MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Appalachian State (9-3) makes their second bowl appearance in as many bowl eligible FBS seasons on Saturday when the Mountaineers face Toledo (9-3) from the Mid-American Conference. Kickoff is at 5:30 p.m. ET at Cramton Bowl. ESPN has the television coverage.
BOWL CENTRAL - GAMEDAY CENTRAL
DATE/TIME: Sat., Dec. 17 – Montgomery, Ala. – Cramton Bowl
TV: WATCH LIVE ESPN3 (Brock Boling - PxP, Brian Kinchen - Analyst)
KICKOFF: 5:35 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN (PxP - Eamon McAnaney, Analyst - John Congemi, Sideline - Lauren Sisler)
RADIO: Appalachian Sports Network: LISTEN LIVE (Adam Witten - PxP, Pierre Banks - Analyst, Karl Anderson - Sidelines)- ESPN Radio (John A. Brickley, Rob Kelly PxP)
A win would give App State their second consecutive bowl victory – a first for a team in their first two bowl eligible seasons – and another 10-win season. Only Marshall in the late 90's won 10 games in each of their first two bowl eligible FBS seasons.
The matchup is drawing national interest and appeal, ranked as high as No. 6 among the 40 bowl games in 2016 and typically landing in the top third in all publications. The reason? The first two Camellia Bowls and the matchups.
Only three years old, the Camellia Bowl has enjoyed two wild games. Both teams scored in the final two minutes of a 33-28 Bowling Green win over South Alabama in 2014, while App rallied for a 31-29 win on a field goal as time expired last year.
App State sports the nation's No. 7 scoring defense at 17.0 points per game, a unit that has allowed fewer points than only Michigan since Oct. 1. Toledo boasts a balanced offense, but a wildly explosive passing attack that leads the nation with 43 passing touchdowns behind quarterback Logan Woodside. The Rockets' junior quarterback will be tested by App's “Legion of Boone” secondary, which has 20 interceptions, third-most nationally and second most per game.
While Toledo's passing attack against App's secondary provides strength vs. strength, the team that runs the ball better might fair best. All eyes will be on App senior running back Marcus Cox as he chases 5,000 yards rushing for his career. Cox needs 40 yards to reach 5,000 for his career. Cox and 2016 Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year Jalin Moore combined for over 2,200 yards and were 1-2 in the conference in yards per carry. They'll try to find space for the Sun Belt's top rushing offense in 2016 and try to take advantage of a Toledo defense that allowed just over 165 yards per game rushing. If Cox and Moore can get rolling, App could be headed to a repeat as Camellia Bowl Champs.
“We're going to have to establish the run,” App Head Coach Scott Satterfield said earlier this week. “I know they're going to load the box up and have a lot of guys around the football. They'll maybe sacrifice some plays over the top to try to stop the run. We're going to have to find some ways formation wise to get our guys loose, to get Jalin and Marcus loose in the running game, and then we're going to have some one-on-one matchups.”
It's hard to ignore what the App State defense has done this season and they'll get a chance to shine against the best offense they faced since September. The Mountaineers will see key senior leaders Mondo Williams, John Law, Kennan Gilchrist, Dezmin Reed, and Alex Gray. It's a group that has allowed the second-fewest points (94) in FBS since Oct. 1. Only Michigan (92) has allowed fewer points than the Apps in the last two and a half months. Six players were named All-Conference from the unit that allowed only three passing TDs in Sun Belt play and held six-of-eight conference opponents to only one touchdown or less.
App faces a tougher test defensively on Saturday than they did in maybe at any point in Sun Belt play this season and keeping the Rockets offense off the field will be the responsibility of the Apps' ball-control offense.
“We know we're going to have to score points,” Satterfield added. “Toledo is one of the better offenses in the country, so if you don't score points, you're not going to be in the ballgame, even as good as our defense is. I think we can help ourselves if we can control the game offensively running the football. We're going to have to be able to get some first downs in this game to keep our offense on the field and keep theirs off.”
The bowl game is the first for a few key Mountaineers that missed last season's bowl. Senior linebacker John Law and junior wide receiver Shaedon Meadors get their first taste of bowl action on Saturday after watching last year's win.
GROUP OF FIVE/MAC SUCCESS - App is 25-5 under Scott Satterfield against opponents from Group of Five conferences including 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 Coxhas 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 ChristianMcCaffrey (6,987) are the only two active players with more.
-App State-
