Jon Pearl
Football
POSTGAME NOTES: App State 26, Marshall 24
App State snapped a four-game losing streak and moved to within a win of bowl eligibility at 5-6 on the season.
App State improved its lead against Marshall in the all-time series to 17-11, including 11-3 in Boone. The home team has won each of the last six years.
The Mountaineers forced three turnovers and allowed no takeaways. They are now 4-0 when winning the turnover battle, 1-4 when losing and 0-2 when turnovers are tied.
Attendance at a sold-out Kidd Brewer Stadium was 31,322. It was the 15th sellout in the last 16 home games and the 23rd straight crowd above 30,000.
DEFENSE
Defensive coordinator DJ Smith‘s unit allowed only three points and created two takeaways after halftime.
Two of the game’s most impactful plays were fourth-quarter takeaways in which Caleb Sandstrom forced and recovered a fumble at the 5:33 mark and then Colton Phares did the same with 0:55 left to seal the App State victory.
Emory Floyd recorded his first collegiate interception after a pass deflected off a Marshall receiver’s hands.
App State sacked Marshall quarterbacks twice in the game – by Dylan Manuel and Aiden Benton. It was Benton’s team-leading fourth of the season.
OFFENSE
True freshman Jaquari Lewis rushed 33 times for a career-high 175 yards and two touchdowns. The touchdown runs of 18 and 5 yards were his fifth and sixth scores of the season. He also had five catches for 39 yards to total 214 all-purpose yards.
Lewis ran for the second-most yards by an App State freshman. Jalin Moore holds the freshman record of 244, which he set against Idaho on Nov. 14, 2015.
Lewis’ 20-yard gain on a fourth-and-1 late in the second quarter set up a touchdown on the next play to cut the Mountaineers’ deficit to five points.
David Larkins caught four passes for 27 yards, including a 19-yard touchdown catch that pulled the Mountaineers to within one score at 21-16 in the first half’s final minute.
JJ Kohl returned to the starting lineup and completed 19 of 27 passes for 134 yards and a touchdown, with no turnovers.
Sam Mbake had a career-high seven catches (for 39 yards), including a key third-down conversion during what proved to be the game-winning drive with less than five minutes remaining in the game.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Dominic De Freitas made field goals of 32 and 23 yards. His 23-yarder with 2:02 left in the fourth quarter proved to be the game winner. The true freshman has made 15 of 18 field-goal attempts, including each of his last eight. He has made all 10 attempts from inside 40 yards.
DeNigel Cooper blocked a field goal for the second time this season when he got a hand on Marshall’s 28-yard attempt early in the fourth quarter that would have given the Herd a four-point advantage.
Ian Ratliff punted six times for a 47.7-yard average, including a career-long 70-yarder that came to rest at Marshall’s 1-yard line.
