JONESBORO, Ark. – Marcus Cox ran for 229 yards and two touchdowns and Appalachian State University football dominated three-time-defending Sun Belt Conference champion Arkansas State for much of the game before holding on for a 37-32 victory on Saturday afternoon at Centennial Bank Stadium.
Appalachian State (5-5, 4-2 Sun Belt) overcame an early 20-6 deficit with 31-straight points to pull even with Arkansas State (6-4, 4-2 Sun Belt) for third place in the Sun Belt standings.
After Arkansas State took a 20-6 lead midway through the second quarter, the Mountaineers dominated the action for the next two-plus periods. In a 33-minute span from the 7:10 mark of the second quarter until Appalachian took a 37-20 lead on by Bentlee Critcher's 24-yard field goal with 4:10 to go in the ballgame, the Mountaineers outgained A-State, 400-43.
The spurt began with App State driving 86 yards only to fumble into the end zone for a touchback. However, instead of that being a game-defining miscue, it only served as the precursor to an avalanche that saw the Mountaineers score on five-straight possessions (four touchdowns and a field goal) while limiting the Red Wolves' vaunted offense to just two first downs.
Holding a 17-point lead, Appalachian State seemingly clinched the win when it stopped the Red Wolves on fourth down from the Mountaineers' eight yard line with 2:33 left in the game. However, on the very next play, Appalachian lost its second fumble of the game and A-State cut the lead to 37-26 one play later. The Red Wolves missed their second extra point of the game following the 10-yard touchdown pass from Fredi Knighten to Darion Griswold.
Things got interesting when Arkansas State recovered the ensuing onside kick, drove 53 yards in four plays and scored on a nine-yard pass from Knighten to Johnston White. Down by five points, the Red Wolves went for two but Knighten's pass fell harmlessly to the ground, leaving the Mountaineers with a 37-32 advantage with 1:31 left on the clock.
Malachi Jones recovered A-State's next onside kick attempt but Appalachian State failed to pick up what would have been a game-clinching first down and punted back to the Red Wolves with 22 seconds remaining.
Arkansas State picked up 21 yards on its first play after the punt but threw two-straight incomplete passes to set up the final snap of the ballgame from its own 41 yard line. The Red Wolves attempted to navigate their way to the end zone with a short pass and a series of laterals but App State defensive end Ronald Blair intercepted the second pitch attempt to seal the win.
Despite allowing Arkansas State to pick up 146 yards in the final 4:02, the Mountaineers still outgained the Red Wolves by a whopping 549-314 margin. Appalachian also held huge advantages in rushing yards (294-167), passing yards (255-147), first downs (29-14), time of possession (41:46-18:14) and third-down conversions (7-of-15 to 0-of-11).
Arkansas State's 314 yards were 147 fewer than it averaged coming into the game while Appalachian State's 549 yards were 179 more than A-State's defense had allowed on average. The Red Wolves came into the afternoon with the Sun Belt's second-ranked offense and third-ranked defense.
Cox led the dominant performance with his second 200-yard game in the last three contests. The sophomore Doak Walker Award candidate had a career-high 40 carries and added 54 yards on two receptions.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Taylor Lamb also had a big day, completing 14-of-22 passes without an interception for 255 yards and two touchdowns.
Seven different Mountaineers caught passes, led by Montez McGuire, who had four catches for 55 yards and a touchdown, and Simms McElfresh, who had three receptions for 57 yards. For the second-straight week, true freshman Shaedon Meadors made an amazing one-handed catch, this time hauling it in for a 24-yard touchdown.
Defensively, safety Doug Middleton led Appalachian with nine solo tackles. Blair and linebacker Kennan Gilchrist chipped in with five stops apiece. All three of the Mountaineers' leading tacklers recorded a tackle for loss and Blair added two quarterback hurries.
Appalachian State, which has won four-straight games for the first time since Sept. 22-Oct. 13, 2012, looks to keep the streak alive next week when it plays its final road game of the season at longtime Sun Belt power UL Lafayette (6-3, 5-0 Sun Belt prior to Saturday night's game at UL Monroe). Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. ET at Cajun Field in Lafayette, La.
NOTES: Cox's 229-yard performance is good for the 13th-highest single-game rushing total in Appalachian State history … his 40 carries were the third-most in Appalachian history and the most since Damon Scott toted the ball 42 times in a 154-yard effort against Chattanooga in 1996 … Cox finished the day with 1,142 rushing yards this season, becoming the first running back in Appalachian State history to surpass the 1,000-yard mark as a freshman and sophomore … quarterback Armanti Edwards is the only other Mountaineer to ever accomplish the feat (2006-07) … the 200-yard game was the third of Cox's career – he ran for a career-high 250 yards against Georgia State on Nov. 1 and had 215 yards in last year's season finale against Western Carolina … Arkansas State lost at home for the first time this season (4-1) and only the third time in its last 23 home games … A-State lost a Sun Belt game for only the fifth time in the last four seasons (24-5) … prior to Saturday, the Red Wolves had scored at least 40 points in four-straight games and had surrendered 14 points or less in four of their last six contests … Appalachian State won for the first time in school history when playing west of the Mississippi River … the Mountaineers are now 1-10 all-time on the left side of the Mississippi.
