BOONE, N.C. — Heading into its bye weekend, Appalachian State's football program ranks among the FBS leaders in several categories.
A stingy defense and balanced offense will return to action next weekend when New Mexico State travels to Boone for App State's homecoming game at Kidd Brewer Stadium.
THREE STRIKES AND YOU'RE OUT
By forcing three-and-outs on 51.1 percent of its possessions, the Mountaineers rank third at the FBS level. They have forced 24 three-and-outs on 47 defensive possessions.
Michigan leads the FBS with a 56.6 percentage (30 of 53), and Georgia Tech is second at 51.4 percent (19 of 37).
App State forced three-and-outs on 8 of 13 possessions against Wake Forest, 2 of 10 at Texas State, 9 of 12 against Savannah State and 5 of 12 at Georgia. After the opening drive against Wake Forest, the Mountaineers forced five straight three-and-outs on their way to claiming a 9-3 halftime lead.
SPREAD OFFENSE
After last weekend's games, App State was the nation's only FBS team that had seven players with at least 100 receiving yards for the season. Arkansas State, Central Michigan, Kansas, Ohio State and Oregon were tied for second by having six players with at least 100 receiving yards.
Thomas Hennigan,
Malik Williams,
Jalen Virgil,
Ike Lewis,
Zy Letman,
T.J. Watkins and tight end
Collin Reed have reached triple digits for the Mountaineers thanks to a spread-the-ball-around effort from senior quarterback
Taylor Lamb, who has thrown for 994 yards with eight touchdowns and no interceptions.
App State, N.C. State, Arizona State, Oklahoma, Alabama and Georgia Tech are the only teams that haven't had a pass intercepted this season.
ODDS AND ENDS
The PFF College Football site performs film grades, and App State offensive guard
Tobias Edge-Campbell made the site's Sun Belt Conference team of the week with an 85.6 grade against Wake Forest. It was the second straight week an App State player was honored, as outside linebacker
Rashaad Townes was recognized as an "Edge" player for his 89.1 grade at Texas State. He forced a fumble on a sack and posted six tackles in that 20-13 victory. … Of the 33 FBS teams with 2-2 records, only App State and Stanford have lost to a pair of 4-0 teams. The Cardinal's losses came against Southern Cal and San Diego State. … With a team-leading 176 receiving yards, Hennigan ranks fifth nationally among true freshman receivers. The top four are currently Nevada's McLane Mannix (316 yards), Ball State's Justin Hall (310), Oklahoma's CeeDee Lamb (281) and Oregon's Johnny Johnson (196). … Watkins, who scored an 84-yard touchdown against Wake Forest, is one of 20 FBS players with a gain of at least 80 yards this season. He's one of four players from a Group of Five school with an 80-yard gain against a Power Five opponent.
