Last Updated on September 1, 2024 2:01 pm
BOONE, N.C. — By game’s end, App State Football had gained separation from ETSU and provided reason for celebration from another above-capacity crowd.
Three consecutive scoring drives to begin the 2024 opener and three straight touchdowns toward the end of it bookended a 38-10 victory against FCS neighbor ETSU on Saturday with the third-largest attendance figure in Kidd Brewer Stadium history being recorded.
The attendance figure of 36,232 ranks behind only the matching 40,168 totals from the 2022 home opener against North Carolina and the 2023 visit from East Carolina.
Despite leading 17-0 midway through the second quarter, App State (1-0) found itself clinging to a 17-10 advantage while facing a fourth-and-5 from the ETSU 34 late in the third quarter.
If the Bucs make a stop in that situation, they gain possession with a chance to tie the game or even take the lead. Instead, Joey Aguilar’s 34-yard touchdown pass to Eli Wilson started a run of 21 straight points by the Mountaineers, who now turn their attention to next weekend’s game at No. 14 Clemson.
Aguilar threw for 326 yards and accounted for four touchdowns, including an 83-yard score to Christan Horn on his first pass attempt of the season — if that sounds familiar.
In addition to the touchdown passes to Horn and Wilson, plus a 47-yard connection to Kaedin Robinson as part of his eight-catch, 103-yard game, Aguilar rushed for two touchdowns. Outside receiver Makai Jackson accounted for a team-best 47 of App State’s 174 rushing yards thanks to his touchdown run to open the fourth quarter.
Defensively, App State recorded three sacks over the final 18 minutes. Outside linebacker Thomas Davis accounted for 1.5 of them on back-to-back plays late in the third quarter, with help from Kevin Abrams-Verwayne on one, and Derrell Farrar also had a sack. Kyle Arnholt posted a team-high 10 tackles as the Mountaineers limited ETSU (0-1) to 305 total yards, with 80 coming on their only touchdown.
That score, plus a short field goal with 5:49 left in the third quarter, cut ETSU’s deficit to seven points. Wilson’s touchdown on the longest reception of his career — he caught a short pass on a right-to-left crossing route and ran free toward the front-left pylon — turned the momentum back in the Mountaineers’ favor.
Their defense came up big after that, as Davis backed up ETSU with a sack and then combined with Abrams-Verwayne for a punt-forcing sack that almost resulted in a safety.
App State started its next drive with good field position, and Jackson scored on his 47-yard end-around with help from downfield blocks by Horn and center Jack Hollifield, who covered a ton of ground after snapping the ball to Aguilar.
ETSU’s next drive ended with a fourth-and-7 incompletion from App State’s 32, and Robinson’s acrobatic catch on a first-down deep shot flipped the field. Six plays later, Aguilar recorded his second 1-yard touchdown run of the day.
Aguilar, who came on in relief and threw a 32-yard touchdown pass on his first FBS snap last year in the 2023 opener against a Gardner-Webb team coached by current ETSU coach Tre Lamb, needed two plays to strike in this year’s opener against Lamb’s Bucs.
With great protection from a new-look offensive line, Aguilar calmly stepped up and went over the top to Horn, who hauled in the pass at the ETSU 37 before stepping out of a tackle at the 30 and scoring easily.
After the Mountaineers forced a fourth-and-5 incompletion from the App State 43 to end the next drive, Aguilar directed an 11-play, 45-yard march. Maquel Haywood’s 18-yard run to the 4 set up a touchdown pass that was wiped out by an illegal block on the edge, so App State settled for a 32-yard field goal from Michael Hughes.
The Mountaineers made it three-for-three on scoring chances thanks to a 13-play, 80-yard drive. Aguilar nearly scored on a 6-yard keeper before walking into the end zone, and Hughes’ extra point pushed the lead to 17-0.
The first two-minute warning in an App State football game wasn’t kind to the Mountaineers, as ETSU’s second play of the drive turned into an 80-yard sprint for a touchdown by Devontae Houston.
ETSU kicked off to start the second half and regained possession by stopping a fourth-and-1 carry from the 32 for a 2-yard loss. The Bucs quickly moved into scoring position, advancing to the 2 on a first-and-goal gain, but Jalik Thomas and Shawn Collins made back-to-back stops to leave ETSU with fourth and goal from the 3.
The Bucs kept their offense on the field, but a penalty for illegal substitution backed up ETSU and led to a 25-yard field goal that cut App State’s advantage to 17-10.
From there, the Mountaineers took care of business to set up a big showdown in Death Valley.
