The WrApp-Up: Jacksonville

Talk about a bounceback.  Solid win for the Apps (and great throwbacks!) as we rolled on Jacksonville 56-7.  Add in a school-record crowd of over 30,000 at Kidd Brewer Stadium and you’ve got a great win to carry into the bye week before traveling to Harrisonburg on Sept. 20. 

540 yards of offense – that’s the Mountaineer offensive machine that we all remember from last season.  The defense was stout, allowing only 43 yards of rushing on the day.  Here’s some articles and excerpts highlighting the first home win of the season.

From the Winston-Salem Journal – Record crowd see ASU rip Jacksonville 56-7

 The Mountaineers wore throwback uniforms — black jerseys, gold pants and helmets with a stripe — to commemorate Moore’s 20th season as coach of the Mountaineers. Moore’s first ASU team in 1989 wore the same style uniforms.

And the Steeler-esque color scheme was backed by a steel-curtain defensive performance that set the tone early.

From the Florida Times-Union – Fast start too much for Dolphins in rout

“Appalachian State is a very good team with a lot of very talented players that are big-play makers,” JU coach Kerwin Bell said. “I’m proud of how hard our kids played throughout the game, and they never quit. This was a great experience for our kids and our program as we look to build a program like theirs.”

From GoASU.com – Mountaineers open home slate with 56-7 romp over Jacksonville

Appalachian (1-1) scored early and often, finding the end zone on four of its first six possessions en route to a commanding 28-0 halftime lead, while ASU’s defense pitched a shutout on the afternoon, with Jacksonville’s only points came on a 60-yard punt return midway through the third period.

The contest was decided in the trenches, as the Appalachian’s offensive and defensive lines generated a 448-43 advantage in rushing yards in favor of the Black and Gold.

 

App Thoughts: Jacksonville

There should really be no question as to whether or not Appalachian will win this game.  In an almost reverse of last week’s game, the Mountaineers have too much talent for Jacksonville to compete.  I fully expect this game to be a rout by halftime.

The real challenge will be picking up the players after what had to be a disheartening performance in Baton Rouge.  Granted, we did play much better in the second half.  Hopefully, our coaches and players have kept their heads up this week and realized that the season really starts on Saturday. 

On a different note, I really hope that our fan base hasn’t taken the LSU loss too hard and would rather us stop scheduling FBS teams.  I think the ability of our athletic department to schedule games with schools such as LSU, Michigan, Georgia, Virginia Tech and Florida is a benefit to our players.  It certainly is a positive for recruiting.  If a coach is recruiting a kid who is seriously considering the FCS level and he can tell that young player that in his four years, he’ll have the opportunity to play a game at some of the schools I just mentioned versus another FCS school that won’t schedule such games, I would think the kid would take us.  Secondly, what better way to blood young players than against the very best the nation has to offer.  If a player can hold his own against the defending BCS national champion, then who could he possibly fear at the FCS level?  I hope we continue to schedule these games (and not just for the financial benefit). 

Saturday Prediction: App 48, Jacksonville 3.

The 411 on… Jacksonville

Jacksonville Dolphins

An introduction to the Jacksonville Dolphins…The Dolphins come from the Pioneer Football League. Here’s a little “Did you know?” – The PFL is a football-only athletic conference which includes schools that, while playing in the FCS classification of Division I, do not award athletic scholarships to football players. PFL schools are eligible to participate in the FCS playoffs, but the conference does not receive an automatic berth.
Member schools include Butler, Campbell, Dayton, Drake, Marist, Morehead State, Valparaiso, the University of San Diego and our SoCon brethren, Davidson College.

A private school with 3,100 students, Jacksonville (located in Jacksonville, Florida) is also the first NCAA school to have chosen the Dolphin as a mascot. Quite pioneering.

Last season: Last year wasn’t one to remember for the Dolphins as they stumbled to a 3-8 overall record under first year coach Kerwin Bell. From the St. Petersburg Times:

Kerwin Bell begins his second season with the unpleasant task of replacing 11 starters from a three-win team. Bell’s offense set plenty of school passing records despite struggling in the conference with the worst scoring offense (21.8 points per game). The Dolphins will likely look to sophomore Erik Stepelton to replace three-year starter Chris Horton, JU’s all-time leading passer. He’ll look to develop some chemistry with senior receiver Geavon Tribble, who replaces a pair of career 1,000-yard receivers in Nate Conner and Michael Jenner. That could mean more of a running game with sophomore Rudell Small returning after rushing for 490 yards and nine touchdowns. Defensively, the Dolphins lose five starters from a group that ranked last in the conference in several categories, including total defense (427.3 yards per game) and scoring defense (31.9 points per game). JU cornerback Robson Noel returns after leading the team with 88 tackles.

Last week: Jacksonville comes into Boone fresh off a 20-7 victory over Savannah State. Freshman QB Josh McGregor lead the Dolphins to three scoring drives and finished the game with 159 yards on 9-of-14 passing. He also rushed for a 13-yard touchdown to score Jacksonville’s first TD of the season. After their road trip to App State, the Dolphins will play their first home game of the season against Campbell University.

Stat Leaders: Passing – Josh McGregor, 9-14, 159 yards, 64.3% completion rate, 159.7 QB Rating; Rushing – Rudell Small, 25 carries for 109 yards, 0 TD (Longest carry: 13 yards); Receiving – Geavon Tribble, 5 receptions for 81 yards, 0 TD, (Longest catch: 35 yards).

Team Offense: 20 points per game, 102 yards rushing per game; 252 yards passing per game.

Team Defense: 7 points per game, 125 yards rushing per game, 101 yards passing per game.