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After racking up 469 rushing yards in the last meeting, Appalachiaj State opened the passing game to the tune of 291 yards as the Mountaineers dipatched Georgia State 37-3 in the Georgia Dome on Saturday.
App State, now 4-1 and 1-0 in Sun Belt play, took advantage of the Panthers, now 1-4 and 1-1 in conference play, stacking the box and went deep several times. On the other side, the Apps held the Georgia State passing offense in check, not allowing a touchdown for the third game this season.
wasted no time in taking control off the game with 17 first-quarter points. A 45-yard Zach Matics field goal was followed by a 29-yard score from Taylor Lamb to Bobo Beathard. Late in the quarter, Lamb found Levi Duffield from nine yards out to make it 17-0.
Another Matics field goal from 22 yards out made it 20-0, but the Panthers avoided the shutout with a Will Lutz 25-yard field goal right before the break, capping a 13-play, 67-yard drive.
The Mountaineers didn't waste any time after halftime with a drive ending on a 30-yard Lamb to Shaedon Meadors touchdown pass. Matics added his third field goal from 39 yards late in the quarter to make it 30-3.
The App State defense got their third touchdown in three games late in the fourth as pressure by Devan Stringer forced Nick Arbuckle's pass to go straight up. On the receiving end was Latrell Gibbs who took the interception 41 yards to the end-zone. It was Gibb's fifth interception of the season, with one coming in each of the Mountaineers' five games.
Lamb finished 18 of 24 for 291 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. On the other side, Nick Arbuckle was 21 of 37 for 166 yards and an interception. Marcus Cox's 100-yard rushing streak ended at seven games as Cox went for 76 yards on 19 carries, despite being the leading rusher for either team.
App State stays on the road next week as they travel to ULM while Georgia State dips into non-conference action as they travel to Ball State.