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Start time: Sept 17, Noon EST
Location: Kidd Brewer Stadium, Boone, NC
TV/Streaming: ESPN!
Radio: Here.
Live Stats: Here.
Betting Line: Miami -3.5, O/U 51.5
Series Record: This is the first meeting between the schools
Appalachian State
aka: Appy State
A household name since beating Michigan that time, it can be argued that Michigan never recovered. The Mountaineers nearly did the same thing again in Week One against Tennessee, despite some late-game coaching mistakes they likely will not make again. App State obliterated C-USA’s Old Dominion the next week, 31-7.
Jaquil Capel comes into the game as the best receiver on either team, with seven receptions on the season for 85 yards. QB Taylor Lamb is also pretty good, throwing for nearly 300 yards so far in this young season, going into what will arguably be his toughest test yet this week.
If a case were to be made for the first ranked Sun Belt team since the conference added football in 2001, this is the squad. They played a ranked team toe-to-toe in Week One, and took care of business the week after as they roll through the season like the cool kid in class. Not a care in the world. Nothing to prove.
But they’ll give Miami a run for all four quarters anyway.
Miami Hurricanes
aka: Da U
This is a ground-based attack under Mark Richt; we’re only two games in and their rushers have already racked up 652 yards combined. With numbers like that, you don’t need to put the ball into the air too often, but Brad Kaaya does anyway, throwing for 326 yards so far this season, with four TD’s and two picks.
On defense, Miami allowed only a field goal against Florida A&M in Week One, and only ten against FAU the following week. This game may even come down to App State’s defense, assuming there’s no clear winner by the end of the second quarter. With Appalachian State, you never know.
No one wants to play Appalachian State. Today, Miami gets to be no one.
The Verdict
FAU isn’t terrible this year, and Miami still managed to ring up 38 on ‘em. We’re in Week Three now so the chances of Miami underestimating the Mountaineers are pretty low, but then again the skill level of App State is pretty high.
Final Score: Miami 27, App State 24