Is NC State A Little Nervous?

NC State QB, Marcus Stone ------- App. State QB Trey Elder

This September 2nd up at Carter Finley Stadium, the Appalachian State Mountaineers will roll into town not trying to play close, but trying to WIN! And it's very possible, let me tell you why.

N.C. State....who is well coached, but at times not well coached, lost half of their starters this past year on the offensive side and defensive side of the ball. These players lost include the top three receivers and four of the five leading tacklers from last year. Of course we all know their defense will be without Marcus Mudson (85 career starts), Mario Williams (84), Oliver Motye (88), and Manny Lawson (26). At the end of the season last year, QB Marcus Stone played well and TB Andre Brown shined also but keep in mind, this years game against App. State is game 1 of the year.

After coming off a great year winning the D1-AA Championship, the Appalachian St. Mountaineers have six players who have been named NCAA Division I-AA preseason all-Americans by The Sports Network. Buck Buchanan Award candidate senior defensive end Marques Murrell, senior offensive tackle Matt Isenhour and junior safety Corey Lynch all garnered first-team honors, senior tight end Daniel Bettis was named to the second team and junior offensive guard Kerry Brown and senior safety Jeremy Wiggins collected honorable mention recognition.

Even without their star QB from last year, this years QB proved in last years postseason that he can be an excellent QB and a tremendous leader out on the field. When it comes down to it, NC State may have too many ahtletes for App. State to win. Whether the Mountaineers win or lose, I look for this to be a competitive game and I would not be surprised to see the Mountaineers pull off an upset.

If NC State is unable to make it to a bowl game, will this be Chuck Amato's last year there? Yes No	Who will win on Sept. 2nd when App. State plays at NC State? App. State NC State