Last Updated on February 27, 2018 4:24 pm
BOONE, N.C. – Four Sun Belt foes and two non-conference teams will travel to The Rock this fall, highlighting the 2018 schedule for the two-time reigning Sun Belt Champion Appalachian State football team.
September will be a jam-packed month for head coach Scott Satterfield’s Mountaineers. After opening the season Sept. 1 at Big Ten opponent Penn State and its 106,572-seat Beaver Stadium, App State will travel to Charlotte on Sept. 8 for its first matchup against the nearby 49ers, who began playing football in 2013.
App State will open at home Sept. 15 against Southern Miss for its second straight contest against a Conference USA team. It’s the first of three straight games at Kidd Brewer Stadium, with in-state foe Gardner-Webb visiting Sept. 22, followed by the Sept. 29 conference opener and homecoming game versus South Alabama.
In the first year of the Sun Belt’s divisional format, which will feature a Dec. 1 championship game between division winners at the site of the team with the better College Football Playoff ranking, App State will host two teams from its own East division (Georgia State on Nov. 17 and Troy on Nov. 24) and two teams from the West (South Alabama on Sept. 29 and Louisiana on Oct. 20 for Family Weekend).
League road games against East division foes include a Thursday, Oct. 25, matchup at Georgia Southern (ESPNU) and a Nov. 3 date at Coastal Carolina. West road games will be played at Arkansas State on Tuesday, Oct. 9 (ESPN2) and at Texas State (Nov. 10).
With the new format, App repeats two contests from last year, again hosting Louisiana (which it defeated 63-14) and traveling to Texas State (which it beat 20-13).
The lone October date (Louisiana on the 20th) makes it App’s lightest October home schedule since 1991. App will play only one game at The Rock between Sept. 29 and Nov. 17 before a late flourish against Georgia State and Troy as the team will seek to capture its third straight league title.
In addition to being crowned co-champions of the Sun Belt each of the last two seasons, App also led the league in average home attendance both years and looks to attract more big crowds in 2018. The Mountaineers have won 27 of their last 30 games in Sun Belt play.
To be part of the tradition of a program that has built upon three straight Division I-AA national titles from 2005-07 by becoming the first school to ever win bowl games in each of its first three seasons eligible, fans can renew or purchase season tickets at AppStateSports.com/FootballTradition. Make sure to take advantage of special incentives by renewing or purchasing early.
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2018 App State Football Schedule
Sat., Sept. 1 at Penn State
Sat., Sept. 8 at Charlotte
Sat., Sept. 15 vs. Southern Miss (Hall of Fame)
Sat., Sept. 22 vs. Gardner-Webb (Heroes Day)
Sat., Sept. 29 vs. South Alabama* (Homecoming)
Tues., Oct. 9 at Arkansas State* [ESPN2]
Sat., Oct. 20 vs. Louisiana* (Family Weekend)
Thur., Oct. 25 at Georgia Southern* [ESPNU]
Sat., Nov. 3 at Coastal Carolina*
Sat., Nov. 10 at Texas State*
Sat., Nov. 17 vs. Georgia State* (Black Saturday)
Sat., Nov. 24 vs. Troy* (Senior Day)
Sat., Dec. 1 – Sun Belt Championship Game
*Sun Belt game
Home game in bold