BOONE, N.C. — App State returns to The Rock on Saturday, reuniting a fan base with a football program as they work collectively to uplift one another while also supporting a High Country community that's facing historic challenges.
The Sun Belt Conference matchup with Georgia State at 1 p.m. in Kidd Brewer Stadium will mark the Mountaineers' first home game in 37 days — and their first Saturday game in Boone since the Aug. 31 opener, a stretch of 56 days.
After playing a Thursday night home game against South Alabama on Sept. 19, the impact of Hurricane Helene on Sept. 27 and beyond led to the cancelation of the Sept. 28 home game against Liberty, and the Mountaineers played back-to-back road games before having a bye last weekend. On Saturday, both App State (2-4, 0-3) and Georgia State (2-4, 0-3) will be looking for a breakthrough in league play.
To continue supporting recovery efforts in the High Country, fans should consider carpooling to the game to reduce road traffic and take advantage of
AppalCart or rideshare options if possible. Also, consider purchasing tailgate supplies from local businesses.
- HOME GIVING
App State Fans – As the High Country and all of western North Carolina continue to recover from Hurricane Helene, App State is inviting everyone to consider this weekend as Home Giving and donate to two local charities that are directly supporting recovery efforts in our community.
Donate to the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce Foundation or Quiet Givers today, or visit them in the Jerry Moore Plaza outside Kidd Brewer Stadium on your way to Saturday's football game vs. Georgia State.
- SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESSES
App State Fans – As you travel to Boone for Saturday's football game vs. Georgia State, we encourage you to support local businesses in the High Country as they recover from the impacts of Hurricane Helene on our area. Below is a list of official partners of App State Athletics.
Restaurants
Arby's, Best Cellar – Ragged Inn, Blowing Rock Town Tavern, Bojangles, Booneshine Brewing Company, Casa Rustica, Chick-fil-A, Clean Eatz, Dan'l Boone Inn, Hungry Howies, Jamba Juice/Auntie Anne's, Linville Falls Winery, Makoto's, Mellow Mushroom, McDonald's, Panera Bread, Penn Station East Coast Subs, Pepper's, Rivers Street Ale House, South End Brewing, Stick Boy Bread Company, Subway, The Beacon, The Canteen at Rhodes Motor Lodge, The Cardinal, Vicious Biscuit, Wendy's
Grocery Partners
Food Lion, Harris Teeter, Ingles, Lowes Foods
Retail Partners
Alumni Hall, App State Campus Store, Mast General Store, Mountaineer Mania, Sports Fanatic, Yosef's Locker
In recent weeks, the volunteer efforts among coaches, staff members and players from head coach
Shawn Clark's program have included unpacking and organizing donated goods at a local church and loading generators and other supplies onto helicopters from a humanitarian aid organization.
The Mountaineers have dropped three straight games, including the back-to-back road contests since returning to play following the onset of Helene, but the defense performed significantly better during a 34-24 loss in which Louisiana scored on touchdown drives of 33, 7 and 32 yards after App State turnovers. The Mountaineers limited the Ragin' Cajuns to 364 total yards, got one turnover on a fourth-quarter interception from
Jordan Favors and were led in tackles by
Brendan Harrington, who made his first start in a league game since Nov. 27, 2021.
Offensively, four of the five App State turnovers occurred in the fourth quarter, negating a balanced effort that was lacking earlier in the season. The Mountaineers rushed for a season-high 180 yards at Marshall on Oct. 5 and then benefited from a career-high 148 rushing yards by
Kanye Roberts at Louisiana.
App State owns a 10-0 record in the series against Georgia State, which has its own schedule oddities in 2024. Led by first-year head coach and former Georgia assistant Dell McGee, who was hired in late February, the Panthers played in their home city of Atlanta in each of their first five games. The App State game is the second of four straight road games.
Georgia State followed a season-opening loss at Georgia Tech with four straight home games, including a 36-32 victory against Vanderbilt to improve to 2-1, but home losses to Georgia Southern and Old Dominion preceded a Thursday night loss at Marshall last week.
In that game, the Panthers trailed 28-20 when they gained possession with 9:28 left and advanced to the Marshall 10 before a fourth-down incompletion with 1:52 remaining capped a 14-play march. Moments later, Marshall sealed the win with an 88-yard touchdown run.
Georgia State made a change at quarterback after quickly falling behind 18-0, turning to Akron and Georgia Tech transfer Zach Gibson to replace Penn State and Pittsburgh transfer Christian Veilleux. Gibson threw for 192 yards with two touchdowns in relief while also gaining at least 5 yards on six different rushing attempts, and Freddie Brock's 124 rushing yards on 18 carries included a 56-yard gain.
Brock played at Maine before joining Georgia State's program in 2023 and rushed for 276 yards in a bowl win against Utah State last year after totaling only six carries during the regular season.
Georgia State's defense is allowing 194.2 rushing yards per game, but the Panthers have been disruptive in the backfield thanks to the efforts of outside linebacker Kevin Swint (four sacks, 5.5 TFLs) and defensive tackle Henry Bryant (three sacks).
