Appalachian State Drubs Anemic Georgia Southern, 27-3

Much like Georgia Southern’s first half last week against BYU, the Eagles were within striking distance and the defense was playing well after the first two quarters against rival Appalachian State on the road.

Then Southern came out of the halftime break and the wheels fell off. Again.

When it was all said and done, the Mountaineers cruised to an easy 27-3 win over Georgia Southern, as the Eagles looked like a team ready for their season to be over with. Not once did it feel like GS threatened to do anything against App on the offensive side of the football in this one.

Chase Brice turned in a solid performance, throwing for 234 yards and a pair of scores to pass catchers Malik Williams and Thomas Hennigan in the cakewalk victory. The first half was tight as neither team could find their footing offensively, and App took just a 7-0 lead into the break.

After half, it was all Mountaineers, as Brice’s second touchdown pass coupled with a kick return score by Jalen Virgil and two field goals by kicker Chandler Staton allowed App to outscore their rivals 20-3 in the second half alone.

Freshman Connor Cigelske once again drew the start for the Eagles and predictably struggled against App’s strong defense. Cigelske was also done no favors by either offensive coordinator Doug Ruse or the Southern offensive line, both recurring themes for whoever has taken quarterback snaps this year.

Photo by Corey Perrine/Getty Images

Georgia Southern managed just 194 total yards of offense in what was pretty much an embarrassment from a coaching perspective.

At long last, we have drawn to the end of one of the most pitiful seasons in Eagles program history, ending the year with a record of 3-9 and just 2-6 in conference play. Hopefully none of these coaches currently on staff are retained for the sake of the program moving forward, and Clay Helton has a heck of a rebuilding process ahead of him.

On the Appalachian State side of things, the Mountaineers have an opportunity to win their third Sun Belt title since entering the conference in 2014, but have a tall task ahead of them against a talented Louisiana squad.