BOONE, N.C. — For the second straight week, Appalachian State revealed more of its backfield depth.
Daetrich Harrington's season debut was a special and significant way for the Mountaineers to end a 45-17 home win against Georgia State.
Seeing game action for the first time since suffering a torn ACL just a little more than nine months ago, Harrington rushed four times for 16 yards on the final drive.
"It felt great to get back out there with my brothers," said Harrington, who is in his second year at App State. "I've been ready for that moment. I'm hungry and have a chip on my shoulder to get back into things. That first carry felt good."
Harrington took a handoff from quarterback
Jacob Huesman and gained 4 yards on his first carry before being brought down by two Georgia State defenders. That level of contact hadn't happened since early February, when Harrington suffered his non-contact injury during one of App State's spring practices.
He had surgery later that month, and his recovery progressed well enough that he was able to participate in — and complete — the team's grueling late-July run to the top of Howard's Knob.
App State head coach
Scott Satterfield has said one benefit of the program's early spring practice schedule is that it gives players more time to recover from injuries in advance of the next season, and Harrington had been cleared fully in recent weeks.
With players now able to participate in as many as four games without losing the ability to redshirt, Harrington made his 2018 debut with, at minimum, one more regular season game left before the Mountaineers appear in a bowl. Following the win against Georgia State, another win Saturday against Troy would add the inaugural Sun Belt Championship Game on Dec. 1 to the schedule prior to that bowl appearance.
True freshman running back
Camerun Peoples, another redshirt candidate, made just his second appearance of the season at Texas State on Nov. 10. He scored his first career touchdown that day but didn't play against Georgia State, as Harrington became the third option behind
Darrynton Evans and
Marcus Williams Jr.
"This was a great opportunity for Daetrich," Satterfield said of his approach to the Georgia State rotation. "Let's hold Cam back, and now we can play Daetrich in this game. I thought he did some great stuff.
"That's the first time he's been tackled since February, and he did some really good stuff. He feels confident, and he had good burst. He looked good to me. He looked really good. That's comforting to know as a coach, and I'm sure it is for him. He'll have some confidence after this game, and it enables us to have a little more depth. I feel like we're in great shape in the running back room with the depth right there."
Adding in
Jalin Moore and
D'Andre Hicks, App State has five running backs on its roster who have had a 100-yard rushing game in the last two seasons. Harrington finished a true freshman season in which he totaled 296 rushing yards and two touchdowns in strong fashion, as he gained 118 yards on 17 carries in the 2017 home finale and rushed nine times for 72 yards in the bowl victory against Toledo.
Rehab is a challenging process that requires patience, but Harrington said he drew strength from his faith as well as a desire to honor his late grandmother, Bonnie, who passed away two years ago.
"I keep that in the back of my mind and do it for her," Harrington said. "It was a hard process, but me, I'll fight through whatever. Any adversity, I'll keep pushing because I have no limits. My coaches, teammates and family kept pushing me along."
