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ASU opens conference play
The Citadel comes to town with a SoCon win, 3-1 overall record
Mark Mitchell Photo
Quarterback Armanti Edwards of Appalachian State scores a touchdown against Jacksonville.
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Published: October 4, 2008
BOONE - Appalachian State completed its nonconference schedule with mixed results and a 2-2 record. Now it will begin anew with today's Southern Conference opener against The Citadel.
"It's just like the playoffs start this week for us," said quarterback Armanti Edwards of the Mountaineers, who hopes he'll just be able to play after spraining an ankle last Saturday. "We consider the four games we just played preseason … now the real season begins."
The Mountaineers do welcome the fresh start. They handily won games they were supposed to win -- blowing out overmatched Jacksonville and Presbyterian -- and lost at big-time favorite LSU and in a toss-up at James Madison, now the top-ranked team in the Football Championship Subdivision.
Coach Jerry Moore, whose Mountaineers are ranked No. 2 in the FCS, has expressed concern about inconsistency and too many mistakes. Appalachian had a second-half demise after leading 21-0 against James Madison and led by just three at halftime last week against Presbyterian.
He said that his team has struggled to find its identity.
"We're relatively young, so it's hard to keep from getting frustrated as a coach a little bit because we've had a nice run of players here that had a good bit of experience," Moore said. "And we still have some that are that way, but there are young guys that sometimes keep us off balance a little bit."
The Mountaineers have just five seniors among 22 starters and have had to rely on more relatively new players because of injuries.
"There are a lot of key players here that have not had a lot to do with what's happened here the last two or three years," Moore said, "and I guess we're trying to jump-start them a little bit, because the honeymoon is over starting league play."
Edwards said earlier this week that he expected to be able to play today, and he reported only minor discomfort when he resumed practice Wednesday. If he is limited today, freshman DeAndre Presley will step in.
Coach Kevin Higgins of The Citadel -- whose team is 3-1 overall, 1-0 in the SoCon after defeating Western Carolina and No. 12 in the FCS media poll -- said that his team's preparation hasn't been altered. He is familiar with both quarterbacks, having seen plenty of Edwards the past two seasons and having recruited Presley.
Edwards had a field day against The Citadel last season, rushing for 291 yards and two touchdowns and passing for 148 yards and two touchdowns in a 45-24 victory in Charleston, S.C.
Higgins jokingly said he burned that game tapes from last season.
"It's sad watching those again from our perspective," Higgins said."And you watch him against Richmond, and he ran for 300-plus yards. That's Armanti. That's what he does."
The Bulldogs have their own offensive threat in Andre Roberts, who caught 10 passes for 135 yards and a touchdown last Saturday in a 34-14 win over WCU and became the program's all-time leader in receptions.
"Andre was voted as team captain as a junior, which is rare around here," Higgins said. "He really had a great summer. He got bigger and stronger and just matured as a football player. His practice skills have improved tremendously. He's slowly but surely become a very good player. He does have good speed and good hands, and he knows how to get open. He's certainly a guy we're counting on to step up every game if we're going to be successful."
Appalachian passed for 220 yards in the first half in a 48-14 win over a Presbyterian team bent on loading up against Edwards and the running game, then turned to the run for 349 yards in the second half.
Edwards said the Mountaineers need to pass and run.
"A lot of teams are going to try to start stacking the box on us, so we have to throw the ball," Edwards said. "We've got to throw the ball to get people out of the box. We had a great rushing season last year, but as you can see this year, everybody is trying not to let us run, so we've got to throw the ball here and there."
The Citadel has a new look on defense, a 3-4 scheme.
"It's different," Moore said. "It's a little bit new for us going against that, so we'll have to see."
Although he didn't burn tape, Moore said there wasn't much valid game tape to assess in preparation for the Bulldogs, who haven't won in Boone since 1992.
"Their schedule is a little like ours," Moore said. "The Webber International game doesn't help you much to watch that, it's kind of like us in that we had Jacksonville, and then they had Clemson, and we had LSU. So there's some disparity in there. That leaves Western Carolina and Princeton to really kind of study and watch. And Western is more I-formation than what we are, so their offense isn't that similar to ours."
Today's game, which is homecoming for Appalachian, will kick off at 3 p.m. and be televised by SportSouth.
■ Tommy Bowman can be reached at 727-7320 or at tbowman@wsjournal.com.
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