Chase Brice completed 20 of 28 passes for 326 yards and three touchdowns and App State scored 31 points in a commanding second half en-route to beating the Georgia State Panthers 45-16 in Atlanta on Saturday. App State now has seven straight conference-opening wins since joining the Sun Belt in 2014.
Super senior quarterback Jacob Huesman played under center for a short time after Brice got injured and was on the sideline for a short time in the third quarter. Huesman managed the game well in Brice's absence completing 2 of 3 passes for 13 yards and a touchdown.
With Cameron Peoples sidelined due to an ankle injury suffered last Thursday against Marshall, Nate Noel would serve as the Mountaineers' primary rusher against the Panthers accounting for 74 yards off of 12 carries and a touchdown. Sophomore Anderson Castle also contributed with a career-high 54 rushing yards and a touchdown.
Through the air, it was Corey Sutton who led the way for App State with 106 receiving yards off of four catches and a touchdown. Malik Williams had 93 receiving yards off of seven catches and a score and sophomore Christian Wells had 83 yards off of two catches, one of them being an 80-yard touchdown catch.
On defense, D'Marco Jackson led App State with nine tackles, Demetrius Taylor had two sacks, and Shaun Jolly and Tim Frizzell each had an interception.
Cornelius Brown IV completed 16 of 31 passes for 171 yards and two interceptions for Georgia State. Marcus Carroll had 46 rushing yards off of nine carries and Talique Williams had one catch for 66 yards and the Panthers' only touchdown.
As was the case against the Elon Phoenix two weeks ago, App State struggled to put points on the board in the first half, as they only led 14-6 at halftime. Georgia State would score a field goal to begin the third quarter, closing the gap on the Mountaineers' lead 14-9. The very next play from scrimmage, however, Chase Brice completed a 79-yard touchdown strike to Corey Sutton putting App State up 21-9.
From there, App State never let off the gas. One more touchdown pass from Brice and a Chandler Staton field goal rounded out a 17-point third quarter, contributing to a total of 31 points in the second half. The Mountaineers improve to a 4-1 overall record while the Panthers fall to 1-4.
The Panthers travel to Malone Stadium to take on Louisiana-Monroe next Saturday, and the Mountaineers get a few extra days of rest before facing off against the Ragin Cajuns on Tuesday, October 12th.