have their last home game on Nov. 19 against conference newcomer Old Dominion before playing their final regular season game against Georgia Southern in Georgia.

To keep up with App State football information, visit appstatesports.com/ sports/football.

PHOTO COURTESY BRADY MCBRIDE/APP STATE ATHLETICS App State QB Chase Brice organizes the offense against Western Kentucky on Dec. 18 in the Boca Raton Bowl.

MOUNTAINEERS 2022 SCHEDULE

Vs. UNC Chapel Hill — Saturday, Sept. 3 — Kidd Brew Stadium, Boone.

At Texas A&M — Saturday, Sept. 10 — College Station, Texas.

Vs. Troy — Saturday, Sept. 17 — Kidd Brewer Stadium, Boone.

Vs. James Madison — Saturday, Sept. 24 — Kidd Brewer Stadium, Boone. Black Saturday.

Vs. The Citadel — Saturday, Oct. 1 — Kidd Brewer Stadium, Boone. Family Weekend.

At Texas State — Saturday, Oct. 8 — San Marcos, Texas.

Vs. George State — Wednesday Oct. 19 — Kidd Brewer Stadium, Boone.

Vs. Robert Morris — Saturday, Oct. 29 — Kidd Brewer Stadium, Boone. Homecoming

At Coastal Carolina — Thursday, Nov. 3 — Conway, South Carolina.

At Marshall — Saturday, Nov. 12 — Huntington, West Virginia.

Vs. Old Dominion — Saturday, Nov. 19 — Kidd Brewer Stadium, Boone.

At Georgia Souther — Saturday, Nov. 26 — Statesboro, Georgia.