Appalachian St Mountaineers 2022 College Football Preview
July 17, 2022
2021 Recap
Record – 10-4
ATS – 8-6
It’s hard to call a 10-4 season a disappointment, but it kinda was. Things didn’t look great when they were plastered by Louisiana at mid-season (L 41-13) but they followed up that loss with a GUT-CHECK win over Coastal Carolina (W 30-27). The Mountaineers won their next five games, all in blowout fashion, to earn a trip to the conference title game. The Cajuns got them AGAIN and took home the Sun Belt Championship.
Appalachian St Mountaineers 2022 Outlook
OFFENSE
The Mountaineers had a balanced and effective offense LY (#30 FBS total offense, 192 YPG rush, 249 YPG pass) and put up an impressive 34.5 PPG (#22). QB Chase Brice did some damage thru the air but made too many mistakes (27-11 TD to INT). Brice loses all THREE (!) of his top WRs that combined for over 2,500 yards and 20 TD receptions LY and it’s unclear what kind of production we can expect in 2022. Thankfully, Appalachian has one of the deepest RB rooms in all of college football given the return of their top-four RBs including Nate Noel (1,126, 5.7, 4 TD) and Camerun Peoples (926, 5.6, 14 TD). The offensive line is top-notch and brings back four starters including a pair of stud tackles. Appalachian St will do a lot more of their work on the ground this year which is their preferred mode of travel. Look out.
DEFENSE
Appalachian St played their usual brand of tough defense LY and finished #1 in the Sun Belt in run defense (126 YPG) and #2 in pass efficiency D (18-15 TD to INT, 57%). There’s some retooling to be done this season as the Mountaineers return just five starters and lose a number of key contributors including #1 tackler LB D’Marco Jackson (120, 19 TFL! LY) and DL Demetrious Taylor (7 sacks, 9 QBH). Our only concern on defense heading into 2022 is a DL that returns just one starter and is void of proven talent. The good news is that Appalachian St always seems to make it work up front. They’re absolutely STACKED at LB with the return of a pair of all-conference performers and solid depth, and star CB Steven Jones (5 INT, 8 PBU) leads a decent-looking secondary. The Mountaineers have allowed 20-22 PPG in each of the last three seasons and we expect similar results this year.
SPECIAL TEAMS
YIKES. The great PHIL STEELE ranked the Mountaineers’ special teams unit at #27 LY but they lose basically everyone including star PK Chandler Staton who hit an impossible 20/21 FGs in 2021.
Schedule Analysis
Overall – Things get REAL in a hurry as the play North Carolina and Texas A&M (!) to start the season and then follow that up with a tough conference game (Troy). The middle of the schedule should be a cakewalk but they finish with three road games in November. Missing the Cajuns from the West is a plus.
Potential ATS Trouble Spot – September 10 – at Texas A&M
This appears to be a bad spot to back the road underdog as the Mountaineers will be coming off an emotional home (and season) opener vs a Power 5 team from the GREAT STATE of NORTH CAROLINA. Oh, and their Sun Belt opener is on deck.
Season Win Total
per BetOnline July 18
Over 8.5 -115
Under 8.5 -115
MEGALOCKS says:
No leanage.
This is a very-talented bunch but it won’t be easy to get to nine wins. Feels like ‘over’ for SMALL POTATOES or take a pass.
MEGAmazing Tidbits
Appalachian St has done well vs Vegas when playing in true road games as they’ve covered at an impressive rate of 59.6% (28-19-2) over the L10Y.
MEGALOCKS Outlook:
The Mountaineers have yet another squad capable of winning all the FUN BELT marbles. It won’t be easy as they need to replace a ton of THROW GAME production and work in several new pieces on defense. They also have to play Coastal Carolina AND Marshall on the road. They’re a prime contender to take down the conference but we don’t advise taking too short of a price if you dabble in the futures market. Go Mountaineers!
Want more Appalachian St football ?
WEBSITE
https://appstatesports.com/sports/football
FORUM
http://www.yosefscabin.com/forum/
NEWS
http://theappalachianonline.com/category/c13-sports/football/
http://www.espn.com/college-football/team/_/id/2026/appalachian-state-mountaineers