BOONE, N.C. — Needing a win to extend its season, App State Football came out on the heartbreaking end of a 30-29 thriller that instead enabled Arkansas State to become bowl eligible Saturday night.
The Red Wolves (6-6, 5-3) trailed 29-23 before capping a seven-play, 75-yard drive on Kenyon Clay's 1-yard touchdown run and Clune Van Andel's tiebreaking extra point with 42 seconds left.
Ahead 26-23 before that drive, App State (5-6, 2-6) had a chance to move in front by a two-score margin when
JJ Kohl threw a touchdown pass to wide-open tight end
Dillon Galloway on a fourth-and-1 play from the 6, but an illegal formation penalty backed up the Mountaineers and led to
Dominic De Freitas kicking his fifth field goal of the game with 1:34 remaining.
After Arkansas State's go-ahead score, App State regained possession at its own 25 with 42 seconds left and three timeouts at its disposal. Completions to
Dalton Stroman and
David Larkins pushed the ball toward midfield, and Kohl's completion to
Sam Mbake for 12 yards on a fourth-and-1 throw extended the drive. Larkins gained 12 yards on a completion to the 27 with three seconds left, prompting App State to call its final timeout, but a 45-yard field goal to win the game sailed wide right.
A turnover-free Kohl completed 26 of 39 passes for 271 yards, connecting with Mbake and Stroman for touchdowns, while
Jaquari Lewis rushed for 108 yards on 22 carries in the final game of head coach
Dowell Loggains' debut season in Boone.
Seventh-year senior
Kevin Abrams-Verwayne had 2.5 sacks among his career-high 10 tackles, and
Colton Phares' leaping interception accounted for one of three takeaways by the App State defense.
Brayshawn Littlejohn recovered a fumble on a misplayed fourth-down attempt from Arkansas State, and
Kyle Arnholt recovered a second-half fumble forced by
DJ Burks.
The regular season finale was tied after one quarter (3-all), two quarters (16-all) and three quarters (23-all), but De Freitas' 48-yard field goal to break the final tie with 11:37 left and his 29-yard kick in the final two minutes weren't enough to keep the Red Wolves at bay. Raynor completed three relatively short passes on the first four plays of Arkansas State's final drive, and a 19-yard completion to the 35 preceded Corey Rucker's 34-yard reception to the 1.
The only two-score separation came after De Freitas' second field goal pushed App State to a 6-3 lead early in the second quarter. Raynor couldn't control a fourth-and-1 snap from the App State 42, leading to a fumble that Littlejohn recovered at the Arkansas State 37, and Stroman hauled in a 37-yard touchdown pass from Kohl on the second play of the next series.
The Red Wolves scored touchdowns 17 seconds apart late in the first half, recovering a muffed kickoff after Raynor's 8-yard touchdown pass to Rucker and turning the takeaway into a 9-yard touchdown pass from Raynor to tight end Tyler Fortenberry.
Each team punted once in the final minute of the half, and App State managed to tie the game at the break despite regaining possession at its own 24 with 26 seconds left. Mbake's 17-yard reception and Kohl's 32-yard scramble to get out of bounds at the 27 set up De Freitas' 45-yard field goal.
Arkansas State missed a 52-yard field goal to open the third quarter, and App State moved ahead 23-16 as Kohl's 16-yard touchdown pass gave Mbake his first score as a Mountaineer. The Red Wolves moved back even with a 12-play, 75-yard touchdown drive.
Phares' fourth-quarter interception and return into Arkansas State territory set up De Freitas' tiebreaking kick, and an Abrams-Verwayne sack forced a three-and-out punt. The teams then traded fourth-quarter punts, with App State taking over at its 15 with 5:45 remaining, and Larkins' 26-yard reception to the Red Wolves' 32 preceded Lewis' 17-yard run to the 15.
Gains of 1, 7 and 1 on runs led to the fourth-down scenario that played a key role in the closing minutes.
