Michigan's 2007 Season Opener

[SwiperNoSwiping]

Article here

Mountaineers to Open 2007 Football Season at Michigan
by Appalachian Sports Information

February 16, 2007 - BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University will open its run at a third-straight NCAA Division I football national championship in one of the world’s most recognizable sporting venues, as it will face college football’s all-time winningest program, Michigan, on Sept. 1 at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Mich.

A season ago, Appalachian went 14-1 en route to its second-straight national title at the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS — formerly Division I-AA) level and brings the nation’s longest Division I winning streak at 14 games into 2007. Michigan opened its 2006 season with 11-consecutive victories before closing the campaign with losses to top-ranked Ohio State in the regular-season finale and Pac 10-champion Southern California in the Rose Bowl. The two schools have combined for 13 national championships, with U-M claiming Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS — formerly Division I-A) titles in 1901, ‘02, ‘03, ‘04, ‘18, ‘23, ‘32, ‘33, ‘47, ‘48 and ‘97.

The Mountaineers have six wins versus FBS teams since the advent of Division I subdivisions in 1982, the most recent being a 20-16 win at Wake Forest in 2000. In addition to the six victories, the Apps have a long list of upset bids that have fallen just short versus FBS competition. Highlights include a 24-0 loss at No. 6 LSU in 2005 (ASU trailed just 14-0 going into the fourth quarter and dropped a touchdown pass and missed a field goal on separate drives in the third period) and a 22-15 setback at Auburn in 1999 (AU scored the winning touchdown with 38 seconds remaining in the game). The contest is Michigan’s first against a Division I FCS opponent.

The game at “The Big House” (capacity 107,501) will undoubtedly be the most-attended matchup in ASU history, easily surpassing the 91,414 that witnessed the Mountaineers’ contest at LSU in ‘05. The Wolverines have played 200-straight home games in front of crowds of at least 100,000.

A portion of Appalachian’s allotment of tickets for the game will be reserved for ASU students, while the rest will only be made available to Yosef Club members. Exact purchasing priority for Yosef Club members will be announced in the future. For more information on how to join the Yosef Club, click here.

The remainder of Appalachian’s 2007 football schedule will be announced in the near future.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING ABOUT THE 2007 SEASON OPENER AT MICHIGAN
“Like everyone around the nation, we have great respect for the tradition at Michigan. They have never played an FCS team before and the fact that they are playing us speaks a lot of our program and the things that we’ve accomplished. It will be a great challenge and something that we’re looking forward to preparing for.”
- ASU head coach Jerry Moore

“Opening our season against Michigan will be a great test to see what we’re made of. I think it’s a great opportunity for Appalachian to continue to get its name out as one of the top college football programs in the country.”
- ASU senior running back Kevin Richardson

“I was kind of bummed when the opener at LSU was moved to 2009, but we’ve been rewarded with something even bigger. I think it will be an awesome game and I can’t wait to play in the biggest stadium in the nation.”
- ASU senior defensive back Corey Lynch

“Michigan is one of a few select programs that is at the top of everybody’s list when thinking about tradition, pageantry and success in college football. It’s exciting for our players, coaches, alumni, students and fans to have the opportunity to showcase our football program and University on such a grand stage.”
- ASU director of athletics Charlie Cobb

“It’s a great compliment to Appalachian State to open the season with a program like Michigan’s. It will be a memorable experience for everyone associated with ASU and the Southern Conference.”
- Southern Conference commissioner John Iamarino

APPALACHIAN STATE QUICK FACTS
Name of School: Appalachian State University
Location: Boone, N.C.
Founded: 1899
Enrollment: 14,800
Conference: Southern
Affiliation: NCAA Division I (FCS football)
Nickname: Mountaineers
Colors: Black and Gold
Football Stadium (Capacity/Surface): Kidd Brewer (16,650/FieldTurf)
Chancellor (Alma Mater): Dr. Kenneth E. Peacock (Mars Hill, 1970)
Athletics Director (Alma Mater): Charlie Cobb (North Carolina State, 1990)
Associate Athletics Director/Football: Jay Sutton (Appalachian, 1997)
Ticket Office Phone: (828) 262-2079

