Chase Brice threw two touchdown passes and Chandler Staton kicked a game-winning field goal from 24 yards away on the last play as host Appalachian State knocked off No. 14 Coastal Carolina 30-27 on Wednesday night in Boone, N.C.
Coastal Carolina (6-1, 2-1 Sun Belt Conference) had won 18 consecutive regular-season games, yet it won’t be the East Division’s representative in the league championship game unless Appalachian State (5-2, 2-1) loses again.
Appalachian State’s only previous victory against a ranked Football Bowl Championship opponent came in 2007 at Michigan. This latest result came with a postgame storming of the field by the fans.
Brice completed 18 of 28 passes for 347 yards without an interception. Malik Williams compiled 206 receiving yards and a score on 10 catches for the Mountaineers.
Appalachian State running back Camerun Peoples, who missed the team’s past two games because of an ankle injury, ran for two touchdowns. Teammate Nate Noel racked up 82 of the Mountaineers’ 228 rushing yards.
Coastal Carolina’s Grayson McCall completed 15 of 23 passes for 291 yards and a touchdown, and Jaivon Heiligh made six receptions for 103 yards. The Chanticleers were limited to 55 rushing yards. They punted on their last three possessions.
Brice’s 28-yard pass play to Corey Sutton allowed the Mountaineers to take their first lead at 21-20 early in the third quarter.
On the next possession, a 1-yard run by Shermari Jones gave the lead back to Coastal Carolina.
It took Appalachian State just six plays to score again when Peoples burst 43 yards for a touchdown. However, the game stayed tied because a mix-up prevented the Mountaineers from getting off an extra-point kick.
Earlier, the Chanticleers led 14-0 through the first quarter. Jones ran 1 yard for a touchdown, and McCall connected with Kameron Brown on a 74-yard touchdown play.
Appalachian State responded by scoring two touchdowns in less than a two-minute span, the first coming on Peoples’ 1-yard run.
Following a successful onside kick, the Mountaineers struck three plays later on Brice’s 47-yard pass to Williams.
Coastal Carolina converted on field goals of 50 and 46 yards by Massimo Biscardi in the final 2 1/2 minutes of the first half. The second of those came on the last play of the half after an Appalachian State fumble.
–Field Level Media