On the evening after hosting ESPN's College GameDay show for the first time, App State capped a historic day in Boone with a fourth-down, Hail Mary finish for the ages. With 2 seconds left and facing fourth down,
Chase Brice lofted a high pass about 5 yards short of the end zone that was tipped by
Dalton Stroman before landing in the arms of
Christan Horn, who followed a
Kaedin Robinson block into the end zone for the walk-off victory.
Â
App State won its eighth straight Sun Belt opener in its ninth season as a member of the conference.
Â
Since the Mountaineers' 2014 FBS debut, App State has the sixth-most wins (82) in the FBS in that span behind just Alabama (107), Clemson (101), Ohio State (96), Georgia (89) and Oklahoma (89).
Â
Since 2014, App State has the nation's eighth-best home record with a 43-8 mark during that time. Only Clemson, Alabama, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Georgia, Memphis and Oregon have better marks.
Â
Attendance at Kidd Brewer Stadium was 34,406, the fourth-largest crowd in stadium history and the largest for a non-ACC opponent.
Â
First-string linebackers
Brendan Harrington and
Trey Cobb and running back
Nate Noel did not play due to injury.
Â
Inside linebacker
Tyler Bird and outside linebacker
Caden Sullivan earned their first starts as a Mountaineer.
Â
Offense
Â
After his 53-yard Hail Mary touchdown catch,
Christan Horn finished with career highs of five catches and 98 yards.
Â
Chase Brice completed 22 of 34 passes for 278 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. After three games, his seasons totals are 62-of-100 for 773 yards with nine touchdowns and one interception.
Â
Ten different receivers caught a pass, including nine different ones from Brice.
Â
Wide receiver
Dashaun Davis threw a touchdown to
Christian Wells on his first career pass attempt after receiving the handoff from Brice. It was Wells' second TD of the year and the ninth of his career.
Â
Anderson Castle hauled in his first career touchdown reception and his fourth career score with an 18-yarder from Brice with 1:22 left before halftime.
Â
Daetrich Harrington's 19-yard touchdown that tied the score at 21-21 in the third quarter was his first score of the year and the 13th of his career over six years.
Â
Camerun Peoples led the rushing attack with 17 carries for 84 yards.
Â
Defense
Â
Dexter Lawson Jr. intercepted a pass on Troy's first offensive play. It was the Central Connecticut State graduate's first pick as a Mountaineer.
Â
The Mountaineers registered three sacks on the day by
Tyler Bird (second career),
KeSean Brown (first career) and a shared sack by
Hansky Paillant and
Nick Hampton.
Â
Safety
Nick Ross led the defense with a career-high 12 tackles, while inside linebacker
Andrew Parker contributed a career-high 10 tackles.
Â
Special Teams
Â
Michael Hughes, who kicked last week's game-winning field goal, made a 23-yarder late in the third quarter to give the Mountaineers a 24-21 lead.
Â
Â