Even if Appalachian State did not have a quality football program, driving to Boone, North Carolina would have easily been worthwhile for the picturesque scenery. Breathtaking! 6 miles before you hit Boone you drive through one of the cutest and most aptly-named towns in the country: Blowing Rock. Having previously visited North Carolina’s beaches, one develops a great appreciation for the state’s varied topography.
Marshall’s visit was a gift, producing a high-quality, evenly matched affair. Marshall was one shoestring tackle away from having 2 kick return TDs in the first half! The Odyssey was intensely interested in the play of both QBs, because both have had weird, uneven careers.
For App QB, Chase Brice, Boone is his 3rd stop. As a Clemson backup, his one blaze of Tiger QB glory was in a victorious 2018 relief stint in a nailbiting 27-23 comeback win over Syracuse after Clemson’s all-world QB, Trevor Lawrence, was hurt. That Brice played in the game was a bit of a fluke since he was the 3rd string QB entering 2018. However, Kelly Bryant abruptly left the team after he lost the starting gig to the freshman wunderkind. In 2020, Brice started at Duke was an integral component of a turnover-filled horror fest. Today, college football QBs move at the drop of a hat. Would Brice rebound in the third chapter of his “See the Carolinas” tour?
Marshall QB, Grant Wells, has refreshingly stayed at one locale. However, the last 3 games of 2020 morphed into his own personal horror show after Marshall’s scintillating 7-0 start to their 2020 campaign. Marshall scored a total of 23 points in his last 3 starts which was a real shame as the defense played well enough in each of those losses. His tailspin brought the Marshall offense to a screeching halt and certainly contributed to the end of Doc Holliday’s 11-year tenure as the coach of the Thundering Herd. That Wells threw for 433 yards last Saturday against East Carolina last Saturday indicated that his 2020 meltdown was temporary.
Happy to say that both acquitted themselves well, or “wells” in the case of Marshall’s QB, particularly on longish throws. However, Wells does not play defense. For the 2nd time in 5 days, the Marshall D collapsed in the 4th quarter, as the Herd could not hang on to a 2-possession lead. App, down 30-21, pulled out a 31-30 nailbiter. While the winning points were provided by the toe of a 45-yard field goal by Chandler Staton with 4:32 to go, we were very impressed by both the intellect and unselfishness of Nate Noel . With a minute to go, Noel broke away from the Herd and apparently was on his way to score a TD. However, he halted progress at the Marshall 5-yard line and basically allowed himself to be tackled. Marshall did not have enough timeouts left to keep the clock alive. Ballgame. If App had scored to make the score 38-30, Marshall would have had a minute for a last-gasp comeback.
The App crowd of 28,000 deserves many kudos. The Odyssey has never heard a crowd of this size make so much noise. The cacophony did not stop at game’s end as loud, post-game revelry continued for a good 15 minutes. A proud night for a proud program!
With TV’s saturation programming, in-game attendance has been affected the past decade. With this in mind, the Odyssey is saddened that Wake Forest and Virginia Tech do not schedule regular regional tilts with the Mountaineers. Wake, with your flagging attendance, please do not be too proud!
For those who think that App State is a Johnny-Come-Lately program, you would be wrong. Even prior to App’s earthshaking 2007 upset at The Big House, you can point back to games of 40+ years ago where App would come down the mountain and upset Wake. In fact, Appalachian State and Marshall were Southern Conference rivals when both teams were FCS powers.
As for Marshall, you have to be one of the best 2-2 teams in college football. Either finish better or come to a pre-game agreement with the opponents that you will only play 55 minutes.