CONWAY, S.C — There’s an old retort that it can’t be a rivalry if one team always wins. Well, maybe Coastal Carolina versus Appalachian State isn’t as big of a rivalry as fans might think. In the beginning, the Mountaineers won the first six meetings between the schools by an average margin of 41 to 20. However, the last five matchups have witnessed a shift in the balance of power. CCU has claimed four of those contests, including a 38-24 victory on Thursday night in front of a “black out” crowd of 19,415 at Brooks Stadium in Conway.
Fueled by three App State turnovers, the Chanticleers never trailed in snapping a three-game losing streak to improve to 5-4 overall and 2-3 in Sun Belt Conference play. The Mountaineers, who failed to net a rushing yard in the second half, dropped to 4-5 on the season and 2-4 in the league.
Game Details Courtesy of Rixon Lane: CCU Media Relations: The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers roared to a 17-0 lead and held on to knock off their biggest Sun Belt East rival for the third consecutive season, beating Appalachian State 38-24 on Thursday night.
The Chanticleers snapped their longest losing streak in five seasons with the victory as Coastal ran for 203 yards and four touchdowns, highlighted by Braydon Bennett’s career-high three scores on nine carries for 88 yards. Bennett now has 23 career rushing touchdowns and is tied for fifth on the all-time Coastal rushing touchdowns list with former backfield teammate Reese White.
Quarterback Ethan Vasko ran for a touchdown and 53 yards on 13 carries while completing 14 of his 18 passes for 150 yards and another touchdown.
Clev Lubin led the defense with a career night, notching nine tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, and 3.0 sacks.
Searching for their first win in Conway since 2018, the Mountaineers worked their way back to a one-score deficit before halftime after falling behind 17-0 early in the second quarter.
However, the Chanticleer defense forced three turnovers on the night, which Coastal turned into 17 crucial points.
Coastal set the tone early with a seven-play, 68-yard drive on the opening possession that Bennett capped with a 12-yard touchdown run. Lubin ended App’s first drive with a strip sack which Naejaun Barber scooped up and returned to the Chanticleer 32-yard line. Six plays later, Bennett rumbled 37 yards to make it 14-0 CCU with 3:03 left in the first quarter.
The Chant defense forced a second consecutive turnover on the ensuing drive when Courtney Eubanks picked off the Mountaineers at the App State 49-yard line. Kade Hensley’s 29-yard field goal put Coastal up 17-0 at the 13:25 mark, but App State scored 10 points before halftime to make the score 17-10 at the intermission.
After a Mountaineer three-and-out to open the third quarter, Coastal embarked on one of the longest drives in program history. The Chants marched 87 yards on 17 plays and burned 8:42 off the clock as Bennett punched it in from two yards out.
AJ Williams notched Coastal’s third turnover of the night on the next drive, returning a pick down to the one-yard line before a Vasko keeper made the score 31-10 with 4:05 to play in the third quarter.
App State cut the score to 31-17 early in the fourth quarter, but the Chants put the game out of reach with 2:26 remaining when Jameson Tucker pulled in a six-yard touchdown pass from Vasko. The Mountaineers managed one final touchdown in the closing minutes, but Coastal recovered the onside kick to win their third straight against App State.
Coastal returns to action on Nov. 16 as the Chants visit Marshall for a 1:00 p.m. kick.