1. This is history in the making.
Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone, N.C. has never hosted a Power 5 Conference house before, and the Hurricanes are a nationally known program. Local interest is always high for the Mountaineers, who went 11-2 last year, and won their first bowl game. Miami is a team that has won National Championships, and they are coming to us.
2. Kidd Brewer is already sold out.
The stadium’s official capacity is 24,050, but it has held as many as 31,528 and officials expect that mark to be exceeded. Tickets are reselling on Stubhub for upwards of $114 for General Admission. Long story short, thank God for free student tickets.
3. We almost beat Tennessee.
Listen, everyone always says a win is a win and all that jazz, but not here, not this time. Our loss to the Vols was not a loss at all, but a show of force for App State not seen since our win against Michigan. Chip Patterson, writer at CBS Sports, stated:
“Scott Satterfield leaves Knoxville knowing that he not only has one of the best teams in the Sun Belt, but one of the most competitive teams in the country,” said Patterson. “Tennessee’s self-inflicted wounds played a big role in this game being close, but the Mountaineers ability to execute their gameplan up front shows they can stand with anyone at the FBS level. That includes Miami, which visits Boone on Sept. 17. The Rock will be rocking, and the team earned confidence that it needs to be a winner in these games against power conference opponents.”
We came out with a vengenance and proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that our boys can hang with the best of them. We proved something that day, and that momentum is going to carry us for the rest of this season. That was just as much of a win for us as it was for them.
4. We have a good chance
Even though ESPN has put the odds in Miami’s favor, the world learned at Rocky Top not to underestimate us. They have a better chance now after showing how strong we were on the road at Tennessee. We are playing a team with a first year coach, after being let go from Georgia for his underperfoming team, in our own home. Anything can happen. Don’t count us out.
5. Tailgating is about to be lit
With how crowded this game is going to be, you know that everybody is going to show up for a pregame party, and nobody parties like a Mountaineer. Friends and family from all across the state, and even the country, are coming together to celebrate our love of Appstate football. (And I’m sure some Miami fans will show up too.)
6. The Band’s about to Rock the Rock
Our band, North Carolina’s Band of Distinction, is going to go as hard as possible in front of this massive crowd. Their show is going to bring down the house, and we’re gonna show Miami how App State rocks. Because in the end, we all know that everyone stays for halftime just to see the band anyways.
7. App’s introduction onto a larger stage and our fans are all for it.
We haven’t been this noticeable since our Michigan win, and we are going to capitalize on this attention. Our team dominated last year in its first time in the Sunbelt Conference by going nearly undefeated and winning our first bowl game, but we aren’t ones to settle. We have got the world’s attention, and now we need to show them why we earned it. Our team is driven and we won’t stop until everyone knows who we are, and respects how we play our game.
8. Our student body is HYPE.
We asked Louis Savastano, a junior at App State, why he was excited for this legendary game and he said: “I’m excited because we are the “underdog” and it’s the biggest game played at App. It’s going to be an amazing experience, and if we win we have the opportunity to push Miami out of top 25 and move down in rankings (toward number 1).”
Similarly, Abigail Hubbs, senior at App State, claimed: “As a senior this is the game that I have been waiting for. I am so excited for the Miami game because I think that it will bring wonderful memories and opportunities to the people of Boone!”
While these are only two students, the energy on campus is palpable and their sentiment is shared by almost all of us.
9. Our Recruitment/Draft Prospects will be through the Roof.
Nichole Sumpter, junior at App State and avid football fan, stated: “I’m excited for the Miami game for a lot of reasons. The main one being our drafting and recruiting prospects will go through the roof. Playing university of Miami, ranked 25th, will help put our players even more on the map. Especially since last year we were almost undefeated and won the bowl, our players have come a long way within the past three years alone. Some of these players are able to show NFL teams what they’re made of. Plus, each year that App football accomplishes something news worthy, the freshman population tends to rise. This can be seen after the Michigan Game because we were able to get our name out there to more people across the country.”
We couldn’t have said it better ourselves! This game is key for not only preserving this season, but for all the seasons to follow. We all know here at ASU that our boys are unstoppable, and this game is going to show the rest of the world that too.
10 . It’s Always a Great Day to Be a Mountaineer
‘Nuff said. GO, FIGHT, WIN, APPS.
Sources:
http://images.performgroup.com/di/library/omnisport/2c/7a/appstate-1022-…
http://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/nine-years-after-beating-…
http://www.espn.com/college-football/game?gameId=400869720
http://www.foxsports.com/college-football/story/appalachian-state-rememb…
https://tkt.xosn.com/tickets/TicketHome.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=21500&_…
http://caneswatch.blog.palmbeachpost.com/2016/08/02/appalachian-state-mi…
http://www.winsipedia.com/miami-fl/vs/appalachian-state