How Coastal Carolina football kept its magical season going against Appalachian State
Coastal Carolina has knocked off the bully of the Sun Belt Conference, and in doing so keeps all of the grandest possibilities of its magical season alive.
The Chants, ranked 15th in the AP Top 25, scored the go-ahead touchdown with 2:24 remaining to defeat Appalachian State 34-23 Saturday at Brooks Stadium.
Coastal improved to 8-0 overall and 6-0 in the Sun Belt, and took a one-game lead in the East Division over the four-time defending Sun Belt champion Mountaineers (6-2, 4-1), who the Chants beat for the first time in seven tries.
CCU has the primary tiebreaker of head-to-head competition in hand for an inside track to a berth in the conference championship game, which could lead to a New Year’s Six Bowl invitation if Coastal can finish as the highest-ranked Group of Five conferences school in the College Football Playoff rankings.
The Chants also achieved the best start in Sun Belt history, surpassing App State’s 7-0 start last year en route to a 13-1 season.
“It is a special thing because they’ve been the king of the mountain for a long time, they’ve been the cream of the crop, and for us to beat them for the first time and have the best Sun Belt start ever and beat their record, that means a lot, and for us to get one step closer,” CCU coach Jamey Chadwell said. “. . . We’ve conquered something, but we’ve still got some stuff we’ve got to get done.”
Reese White scored a go-ahead touchdown on a somewhat uncontested 3-yard run with 2:24 to play, as App State was willing to surrender the points for the ball following a 10-play CCU drive, and cornerback D’Jordan Strong returned his second interception of the game and fifth of the season 38 yards for a touchdown with 1:20 remaining to finish of the Mountaineers.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Grayson McCall completed 12-of-21 passes for 200 yards and two scores while rushing for 69 yards and a touchdown, and tight end Isaiah Likely had three receptions for 118 yards and a score.
Three-year App State starting quarterback Zac Thomas was considered a game-time decision with an injury but played the entire game, and he was intercepted three times and sacked three times by CCU while completing 17-of-29 passes for 211 yards and a TD.
“I feel some teams still think we’re a fluke: ‘Hey, they haven’t played too many good teams,’ ” senior defensive lineman C.J. Brewer said. “Well we just played a good team and stuck to the course and came out at the end and did what we had to do.
“This is not the past years. It was a matter of coming out, staying poised, and also being mad at the time. I feel we came out in the second half and performed like we were supposed to.”
The Chants overcame two key reviews of possible fumbles on the goal line that both went against them.
One play prior to App State’s first score, linebacker Silas Kelly appeared to force a fumble by running back Camerun Peoples that was recovered by CCU, but it was ruled down on the field and the call was upheld upon review.
Early in the fourth quarter, McCall fumbled at the goal line on a 5-yard run that would have given CCU a lead, but it was ruled a fumble and upheld via replay.
“Our young men do believe in each other, I think you saw that today in just the way they played,” Chadwell said. “Our whole mantra is strike the stone, and people make fun of that thing, but that’s just when you keep getting adversity you just keep striking, you never know when you’re going to break that sucker, and our guys have bought into that and they’re a great group to be around.
“They’re fun because you know we’re never out of something. We might get beat, but they’re not going to give up, they’re going to keep fighting, and as a coach that’s rewarding.”
App State, which entered the game in the top 10 in the nation in rushing with more than 260 yards per game, rushed for 204 yards on 46 carries, but just 32 of those yards came in the second half when CCU outscored the Mountaineers 25-6. Peoples, who had 171 rushing yards in the first half, finished with 178 and a TD on 27 carries.
“It was mainly just a few guys maybe not being in their gaps here and there, but we didn’t really change too much,” Brewer said. “We told the guys, ‘Hey, this is the game plan. Let’s go out there in the second half and let’s shut these boys out.’ That was our goal. They got two field goals in the second half. . . . We were really still [mad] about the two field goals.”
Coastal trailed 17-9 at halftime after the Mountaineers drove 84 yards in nine plays and just 51 seconds and scored with 9 seconds remaining in the half when Christian Wells beat Strong down the right sideline for a 25-yard TD reception from Thomas.
The Mountaineers still led 23-21 with 7 minutes to play when safety Alex Spillum intercepted a lofted Thomas pass at the CCU 44, leading to the late go-ahead score. The scoring drive included a 15-yard Kameron Brown catch, 11-yard Reese White run on an option pitch on third-and-10, and 3-yard McCall run to the 10 third-and-2.
Strong’s clinching interception and return came three plays later on a third-and-17 following a sack by senior defensive lineman C.J. Brewer, who recorded a team and career-high 14 tackles including three for a loss of yards.
