BOONE, N.C. - No. 21/23 The Citadel jumped out to a 31-0 lead midway through the second quarter and No. 8/7 Appalachian State University football suffered its worst Southern Conference loss in eight years, a 52-28 setback on Saturday afternoon at Kidd Brewer Stadium.
The loss snapped a number of long winning streaks for Appalachian State (1-2, 0-1 SoCon) — an 18-game regular-season home winning streak (dating back to 2009), an 18-game SoCon home winning streak (dating back to 2007), an 18-game winning streak in SoCon openers played at home (dating back to 1982), an eight-game winning streak over The Citadel (dating back to 2003) and a nine-game home winning streak over the Bulldogs (dating back to 1992).
The Citadel (3-0, 2-0 SoCon) controlled the ballgame from the outset, amassing 325 yards en route to three touchdowns and a field goal on its first four possessions that gave the Bulldogs a 24-0 lead with 7:36 still to play in the second quarter. Things got even better for The Citadel when it blocked an Appalachian punt 80 seconds later and scooped up the loose ball for a touchdown that made it 31-0.
The Mountaineers showed signs of life on the ensuing series when they marched 72 yards in just 2:21 and got on the board on Steven Miller's two-yard touchdown run to make it 31-7 with 3:50 to go before the half. But, with Appalachian needing a stop to take a bit of momentum into the locker room, The Citadel answered with its fourth touchdown — and fifth score — in its first five offensive possessions to take a commanding 38-7 halftime lead.
The Bulldogs picked up where they left off in the first half by finding paydirt again on their first drive of the second half which extended their lead to 45-7 less than five minutes into the third quarter. The Mountaineers found a bit of an offensive rhythm in the second half, amassing 264 yards and scoring on three of their five possessions after the break, but it was not enough to keep The Citadel from handing Appalachian its most lopsided loss to an NCAA Division I FCS opponent since a 54-7 setback at Georgia Southern in 2004.
Miller was a bright spot for the Mountaineers, rushing for a career-high 167 yards and three touchdowns on just 21 carriers (8.0 yards per rush). Jamal Jackson completed 23-of-32 passes for 164 yards and ran eight times for 53 yards (6.6 ypr) but failed to reach 200 passing yards and 250 yards of total offense for the first time in 10 games as Appalachian State's starting quarterback.
Defensively, Appalachian tallied nine tackles for loss — its second-highest total in its last 54 games. However, most of those stops behind the line of scrimmage came on first and second down, as The Citadel converted 11-of-14 third-down opportunities. The Bulldogs averaged 15.7 yards per play on the 11 third-down conversions and scored four of their six offensive touchdowns on third downs. All told, the Mountaineers allowed 618 yards, the most it has surrendered since it gave up 695 in a 59-56 loss at Chattanooga in 2004.
Jeremy Kimbrough led the Apps' defensive effort with 14 tackles, marking his fifth-straight game with at least a dozen stops.
Ben Dupree led The Citadel's offensive onslaught with 180 yards and two touchdowns on the ground and 56 more yards on 2-of-4 passing.
Appalachian State looks to regroup when it goes on the road to face Chattanooga (1-2, 0-0 SoCon) next Saturday. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at UTC's Finley Stadium.
NOTES: Appalachian State is 1-2 overall for the third time in five seasons ... following its previous two 1-2 starts (2008 and 2009), Appalachian went on to win the Southern Conference championship, advancing to the NCAA Division I Football Championship quartefinals in 2008 and the national semifinals in '09 ... the Mountaineers' last regular-season home loss was on Sept. 12, 2009 (40-35 vs. McNeese State), last SoCon home loss was on Oct. 20, 2007 (38-35 vs. Georgia Southern), last loss in a SoCon opener played at home was on Sept. 18, 1982 (27-21 vs. Furman), last loss to The Citadel was on Sept. 27, 2003 (24-21 in Charleston, S.C.) and last home loss to The Citadel was on Oct. 3, 1992 (25-0) ... the 52 points were the most Appalachian allowed at home since a 52-34 loss to Furman on Sept. 30, 1978 ... MIller's 167 rushing yards were the most by a Mountaineer since DeAndre Presley ran for 264 yards versus Western Illinois in the second round of the 2010 NCAA Division I Football Championship ... Appalachian played without defensive back Jamill Lott and wide receiver Sean Price, who were serving the second game of two-game suspensions for violations of team rules ... both will be back on the field next week in Chattanooga ... despite returning to practice this week, running back Rod Chisholm (hand) and defensive back Rodger Walker (illness) were not available to play on Saturday.
