App State football traveled to Atlanta Saturday in hopes of maintaining their undefeated record against Georgia State University on the Panthers’ Homecoming weekend. The streak sat at 11-0 coming into the matchup, which the Mountaineers pushed to 12 with a 41-20 win.
Following the game, head coach Dowell Loggains still saw room for improvement. “I like the way we started in all three phases, but we need to finish the fourth quarter better than what we did,” Loggains said.
Redshirt sophomore quarterback JJ Kohl started his second straight game, while redshirt junior quarterback AJ Swann remained sidelined because of his MCL injury. Kohl made the most of his opportunity, recording 309 pass yards and 4 touchdowns, continuing the battle for the starting spot.
“JJ throws 4 touchdowns, so I was really happy with the way they played,” Loggains said.
Redshirt sophomore Davion Dozier is quickly becoming a top wide receiver in just his second game of the season. He hauled in 2 catches for 30 yards and a touchdown.
App State took the field first after winning the coin toss but was shut down in 3 plays.
On their first drive, the Panthers marched down to the 11-yard line and set up for a field goal. However, it was blocked by redshirt freshman defensive lineman DeNigel Cooper. Georgia State has now missed 6 of its last 7 field goals. This was the only notable drive for the Panthers in the first half.
App State came up with a stop, but the punt was downed at the 2-yard line, pinning them in the shadow of their own end zone. However, Kohl passed to Dozier to get a first down 10 minutes in, the Black and Gold’s first of the game.
A series of completions moved the Mountaineers into the red zone. Kohl threw a pass over the outstretched arms of two defenders to find Dozier in the back of the end zone for a touchdown to cap off the 98-yard drive.
This drive got things rolling for the Black and Gold.
“That was a crucial point in the game because we really hadn’t been moving the ball, and, you know, to get a third-and-long conversion deep in the red zone, I mean, that was huge,” Kohl said in a postgame press conference.
Following a defensive stop, the Panthers’ punt touched redshirt senior defensive back Jordan Favors and fell into the hands of Georgia State. However, the referees ruled it an App State ball off a Georgia State penalty.
After mass confusion on the Panthers’ sideline, the Mountaineers took over at their own 5-yard line.
All of the hysteria was for nothing as the Mountaineers punted following their third three-and-out of the game.
The App State offense struggled to move the ball, recording 4 three-and-outs in the first half.
The Mountaineers picked up a first down with just over six minutes left in the half, the first for either team in the second quarter. They ended this drive with a touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Jaden Barnes, extending the lead to 14-0.
The Black and Gold got the ball back with just over a minute until halftime and tacked on 3 more points with a field goal.
Despite having 4 of their 7 drives end in 3 plays, the Mountaineers held a comfortable 17-point lead at halftime.
The third quarter was a shootout and saw 5 combined touchdowns.
Out of the half, redshirt sophomore linebacker Colton Phares leapt into the air for an interception.
Freshman running back Jaquari Lewis punched the ball into the end zone with a 14-yard run, extending the Mountaineers’ lead to 24.
Following the second turnover on downs for the Panthers, Kohl threw his third passing touchdown to redshirt senior wide receiver Dalton Stroman, stretching the lead to 31.
With just under five minutes in the third quarter, Georgia State quarterback Cameran Brown scrambled into the endzone. The Panthers went for 2 but did not convert, making the score 31-6.
On the first play of the next drive, Kohl found redshirt senior tight end David Larkins for a 40-yard completion. This set up a 3-yard touchdown reception for redshirt senior tight end Izayah Cummings.
Georgia State scored its second touchdown on the following drive and converted the 2-point try, making the score 38-14 heading into the final quarter.
App State opened the fourth quarter with a missed 48-yard field goal from freshman kicker Dominic De Freitas.
After a failed fourth-down conversion, freshman quarterback Noah Gillon took over the offense with a little over 10 minutes left in the game.
De Freitas came back out and made a 46-yard attempt after the previous miss, extending the lead to 41-14.
Georgia State responded with a 22-yard touchdown pass but failed the 2-point try, shrinking the deficit to 21 points.
This would be the last score of the game, and the Black and Gold hung on, leaving the field with a 41-20 win.
The Mountaineers return to Kidd Brewer Stadium on Oct. 18 for Homecoming. They will be dancing with a familiar Sun Belt rival in Coastal Carolina. Kickoff is slated for 3:30 p.m.
