The Mountaineer football team reloaded its roster with new talent to kick off the coach Dowell Loggains era. After developing LaNorris Sellers at the University of South Carolina, Loggains now turns his attention to redshirt junior quarterback AJ Swann and redshirt sophomore quarterback JJ Kohl. 

Before joining App State, Swann was a four-star quarterback coming out of Cherokee High School in Canton, Georgia. 

His junior year of high school was cut short due to COVID-19 pandemic. Despite this, he was ranked as the No. 22 quarterback in his class by 247 Sports. 

Playing during the pandemic presented a unique set of challenges, with many players deciding to reclass to make up for their missed time. 

“It was hard seeing a bunch of kids around me reclass,” Swann said. “I definitely wanted to. I definitely thought about it, but I felt like I should stick to myself and you know just prepare to the best of my ability.” 

He credits this time in high school for helping him prepare for the next level. Swann played many opponents he now plays in college. 

“Just playing them in high school, finding out their tendencies, definitely gives you a little bit of an advantage,” Swann said. 

He said he committed to Vanderbilt University in December of 2021 due to the prestige of the Southeastern Conference and the belief he could see playing time early in his career.

He threw for over 1,000 yards in both seasons at Vanderbilt, and recorded 22 touchdown passes. 

After two years with the Commodores, Swann transferred to Louisiana State University for his junior year. 

He backed up LSU quarterback Garret Nussmeier during the 2024 season, seeing action in two games. Swann ultimately decided to transfer to App State as a redshirt junior for the 2025 season. 

Even though he is no longer a Tiger, Swann said he still loved his time at LSU and formed lifelong friendships in Baton Rouge. 

Another highly ranked transfer quarterback, Kohl was a four-star prospect for Ankeny High School in Iowa. According to App State Athletics, he was ranked as top-10 quarterback by ESPN coming out of high school. 

Kohl said, during his high school career, many coaches questioned the 6-foot-7-inch  quarterback’s speed and elusiveness. 

“It was kind of my mission in high school to work on speed and athletic movements to prove people wrong,” Kohl said.

He ultimately decided to stay close to home and committed to Iowa State University, where his father was the kicker from 1995-1998.

Kohl played in four games as a Cyclone during his redshirt freshman season. 

He said he took a leap and chose the Mountaineers without a lot of knowledge of the team or the area. 

“I didn’t know a lot about App State before getting here,” Kohl said. “Now that I’ve been here and just understand the history, I’ve grown to appreciate it.”

Kohl said he didn’t even realize how much it snowed in the mountains until he moved in during a snowstorm, which he said helped make Boone feel like home. 

Both players said a big reason for their commitment was the App State staff and the relationships they formed with Loggains. 

“Seeing the staff they put together, it just made sense and all the resources that are around here just all added up for me,” Kohl said. 

Swann formed a relationship with Loggains the first time he entered the portal after his sophomore season. This made the decision easier when Loggains reached out a second time. 

Kohl and Swann understand that many people believe conferences like the SEC and Big 12 are superior to a conference like the Sun Belt, but they disagree. 

“LSU has a huge winning tradition and I think it’s the same thing here at App, winning tradition, fans that care, students that care and players that care,” Swann said. 

Kohl had a similar idea when it came to the conference.

“I think at the end of the day, there’s still really good competition here. It’s still football,” he said. 

The two have grown close over the months they have known each other. Both players believe that the quarterback room is a tight knit group that pushes each other to get better every day and grow as people. 

“It’s cool to see all of us grow in different ways over the course of only seven months,” Kohl said.

During the offseason, they said they were thrown off by the elevation of the mountains, which made it harder to breathe during workouts. However, they pushed through and are excited to see how it helps with the home field advantage. 

Now that the season is beginning, they are transforming their mindsets. Kohl said his biggest goal is to focus on getting better every day.

“I’m really excited to get on the field in a new place, new guys, and then just kind of prove everybody wrong,” Swann said.