Paul Sherar - Chief Photographer

Jimmy Watkins (32), a senior running back from Elberon, Ga.,
attempts to break free from a tackle by Catamount Tyler Norman (31).

Paul Sherar - Chief Photographer

Junior Steve Kitchens (29) and Freshman Jonathan Lyles (15)
converge on Western Carolina’s Lamont Seward (8).

Third quarter lull provides scare for
Mountaineers after fast start

Andy Morris - Sports Beat

The Appalachian State University football team almost spoiled a dominating first-half performance Saturday against the Western Carolina University Catamounts.

Two third-quarter touchdowns by the Catamounts cut the Mountaineers’ 24-3 halftime lead to 24-17 and the 17,779 fans in attendance at Kidd Brewer Stadium suddenly had a ballgame on their hands.

“We came out good in the first half, but in the second half, we got a little down and played complacent,” said Appalachian quarterback Joe Burchette. “I guess we just didn’t feel like we needed to play hard.”

Western Carolina forced Appalachian to punt on the opening drive of the second half and answered with a touchdown on a five-play, 68-yard drive.

“In that first drive, they came out with a little more intensity,” said Mountaineer linebacker Justin Seaverns. “They had some different blocking schemes. We had some guys get out of position and they were able to pick up some momentum.

“It was more our fault than anything else.”

The Mountaineers punted again and pinned the Catamounts on their own 1-yard line.

But three big-play passes by Western quarterback Brian Gaither highlighted a 99-yard drive, capped off by a fumble recovery for a touchdown to pull WCU within seven.

However, the Mountaineers finally woke up after a 68-yard punt return by freshman DaVon Fowlkes, putting Appalachian on Western Carolina’s 18-yard line.

Two plays later, a Jimmy Watkins touchdown increased the Mountaineer lead to 31-17.

But the Catamounts refused to go down as Western’s Ahmed Green returned an interception for 73 yards to pull WCU within seven again at 31-24.

Appalachian answered with a key five-minute drive in the fourth quarter that burned any hope of a Western comeback as kicker Mark Wright kicked a 36-yard field goal to give the Mountaineers a 34-24 advantage with 31 seconds remaining.

“At the end of this ballgame, the offensive line won it for us,” said Burchette. “We needed two first-downs to keep running the clock, and they got the job done for us.”

The drive was Appalachian’s longest of the second half and was keyed by runs from Watkins and Jerry Beard.

Appalachian head coach Jerry Moore said the lopsided halftime score was deceiving to most people.

“Our people probably got a little bit comfortable around halftime, but I knew that wasn’t going to hold up,” he said. “I didn’t think they would roll over on a deal like that. It was every bit the kind of ballgame I thought it would be.”

Seaverns said the Catamounts did not take the Mountaineers seriously, and Western’s 63-0 cruise against Liberty University last weekend had them coming into the game soft.

“I thought they would come in more intense, and I thought they were a better football team than they played as today,” he said. “They came off their win thinking everything was easy because every pass they made was caught and every run they got a first down.

“When you come out the next week and you’re going three-and-out, that tends to hurt your momentum.”

Despite the win, the Mountaineers continue to struggle against the big plays. Appalachian was beaten nine times on runs or passes over 18 yards, including four passes for more than 30 yards.

“We have a problem with the deep ball and that’s something we need to overcome going into the playoffs,” said Seaverns. “When you’re as aggressive on the run as we are, our safeties and corners are coming up a little more and that stuff tends to happen every now and again.”

Paul Sherara - Chief Photographer

ASU quarterback Joe Burchette (16) pitches the football to running back Jimmy Watkins (32) Saturday.

Chris Boyce - Sports Beat

The Western Carolina University Catamounts entered Saturday’s game with Appalachian State University as perhaps the hottest team in the Southern Conference.

But the Mountaineers (7-3, 6-2 in SoCon) handled the heat, beating the Catamounts 34-24, and making a strong statement for playoff consideration.

In front of a season-high 17,779 fans, Appalachian State pounded the Catamounts (6-4, 4-3 in SoCon) with 316 yards rushing, most of which came from senior running back Jimmy Watkins.