On the opening possession of the second half, McCall scored on a 62-yard run on a scramble, breaking a couple tackles near the line of scrimmage as he scrambled to his left then meandered his way through defenders to the end zone for the longest run of his short career to pull the Chants within two points. A two-point conversion attempt failed.
“I thought that was the biggest drive of our year, to be honest with you,” Chadwell said. “They built that momentum, 17-9, they looked like they were really moving the ball on us, and if we don’t go answer and they get the ball and they drive again it could have been an insurmountable lead,” Chadwell said. “I told our coaches we have to score points on this drive, and we did.”
A 62-yard reception by Malik Williams set App State up for a 36-yard Chandler Staton field goal for a 20-15 lead 4 minutes into the third quarter.
Coastal regained a lead with a 10-play, 65-yard drive that was capped by a 19-yard TD reception by C.J. Marable, who beat a linebacker who broke toward the line of scrimmage on a fake quarterback draw by McCall.
A 12-yard reception by Likely on third-and-8, 15-yard pass interference penalty and 14-yard Marable runs were key plays on the drive.
A Strong interception ended an App State drive at the CCU 36, but the Chants punted after three plays.
A 10-play App State drive ended with a tackle for loss by Brewer and Jerrod Clark that forced the Mountaineers to settle for a 45-yard Staton field goal and a 23-21 lead 3 minutes into the third quarter.
With 9 minutes to play, McCall fumbled just before reaching the goal line on a 5-yard run on a hit by Kaiden Smith and Nick Hampton recovered the ball for App State in the end zone for a touchback. The fumble ended a quick 82-yard drive that included a 48-yard run by Marable and 22-yard reception by Jaivon Heiligh.
“What a ballgame,” Chadwell said. “It wasn’t the best first half for us, especially them scoring there right at the end, but our players never wavered. We talked all week about just trusting ourselves. I thought the first half we tried to do a little bit too much, we were too jacked up, and that was my worry playing in a big game. They’ve played in a lot of them and we haven’t.”
Appalachian State took a quick lead. It won the coin toss, elected to receive the ball and drove 70 yards for a touchdown 3:20 into the game. A 50-yard Peoples run over the right side of the line set up a 1-yard Peoples TD run for the first touchdown against the Chants in more than 10 quarters.
Silas Kelly appeared to force a Peoples’ fumble inside the 1-yard line on the previous play as he reached the ball toward the goal line while being held up by Enock Makonzo, but Peoples was ruled down on the field and replay upheld the call.
Coastal answered on its first offensive play, as Grayson McCall hit Isaiah Likely over the middle despite double coverage on a deep play-action pass for a 75-yard touchdown pass, though Massimo Biscardi missed the extra point.
“We know adversity is going to hit. They’re a great team, they’re going to score some points,” Likely said. “But I looked the defense in the eye and told them, ‘I got y’all. Be ready. I’m going to score, you all are going to be back on the field and get a stop and we’re going to win this game.’ ”
On App State’s second possession, a sack by Jeffrey Gunter forced a fumble by Thomas that was recovered by receiver Christian Wells at the ASU 20 for a 10-yard loss that led to a punt. A drop by Likely on a pass that would have been a big gain led to a punt on CCU’s second possession.
A nine-play App State drive ended with a 50-yard field goal attempt by Staton that came up short and was returned from the end zone to the CCU 40 by Manny Stokes Jr., who was positioned to receive the short kick near the goal posts.
A 2-yard scramble for a first down by McCall on fourth-and-1 at midfield and 31-yard reception by Likely set up a 51-yard Biscardi field goal to give CCU a 9-7 lead early in the second quarter.
App State drove inside the CCU 15 midway through the second quarter on a 12-play drive before a sack by Brewer and Gunter following pressure by Tarron Jackson forced a Staton 44-yard field goal to give the Mountaineers a 10-9 lead.
A sack of McCall stalled a CCU possession that reached the App State 42 with just over a minute left in the first half, and the Mountaineers scored late to take an eight-point lead into halftime.
Coastal was dominated statistically in the first half. App State led in yards of offense 266-134, first downs 16-5, and time of possession 19 minutes to 11, and its 30 rushes for 172 yards exemplified how it had controlled the game. Peoples had 171 yards on 20 carries at the break.
But CCU outgained App State 235-149 in a second half that kept it on pace to achieve goals that were perhaps unimaginable before the season.
“This has been a long process, but it was really just a matter of trusting the process,” Brewer said. “That’s the main thing we’ve been talking about really since I’ve been here. It’s been a rough two or three years but we finally got over that hump and I feel everybody is coming together.”
This story was originally published November 21, 2020 at 3:49 PM.
