App State’s Second-Half Rally Falls Brief Towards Eagles

BOONE, N.C. — App State Football rallied for 3 touchdowns over the ultimate 20 minutes, with yet another rating wanted to finish a comeback win, however Georgia Southern was in a position to run out the clock in a 25-23 victory at Kidd Brewer Stadium on Thursday night time.
 
App State’s purple zone protection made a comeback doable by forcing the Eagles to kick subject targets from 21, 26, 23 and 24 yards through the midweek rivalry sport that drew a crowd of 31,876. The Mountaineers (4-5, 1-4) trailed 19-0 when Dominic De Freitas made a 36-yard subject purpose to place factors on the board as the primary half ended, they usually have been behind 22-3 earlier than scoring touchdowns with 4:51 left within the third quarter (David Larkins’ 1-yard reception) and 13:50 remaining within the fourth quarter (Jaquari Lewis’ 27-yard run).
 
The Eagles (4-5, 2-3) pushed a 22-16 result in a two-score separation with their last subject purpose on the 9:05 mark, and AJ Swann’s 16-yard landing go to Jaden Barnes with 1:56 remaining extended the comeback bid. Georgia Southern recovered the onside kick however nonetheless wanted to maneuver the ball provided that App State had all three of its timeouts remaining.
 
The Eagles collected a primary down with an 11-yard run on the primary play and sealed the sport by changing a fourth-and-inches run from the App State 27 with 34 seconds remaining.
 
Barnes totaled 13 catches for 160 yards and a rating, posting App State’s highest reception complete since Sean Price had 13 catches for 167 yards in opposition to Illinois State in 2012, and Swann threw for 348 yards with two scores in his return to the beginning lineup. He accomplished 34 of 51 passes on an evening when the Mountaineers rushed 23 occasions for 77 yards.
 
Defensively, Colton Phares delivered a giant third-down sack to power a punt between App State’s back-to-back touchdowns, and DJ Burks led the best way with 12 tackles.
 
Larkins tipped the ball to himself on his 1-yard rating that minimize Georgia Southern’s result in 22-9 within the third quarter, with Barnes’ 32-yard reception on a fourth-and-2 throw from the 33 organising that landing, and Phares’ sack compelled Georgia Southern to punt from its 32. Barnes made a diving seize for six yards on a fourth-and-1 throw from the App State 40 to extend that drive, and Lewis rushed for 15 yards to the Eagles’ 27 earlier than scoring untouched on the subsequent play — he minimize between key blocks from pulling offensive linemen Griffin Scroggs and Will Flowers.
 
Georgia Southern wanted simply six performs to go from its personal 28 to the App State 6 on the subsequent sequence, however Aiden Benton’s cease for a 2-yard loss and Kevin Abrams-Verwayne’s sort out on a 1-yard achieve to the 7 preceded one other brief subject purpose.
 
The Mountaineers reached the Georgia Southern 23 on the subsequent sequence because of Barnes’ unbelievable catch for 22 yards on a fourth-and-14 go, however Georgia Southern intercepted a throw simply shy of the top zone from a pressured Swann on the subsequent play.
 
Time and subject place took a success when a three-and-out punt resulted in App State regaining possession at its 34 with 5:24 left, and Swann’s 17-yard go to Davion Dozier on a fourth-and-17 play from the Georgia Southern 47 prolonged an 11-play, 66-yard scoring march.
 
Barnes scored his seventh receiving landing of the season on the primary play after the two-minute timeout, however the Mountaineers by no means acquired the ball again.
 
App State hits the street subsequent weekend to face division-leading James Madison at 3:30 p.m. in Harrisonburg, Va.