Appalachian State football faced off against longtime rival Georgia Southern in the JLab Birmingham Bowl on Monday, Dec. 29. This was the 41st meeting between the two teams. The Eagles came away with a 29-10 win.
A large part of the loss was the transfer portal. The Mountaineers were missing 10 starters. These included quarterbacks AJ Swann and JJ Kohl, as well as many regulars on defense. On the flip side, the Eagles maintained most of their roster.
Tale of the Tape
Freshman quarterback Noah Gillon started the first game of his career. The first drive saw two runs from freshman running back Jaquari Lewis and an incomplete pass, before a punt.
Redshirt junior quarterback JC French IV started the game slinging for Georgia Southern, completing 5-of-5 passes for 35 yards. A 10-yard rush from French moved the Eagles into App State territory. They quickly moved inside the 5-yard line, before redshirt junior running back Terrance Gibbs received a wildcat snap and ran the ball in for a score.
Gillon found freshman wide receiver Alex Sanchez for his first completion of the game on App State’s next series. A penalty on the Eagles handed the Mountaineers their first down. After the play redshirt freshman defensive back Matthew Wilson came in at quarterback, where he was recruited. He completed a 12-yard pass before Gillon came back in.
Gillon completed a 16-yard pass to redshirt junior wide receiver Sam Mbake to move into the redzone. A penalty moved App State out of comfortable field goal range and freshman kicker Dominic De Freitas was unable to connect from 46 yards.
Georgia Southern took over with prime field position, but the defense held strong and forced a three and out.
Redshirt freshman running back Khamani Alexander saw back-to-back carries before a 28-yard run from Wilson moved the Mountaineers to the 35-yard line. Gillon came back into the game on third down and threw an interception killing the momentum.
Senior running back OJ Arnold started Georgia Southern’s next drive with a 49-yard run to the App State 30-yard line. The Eagles elected to go for it on fourth down and French was able to scramble for the conversion.
Strong running from Georgia Southern moved them inside the 10-yard line, where they settled for a field goal taking a 10-0 lead with nine minutes left in the second quarter.
A good return set the Mountaineers up on the 40-yard line. Lewis started the drive with a 12-yard run. On the next play, Wilson got free for a 24-yard run. Wilson threw the second interception of the game to once again halt momentum.
A tackle for loss from redshirt sophomore linebacker Colton Phares ended the Eagles drive in three plays. The Mountaineers took over on the 49-yard line. App State went with the rushing attack for four straight plays, until Gillon found redshirt senior wide receiver Dalton Stroman for a 34-yard completion to the 7-yard line.
Wilson capped the drive with a rushing touchdown, the first of his career, making the score 10-7.
Georgia Southern took over with just under two minutes left in the half and moved into field goal range, giving them a 13-7 lead at halftime.
The Eagles received the second half kickoff. On the first play of the half, Arnold ripped off a 58-yard run. Freshman quarterback Weston Bryan punched in a 3-yard score, but they failed the two point conversion, making the score 19-7.
Wilson continued to use his legs, opening the Mountaineers’ first second-half drive with a 23-yard run. App State began to move down the field and into Eagles territory. However, Gillon threw his second interception, App State’s third of the game.
A 20-yard completion from French got the wheels moving for the Eaglers. He capped the drive with a 32-yard touchdown pass, extending the lead to 19.
Lewis gained a combined 17 yards on back-to-back runs to begin the drive. Wilson launched a 42-yard pass to Stroman, moving to the Eagles 12-yard line. App State settled for a field goal.
The Mountaineers finally got some momentum with an interception by senior defensive back Ethan Johnson.
App State began to slowly drive down the field, but could not convert on third down.
Georgia State went back to the run game, running the ball on four consecutive plays. With a chance to get off the field, a pass interference kept the drive alive. The Eagles continued to move the ball and sealed the game with a field goal after a 10 minute drive.
The Mountaineers tried to score a touchdown for their pride, but Wilson threw yet another interception to end a frustrating day for the offense.
Key Players for the Mountaineers
Gillon started the game under center. However he struggled, completing just four passes for 64 yards and two interceptions and he was replaced by Wilson.
After switching on many drives, Wilson ultimately took over under center. He was able to impact the game with his arm and his legs. He threw for 128 yards and ran for 110 yards and a touchdown. However, he also threw two interceptions.
Lewis did not impact the game as he usually does only getting 16 carries for 55 yards.
Key Players for the Eagles
French played a clean game, throwing for 171 yards and a touchdown. He added 38 yards on the ground.
The Georgia Southern running backs were a key component in this win. Gibbs recorded eight carries for 32 yards and a touchdown. Arnold had 11 carries for 152 yards, including a 58-yard run.
Looking Ahead to 2026
The Mountaineers are going to have a reloaded roster to start the 2026 season, as they signed 29 recruits during the early signing period. The class is the highest rated in App State history, coming in at 54th in FBS according to 247Sports.
Four star tight end Jamel Howse is the leader of this class, flipping from The University of South Carolina. App State is bringing in the pieces for what could be a successful season, but fans will have to wait until September to find out.
Max Schwanz is the sports editor for The Appalachian, the student newspaper at Appalachian State University. A journalism major and digital marketing minor from Cornelius, N.C., you can find more of his work at The Appalachian.
