App Family,
Happy Holidays! I hope you are enjoying quality time with family and friends this holiday season.
We're excited to have been invited to the JLab Birmingham Bowl. What a tremendous opportunity for our student-athletes and football staff to represent App State on a national stage against Sun Belt rival Georgia Southern!
Football Goes Bowling
When the bowl invitation call came, we enthusiastically accepted the opportunity to compete one more time. It is an honor in college football to participate in Bowl Season, and we are excited for our program and our Mountaineer seniors to have the opportunity to compete again this season.
We are also looking forward to a promising 2026 season. Earlier this month, Coach Loggains and his staff brought in the highest-rated signing class in App State Football and Sun Belt history. The upcoming January transfer portal is another opportunity to further bolster next year's roster with future Mountaineers to represent the Black and Gold.
Positioning App State Football for Success
App State is recognized as a national brand in college athletics and a leader in alumni and fan support for our programs, specifically football.
The landscape of college athletics continues to evolve. App State is prepared and will aggressively be positioned for sustained success.
Our football program has historically been one of the most successful programs in the FBS. App State has participated in nine bowl games in the past 11 years and annually leads the Sun Belt Conference in attendance and football ticket revenue.
Our fans have been generous to the Mountaineers, and we are grateful. But for us to continue to compete at the highest levels, we must grow our fan support, our fundraising and our revenue generation efforts to provide the football program with the tools and resources to compete.
Supporting App State Athletics
Expenses in college athletics continue to rise. To reach comprehensive excellence, we need your continued support. Our current donors, new and prospective donors, corporate sponsors, fans and alumni all play a vital role in our comprehensive strategy moving forward.
We need to be more innovative in the creation of new revenue streams through hosting additional events and entertainment experiences.
We all must elevate the urgency and execution of our efforts. We will continue to enhance the holistic student-athlete experience while strategically expanding our revenue share and NIL support. Our entire athletics department is committed to accelerating growth while building a sustainable foundation for the future.
Many have asked how you can help move our programs forward. A gift to
our sport-specific funds is a direct investment in:
- NIL and Revenue Share: Help us recruit and retain elite student-athletes by strengthening NIL and revenue share support.
- Student-Athlete Experience: Enhance the student-athlete experience including resources that support nutrition, student-athlete development, training and well-being.
- Long-Term Success: Provide competitive resources that allows our programs to sustain success in the Sun Belt and nationally.
Your support – whether through the Yosef Club, tickets, merchandise, sponsorships, student-athlete NIL, concessions or attending any of our events – plays a vital role in the success of our programs. App State Athletics is built on the passion and generosity of App Nation, and we would not be where we are today without you.
Winter Sports Update
- Coming off three straight SoCon title-winning seasons, Wrestling is off to another strong start with a 31-8 dual win against Duke and competitive showings against No. 10 NC State and No. 20 West Virginia.
- Men's Basketball has compiled an 8-6 record that includes exciting wins against regional rivals Charlotte, East Carolina, High Point and Coastal Carolina.
- Women's Basketball also has a winning record (6-5) with nonconference victories over Western Michigan, Wofford, UNC Asheville and Gardner-Webb.
- In the first meet of the indoor track & field season, the Mountaineer women's 4x400-meter squad broke a meet record for the first of what could be many records for this year's track & field teams.
Facilities Progress
- Following the recent East Tower Advanced Planning announcement, a Kidd Brewer Stadium renovation survey will be sent out in the near future. We will be asking App State fans to provide vital feedback as planning progresses.
- Construction on the new Sofield Family Indoor Practice Facility is progressing, including significant grading work to prepare for the larger footprint of the new building.
- Baseball's new hitting facility extension is currently in the bid process, with construction to commence in 2026.
- The Mildred Southern indoor tennis facility is on pace for completion in April.
There is much to look forward to in 2026 as we close the book on another memorable year in App State Sports.
Buy your season and single-game tickets for all ticketed sports at
appstatesports.com/tickets. Football season tickets will go on sale in early January.
Please join us at the
Mountaineer Laughs comedy show on Jan. 16 in downtown Boone, with proceeds going to support App State Athletics.
We wish you all a happy and healthy holiday season and a great start to the new year!
Go App!
Doug Gillin
Director of Athletics
