Two nationally televised games at Kidd Brewer Stadium highlight Appalachian State University’s 2015 football schedule, which was announced by the Sun Belt Conference on Friday morning.
Appalachian State is slated for six home games and six road games in its second season in the Sun Belt and its first campaign as a fully bowl-eligible NCAA Division I FBS program. Despite finishing 7-5 overall last season (6-2 in Sun Belt play, good for third place), Appalachian was ineligible for a bowl invitation while it completed an NCAA-mandated two-year transition from Division I FCS to FBS.
Thursday night home games against longtime rival Georgia Southern (Oct. 22) and Sun Belt stalwart Arkansas State (Nov. 5) headline the 12-game schedule. Both games will be televised nationally on ESPNU.
Fellow Sun Belt newcomer Georgia Southern won the 2014 conference championship with a perfect 8-0 league record, which included a 34-14 victory over App State on Sept. 25 in Statesboro, Ga. Despite last year’s victory, Appalachian State has won eight of the last 12 meetings with its former Southern Conference foe, including three-straight at Kidd Brewer Stadium.
Winners of at least a share of three of the last four Sun Belt titles, Arkansas State will make its first-ever appearance at Kidd Brewer Stadium. Appalachian jumped out to a 37-20 lead and handed A-State its only home loss of last season with a 37-32 triumph in Jonesboro, Ark. The Red Wolves went on to claim its fourth-straight bid to the GoDaddy Bowl and finished 7-6 overall (5-3 Sun Belt).
Appalachian State’s other home games include previously announced non-conference games versus Howard (Sept. 5) and Wyoming (Oct. 3) and Sun Belt contests against Troy (Oct. 31) and UL Lafayette (Nov. 28).
The Thanksgiving weekend matchup versus UL Lafayette is particularly intriguing, as the Ragin’ Cajuns’ first-ever visit to Boone could play a big role in the Sun Belt championship race. Last season, the Mountaineers handed UL Lafayette its only conference loss of the year when they pounded the Cajuns, 35-16, in Lafayette, La. UL Lafayette went on to finish 9-4 overall (7-1 Sun Belt) and earned its fourth-straight bowl win with a 16-3 triumph over Nevada in the New Orleans Bowl.
On the road, the Mountaineers face Clemson (Sept. 12) and Old Dominion (Sept. 26) in non-conference action and make their first-ever trips to Georgia State (Oct. 10), UL Monroe (Oct. 17), Idaho (Nov. 14) and South Alabama (Dec. 5) in Sun Belt play. Two of App State’s six road opponents played in bowls last season (Clemson – 40-6 win over Oklahoma in Russell Athletic Bowl; South Alabama – 33-28 loss to Bowling Green in Camellia Bowl) while Old Dominion was 7-5 but, like Appalachian, was ineligible for bowl participation while completing its transition from FCS to FBS.
Appalachian State’s 2015 season tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at appstatesports.com/ticketsor by calling the Appalachian State athletics ticket office at (828) 262-2079. Specialty dates (Homecoming, Family Weekend, etc.) will be announced in the near future.
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