Last Updated on September 6, 2026 5:22 am
App State Football opened the 2026 season with a dominant home win over Maine, recording a 55-3 victory in front of a sold-out crowd of 33,664 at Kidd Brewer Stadium on Saturday.
Beginning their second season under head coach Dowell Loggains, with 73 newcomers on the roster, the Mountaineers posted the program's largest margin of victory since a 72-7 win against Gardner-Webb in 2018. They play at East Carolina next weekend in a noon game on ESPNU.
App State shut out Maine (1-1) until the final minute of the third quarter, building a 38-0 lead as quarterback Malachi Singleton completed 22 of 24 passes for 291 yards and three touchdowns in less than three full quarters of work.
App State's 10 possessions resulted in a turnover-capped march to the Maine 5-yard line on the opening series, followed by nine straight scoring drives, with seven touchdowns and two James London field goals. Sam Pickett III followed a Darrin Fugitt touchdown reception with two scores of his own, and the Mountaineers' four rushing touchdowns came from Treyaun Webb, Jaquari Lewis, Nate Branch and Jackson Grier. Branch and Grier, both receivers, scored on runs of 36 and 28 yards.
Caleb Sandstrom recorded App State's first sack of the season right before edge rusher Caleb Pitts intercepted a pass he tipped to himself late in the first half, setting up a touchdown drive that gave App State a 31-0 halftime lead. Colton Phares added another interception early in the third quarter, plus a sack on an intentional-grounding penalty, part of the Mountaineers' eight tackles for loss.
App State's defense limited Maine to 12 first downs and 250 yards of offense, compared to 34 first downs and 647 yards from the Mountaineers, who finished with 299 rushing yards (7.7 yards per carry) and 348 passing yards from three quarterbacks. Henry Hasselbeck and Tommy Ulatowski combined for 29 completions in 33 attempts.
Webb punched in a 2-yard touchdown midway through the first quarter, and Singleton threw three touchdown passes in the second, including scoring receptions to Fugitt, and two to Pickett covering 14 and 7 yards in the final five minutes of the half. Maine broke up the shutout bid on a field goal in the final minute of the third quarter before Branch and Grier added late rushing touchdowns and London closed the scoring with a 32-yard field goal.
Photo: Joseph Chapman / App State Athletics
