Mountaineers add three new non-conf. opponents to 2020 football slate

Courtesy App State Athletics

App State players huddle before beating Coastal Carolina 56-37 on Sept. 28. After losing matchups scheduled against Wisconsin, Wake Forest, UMass and Morgan State in 2020, the Mountaineers have added three new non-conference opponents: Charlotte, Marshall and Campbell.

Silas Albright, Reporter
August 18, 2020

App State football announced two new matchups with former Southern Conference rival Marshall on Monday: one on Sept. 19 of this year in Huntington, WV, and another set for Sept. 8, 2029 in Boone.

“I fondly remember our games against Marshall during my playing days,” said App State head coach Shawn Clark, who started on the Mountaineers offensive line from 1994-98, in a press release. “It was an incredible rivalry then, and we are excited to renew the rivalry now.”

This year’s matchup with Marshall is App State’s third replacement for its four originally scheduled non-conference games. The other two replacement games are Sept. 12, against Charlotte, and Sept. 26, against Campbell, both of which will be in Boone.

The Mountaineers were originally scheduled to play Wisconsin, Wake Forest, Massachusetts and Morgan State in 2020 before the pandemic changed plans.

Marshall and App State played 21 times between 1977-96 while both schools were in the SoCon. App State won 14 of those 21 games during that time, but lost the most recent matchup between the two schools. The Thundering Herd won 50-17 in 2002. App State leads the overall series 14-8.

The all-time series between the Mountaineers and Charlotte doesn’t have quite as much history, since Charlotte football’s first FBS season was in 2015. App State leads the series 2-0, winning 45-9 in 2018 on the road, and winning 56-41 a season ago at Kidd Brewer.

“I would like to thank Mike Hill (Charlotte’s athletic director) and his team for working with us to get this scheduled in what is a very fluid situation for all of us,” App State Director of Athletics Doug Gillin said. “This matchup makes sense for both schools.”

Campbell is App State’s only FCS opponent scheduled in 2020 and the Mountaineers are 2-0 against the Camels all-time. The Mountaineers won 20-6 in 1931 and 66-0 in 2014.

The Sun Belt conference is allowing its members to add up to four new non-conference opponents, so there’s a chance the Mountaineers could still fill that fourth slot with another game.

But for now, App State’s season is set to kickoff Sept. 12 against Charlotte at Kidd Brewer Stadium.

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