Mountaineers look at early-season problems; prepare for Troy St.

James Nix, Andy Morris - Sports Beat

The Appalachian State University football team must get its offense back on track and cut down on penalties and turnovers or Saturday's visit to Troy State University could produce a huge set back.

After a 46-26 romp against Liberty University Sept. 1, the Mountaineers struggled offensively in a loss to Wake Forest University, managing to put only 10 points on the board.

Junior quarterback Joe Burchette completed 15 out of 25 passes with two interceptions and put much of the blame on his own shoulders for ASU's dismal offensive performance against the Demon Deacons.

"I don't know if I was at that ballgame pretty much," said Burchette. "I've just got to have a better game this week."

Burchette said Appalachian plans to stick to its usual run-oriented game plan against the Trojans. "We're just looking

to spread them out, run the ball and see what happens," he said.

Junior running back Jerry Beard said the Mountaineers need to do a lot better on offense against Troy State.

"We want to have a sound offense, and we got to work better as a cohesive unit," he said. "We came out flat in the second half against Wake, and it kind of told on us a bit."

Troy State, a former NCAA Division I-AA power, made the jump to Division I-A this season and will be looking for a win after losing a pair of games to the University of Nebraska and Middle Tennessee State University in its first two games.

"They came off a big loss last week, and they'll be gunning for us, so I think we have no choice but to bounce back," said senior linebacker Justin Seaverns. The Trojans changed their offensive scheme to a more pass-oriented approach as opposed to the running game they used last season.

"I don't think they'll be much run this week, but if there is, it will be shut down next to none," Seaverns said. "As long as we get our pass coverage right, we'll win the football game."

The Mountaineers also struggled mentally against the Deacons as they were flagged for 10 penalties for 91 yards. Appalachian penalties ended two possible Mountaineer rallies against Wake Forest in the second half.

"Concentration is one of the biggest reasons for the penalties," Beard said. "Once we get down early, everyone gets kind of frustrated, so this week, we just need to try to cut down on that and stay focused."

On top of the lackluster offense and the penalties, the Mountaineers turned the ball over three times against Wake, including an interception at the Deacons' 9-yard line.

"I've got to make better reads," Burchette said. "One of those interceptions was a tipped ball, a fluke thing, and the other was just a terrible read by me. I take full responsibility for those mistakes."

The Mountaineers faced the Trojans twice last season, once in the regular season in Boone and in the playoffs in Troy, Ala.

Troy State won the first meeting 34-28 after trailing by two at halftime. The Trojans scored 20 points in the second half to hand the Mountaineers the loss.

Appalachian traveled to Troy State for the quarterfinal round of the Division I-AA playoffs in November and walked away with a 33-30 win.

The Mountaineers led 26-9 heading into the fourth quarter before the Trojans attempted a furious comeback before Appalachian was able to run out the clock in Troy State territory.