BOONE, N.C. – Appalachian State went through the third of three bowl practices this week on Friday morning in a split practice in the indoor facility. The Mountaineers will have Friday afternoon and Saturday off before moving into bowl week preparation on Sunday evening.
App State (9-3, 7-1 Sun Belt) faces Toledo in the Camellia Bowl on Saturday, Dec. 17 in Montgomery, Ala. Kickoff is at 5:30 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN.
BOWL CENTRAL - TICKETS - CAMELLIA BOWL PRESS CONFERENCE
Snow and low temperatures forced the Apps inside for two practices, Thursday night and Friday morning. The team gets a full 48 hours off before getting moving on their final game week of the season on Sunday evening. App will practice Sunday and Monday before heading to Montgomery on Tuesday.
BOWL TICKETS - Tickets are available by visiting BOWL CENTRAL or by clicking HERE. For additional information or help with purchasing tickets, contact the App State Ticket Office at 828-262-2079. Additional information on tickets, bowl week events, gameday information, travel, and lodging, visit BOWL CENTRAL and appstatesports.com throughout the week.
SCOUTING TOLEDO – Toledo (9-3, 6-2 MAC) reaches the 16th bowl in school history and the sixth in their last seven seasons on the strength of a 9-3 season in which they finished second in the MAC West. The Rockets are fourth nationally in total offense at 529.8 yards per game, while App is No. 7 nationally in scoring defense at 17.0 points per game. Junior QB Logan Woodside is in the top seven nationally in passing yards (323.5, 7th), passing TDs (43, 1st), and pass efficiency (2nd).
CAMELLIA BOWL BOUND AGAIN – Appalachian State returns to the Camellia Bowl after a thrilling 31-29 win over Ohio in last season's game. The Mountaineers rallied from a 24-7 halftime deficit with 24 points in the fourth quarter to cap a wild comeback. Kicker Zach Matics' 23-yard field goal at the final gun sent App to the thrilling win. App rushed for 303 yards in the game, including 162 yards on 24 carries from Camellia Bowl MVP Marcus Cox.
FBS SUCCESS – App State is trying to set an even higher standard for the jump to FBS football with a win in the 2016 Camellia Bowl. After setting a record with 11 Sun Belt wins and the most wins by a team in the first season of bowl eligibility, App is trying to begin FBS play with back-to-back 10-win seasons and bowl wins. Only Marshall has won 10 games in each of its first two full FBS seasons. Only App and Georgia Southern (both last season) have won bowls in their first FBS season.
GROUP OF FIVE/MAC SUCCESS - App is 25-5 under Scott Satterfield against opponents from Group of Five conferences incluidng a 20-4 mark in Sun Belt play. Apps is 2-0 against the Mid-American Conference, including last season's bowl win over Ohio and this year's 45-38 win at Akron. Prior to last season's bowl win, App did not have a win against a MAC opponent.
SATTERFIELD COACHING TIES – App Head Coach Scott Satterfield spent one season at Toledo in 2009 as the passing game coordinator. Current Toledo Head Coach Jason Candle was the wide receivers coach and now Iowa State Head Coach Matt Campbell were all members of that staff, meaning three current FBS head coach were on the same staff.
NO. 3 IN INTERCEPTIONS vs. NO. 3 in PASSING TDs – One of the best positional matchups of the bowl season comes when App's “Legion of Boone” faces Toledo's TD-happy passing attacked. The Mountaineers are No. 3 nationally with 20 interceptions (behind both Wisconsin and San Diego State who have played 13 games), while Toledo is No. 3 in the FBS with 44 passing touchdowns this season. The Rockets have at least three passing TDs in all 12 games this season, while App has allowed only three passing touchdowns since Sept. 24. Toledo QB Logan Woodside completed 68 percent of his passes for over 3,800 yards and 43 TDs, while App has 16 interceptions in its secondary.
ACTIVE RUSHERS, NO. 2 VS. NO. 3– Not only does the bowl matchup boast two of the best units statistically in college football this season, it also boasts the FBS's No. 2 and No. 3 active rushing leaders. App senior Marcus Cox has 4,960 career rushing yards and became the school's all-time leading rusher on Senior Day. He leads App with 28 career 100-yard games. Toledo's Kareem Hunt (4,825) is No. 3 on the list of active career rushing leaders, behind Cox and San Diego State's Donnel Pumphrey (6,290). Hunt has 1,355 yards this season, while Cox has 872 in only eight games. Cox also has 5,961 all-purpose yards, needing a combination of 39 rushing and passing yards to pass 6,000 for his career. San Diego State's Donnel Pumphrey (7,374 yards) and Stanford's Christian McCaffrey (6,987) are the only two active players with more.
-App State-
