BOONE, N.C. – App State (5-2, 3-0 Sun Belt) gets their biggest rival in the national spotlight on Thursday night. The Mountaineers head south to Statesboro, Ga. to face rival Georgia Southern (4-3, 3-1) at Paulson Stadium. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. on ESPNU.
Neither team will be working off of ample prep time or a full week of preparation heading into Thursday night's game. The Apps travel on Wednesday, four days after dispatching Idaho to open Sun Belt play with a third consecutive win. Georgia Southern flew back from their 22-19 win at New Mexico State on Sunday.
Both teams will have the adrenaline pumping come Thursday night to help with playing on a very short week, but App State head coach Scott Satterfield knows the Eagles' run game presents an even tougher challenge with regards to prep time.
“It's challenging regardless (for both teams),” Satterfield said. "Your body needs four or five days to heal up and we're already right back at it. It's even (tougher) when you're facing a run-based offense. They're always coming at you, so you're gap sound, and you're where you need to be in your gaps. I think that's where the short rest comes into play.”
App looked plenty prepared for Idaho's attack on Saturday afternoon, bending at times, but not breaking against a Vandals' offense that scored 55 points a week earlier against New Mexico State. The Mountaineers held Idaho out of the end zone until the game's final snap and had three interceptions, including their first defensive TD of the season on a 44-yard return by freshman Clifton Duck. The offense racked up almost 400 yards of offense despite pumping the breaks a little in the final quarter.
Satterfield made sure his team wasn't looking ahead despite the season's most intense game looming just days away.
“Everything right after the (Idaho) game was Georgia Southern,” Satterfield added. “We've done a good job in the past of focusing on who we're facing that week, staying right where we needed to be. When you start looking ahead, it doesn't do anyone justice. As soon as the game ended though, there wasn't any time to celebrate, we were all Georgia Southern.”
APP NOTES
- The Mountaineers are 20-1 against group of five opponents dating back to 2014 and 22-4 in their last 26 games, only Clemson, Alabama, and Ohio State have won more games in that span.
- With the win over Idaho, App State is 16-1 in Sun Belt games dating back to the middle of the 2014 season.
- Idaho's only TD came with :04 to play and was the first the Apps have allowed in league play. App did not allow a touchdown for 179 minutes and 56 second to open Sun Belt play.
- Freshman CB Clifton Duck had two interceptions, one he returned 44 yards for a touchdown, to spark the Apps in the third quarter. He has four interceptions on the season, tied for third nationally.
- App is seventh nationally with 12 interceptions in seven games this season. Duck is third with four picks and CB Mondo Williams has three and is 17thnationally.
- QB Taylor Lamb made his 30th consecutive start and became the fourth player in App history to move over 7,000 yards of total offense (7,008). He needs 121 yards to pass Steve Brown (1977-80) for third all-time.
- WR Shaedon Meadors had a career high seven receptions and drew a pass interference penalty for a fourth straight game. Meadors had 106 yards receiving for back-to-back 100-yard receiving games.
- RB Jalin Moore had his fourth consecutive game with a TD and fourth straight 100-yard game with 23 carries for 114 yards.
- Four Mountaineers had a sack for the second consecutive game. App has nine sacks in their last two contests and 16 tackles for loss.
- App leads the all-time series 16-13-1, but is only 4-10 in Statesboro. The Mountaineers won last season's meeting, 31-13.