Watkins had a career day, rushing for 194 yards on 26 carries and two touchdowns.

His biggest contribution of the game came on a 15-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter that put the Catamounts down by two touchdowns.

Leading by only a touchdown after 14 unanswered points by the Catamounts, the Mountaineers used a 68-yard punt return by DaVon Fowlkes to set Appalachian State up at the Catamount 18-yard line with 14:42 left in the game.

It was a pleasant surprise for Fowlkes who has seen one too many good returns called back because of penalties this season.

“When I got up and looked back, I saw everybody was still celebrating
so I knew it counted this time,” said Fowlkes.

After a 3-yard run by Watkins, Mountaineer quarterback Joe Burchette rolled out to his left on an option play and pitched the football to Watkins, who squeezed into the end zone to put Appalachian State up 31-17 with less than 14 minutes to play.

The Catamounts squandered their next two possessions, including a fumble recovery by Appalachian defensive back Nygel Rogers, who recovered a loose ball forced out by linebacker Wes Hunter.

After an Appalachian State punt, Catamount quarterback Brian Gaither gambled on a deep pass to Brian Rucker that was intercepted by Rogers with only nine minutes remaining in the game.

Three minutes later, from the Catamount 27-yard line, Burchette threw an errant pass on a screen to Jermane Little that was picked off by Western Carolina defensive back Ahmed Green in stride who returned it 73 yards for a score, making the score 31-24. That was as close as the Catamounts would get as a late field goal by Mark Wright capped Appalachian State’s day with a 34-24 victory.

In a game that appeared to be heading for a blowout, the Mountaineers headed into the locker room with a 24-3 lead, highlighted by touchdown runs by Watkins and Burchette and a touchdown pass from Burchette to Michael Porter.

With their season on the line, the Catamounts brought renewed intensity to the second half and caught the Mountaineers’ defense napping with back-to-back touchdowns.

The Catamounts compiled a five-play, 68-yard drive on their first possession of the second half, highlighted by a 22-yard run by tailback Fred Boateng with 12 minutes remaining in the third quarter.

After a spectacular punt by Nathan McKinney was downed by Reco Washington at the Catamount 1-yard line, Western Carolina drove the length of the field to cut Appalachian State’s lead to seven points.

The nine-play, 99-yard drive was capped by a fumble recovery in the end zone by Catamount fullback Thomas Pruett after Ryan Watson ripped the ball out of Boateng’s hands.

But Watkins’ touchdown run six-and-a-half minutes later, along with the two Western Carolina turnovers, sealed the Catamounts’ fate.
“It’s always very important,” said Hunter about forcing turnovers.

“When you’ve got two good teams playing each other, turnovers will always be the margin no matter what’s going on. Whichever team turns the ball over the most is going to lose. … But you never really know when the ball’s gonna pop out.”

After the game, Appalachian State head football coach Jerry Moore was very pleased with his team’s performance.

“We’ve won a lot of big ballgames in the last 13 years. Beating the number one team in the country and stuff like that. I’ve never been any more proud of a football team than I am today,” said Moore.

The Mountaineers’ ability to bounce back from a 14-point third quarter by the Catamounts proved huge in the outcome and could be big come playoff time.

“We came out a little bit relaxed in the second half and we had a few communication problems in the secondary which allowed them to get some deep balls, but the coaches straightened things out,” said Hunter.
“That’s what allowed us to buckle down and win the game.”

“They came out in the second half a little more intense. They hit a couple of long balls on us that gave them some momentum,” said linebacker Justin Seaverns. “We came out maybe a little over-confident in the second half because of our success in the first half and they took advantage of it.”

Seaverns added the Mountaineers would have to keep up their intensity for entire games in order for any playoff success.

“That’s what separates good teams and championship teams, teams that can stay focused and go the distance, especially on defense,” said Seaverns. “If you’re up 24-3, a lot of people tend to slack off, and we’ve had a little bit of a problem with that this season and games that should be blowouts are a little closer than we’d like them to be.

“We need to work on that going into the playoffs.”