BOONE, N.C. — There will be a rematch in this year's Sun Belt Championship Game. This weekend's games will determine the location of it.
App State (10-1, 6-1) wraps up its regular season Friday at Troy (5-6, 3-4), with the ESPN+ game scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET (5 p.m. in Alabama).
A win for the 22nd-ranked Mountaineers would mean they host West Division champ Louisiana for the title game, just like they did a year ago. If Troy wins, App State would still host the title game if Louisiana loses at home Saturday night to ULM.
With plenty at stake Friday, here's a closer look at how App State's offense potentially matches up against Troy's defense. Both teams have first-year head coaches:
Eliah Drinkwitz and Chip Lindsey.
App State Offense vs. Troy Defense
Facing a Troy team that allows 33.5 points, 271.6 passing yards and 154.5 rushing yards per game, App State is coming off a victory in which
Zac Thomas completed passes for 60 and 45 yards. A week earlier, he had a completion of 50 yards.
Thomas totaled six touchdown passes in those wins against Texas State and Georgia State. With injuries sidelining receiver
Corey Sutton and tight end
Collin Reed, the Mountaineers' receiving corps will look like it did when
Thomas Hennigan,
Malik Williams and
Jalen Virgil were the primary targets during the opening two weeks of the season.
All three players had a game with at least 73 receiving yards in the team's 2-0 start, and they combined for five touchdown receptions. Additionally, graduate transfer
Keishawn Watson filled a bigger role last weekend and used good body control to haul in his first touchdown catch in an App State uniform.
In the run game, App State put up 280 rushing yards last week as
Darrynton Evans produced three rushing touchdowns for the third time this season and
Marcus Williams Jr. gained at least 75 yards for the third time in Sun Belt play this year. After dressing out last weekend,
Daetrich Harrington could also reenter the mix at running back.
There's room for improvement in both the running and passing games following the 35-13 win against Texas State.
"We've got to eliminate negative-yardage runs, and we've got to be able to make some contested catches down the field," Drinkwitz said.
Troy's defensive coordinator, Brandon Hall, was Arkansas State's safeties coach when Drinkwitz coached the Red Wolves' running backs in 2012. Under Hall, Troy has created problems for opposing passers by tallying 10 interceptions (tied for the Sun Belt lead) and 30 sacks (first in the Sun Belt, 28th nationally).
Troy linebacker Carlton Martial ranks seventh nationally with 113 tackles (more than twice as many as the team's No. 2 tackler) and is sixth with 16.5 tackles for loss. He also has three interceptions, one fewer than the team-leading total from cornerback Will Sunderland.
"We've got to be aware of where (Martial) is and how he affects the game," Drinkwitz said. "We've got our hands full — I know that. They've got some experienced players. Their defensive line has got a lot of experience, too, so we're going to have to have our best stuff in a short week."