FOOTBALL PROGRAM FACTS
Head Coach (Alma Mater): Jerry Moore (Baylor, 1961)
Moore's Record at Appalachian/Seasons: 154-68 (.694)/18
Moore's Career Record/Seasons: 181-116-2 (.609)/25
Moore's AFCA National Coach of the Year Awards: Two - 2005, ‘06
Moore's AFCA Regional Coach of the Year Awards: Four - 1994, ‘95, 2005, ‘06
Moore's Southern Conference Coach of the Year Awards: Five - 1991, ‘94, ‘95, 2005, ‘06
2006 Record: 14-1
2006 Southern Conference Record/Finish: 7-0/1st
Final 2006 National Ranking: No. 1 (Unanimous)
Postseason: NCAA Division I National Champions (def. Massachusetts, 28-17, in Division I championship game)
Basic Offense: Multiple One-Back
Basic Defense: 4-3
Offensive Starters Returning/Lost in ‘07: 7/4
Defensive Starters Returning/Lost ‘07: 6/5
Specialists Returning/Lost in ‘07: 4/0
Top ‘07 Returnees:
RB Kevin Richardson (5-9, 190, Sr.): Walter Payton Award candidate (given to top player in Division I FCS) ... two-time all-American (2005, ‘06) ... Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Year ... rushed for ASU record 1,676 yards and FCS-record 30 touchdowns in 2006 ... rushed for 179 yards and scored all four ASU touchdowns in 2006 national championship game ... 2006 Division I Championship playoffs MVP.
DB Corey Lynch (6-0, 205, Sr.): Buck Buchanan Award candidate (given to top defensive player in Division I FCS) ... two-time all-American (2005, ‘06) ... has 24 takeaways in 42 career games ... recorded interceptions in each of the final three 2006 postseason games, including one that sealed victory in final minute of national championship game.
QB Armanti Edwards (6-0, 165, So.): 2006 Southern Conference and National Freshman of the Year ... all-American ... made 13 starts as a freshman and passed for 2,251 yards and rushed for 1,153 more, becoming just the fifth player overall and second freshman in Division I history to pass for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in a season (Morehead State’s David Dinkins, Clemson’s Woodrow Dantzler, Missouri’s Brad Smith and Texas’s Vince Young the others).
OG Kerry Brown (6-6, 300, Sr.): 2006 Jacobs Blocking Trophy winner (given to Southern Conference’s top offensive lineman) ... all-American ... helped pave way for ASU to set school records for single-season rushing yards (3,619), points (528), touchdowns (71) and first downs (319) in ‘06.

FOOTBALL HISTORY FACTS
First Year of Football: 1928
All-Time Record: 503-294-28 (.627)/77 seasons
Southern Conference Record: 160-76-5 (.674)/35 seasons
Southern Conference Championships: Seven: 1986, ‘87, ‘91, ‘95, ‘99, 2005, ‘06
Division I Championship Playoff Appearances: 14 - 1986, ‘87, ‘89, ‘91, ‘92, ‘94, ‘95, ‘98, ‘99, 2000, ‘01, ‘02, ‘05, ‘06 (16-12 record)
NCAA Division I National Championships: Two - 2005, ‘06
Bowl Games: Nine - 1937, ‘38, ‘48, ‘49, ‘50 (2), ‘54 (2), ‘55 (3-6 record)
All-Americans: 64
Academic All-Americans: Six

NOTING ASU
• Appalachian is the only school in North Carolina history to win an NCAA football championship.

• In a region that includes six Bowl Championship Series-conference programs, Appalachian was named the “Carolinas’ Best” football program in an objective study by the Charlotte Observer in 2005 (before ASU won its first NCAA Division I national title).

• Appalachian has future games scheduled versus FBS opponents LSU (2009 — previously scheduled for 2007), Florida (2010), Virginia Tech (2011) and Georgia (2013 — previously scheduled for 2009).

[A Fleshner Fantasy]

I am not happy with this game- not much good can come out of a win, but a lot of bad can come out of a loss.

[sportsaddict]

I love this. Let's see if ASU can play with the big boys

I hope they make it a good game. They won't have the talent to compete but I think it will be cool to see the best of Division I-AA go against the best of Division I. Props to Michigan for actually manning up and playing them

[Sandrock]

Don't count the underdog out. Michigan better not look past this game. It could turn out really ugly for them.

[Felix the Cat]

Don't count the underdog out. Michigan better not look past this game. It could turn out really ugly for them.

That's crazy talk.

They said the same thing about Florida's game against UCF last season, and look what happened.

[Gunslinger]

I am not happy with this game- not much good can come out of a win, but a lot of bad can come out of a loss.

No kidding, that's a very dangerous game for Michigan. They should win with ease and probably will, but still, so what? If they win, who cares? If they lose, it's the loss that everyone talks about all season.

[PACKman1144]

I'll tell you what. Those Mountianeers can play ball. They are better than the worst 1-A teams for sure. But I see now way that they can hang with Michigan.

[eman]

This is a really stupid decision by UM, but it should be a fun game to watch.

[Free Bagel]

I can't see how this game is going to be any problem for Michigan, they'll handle it easily.

This is no different than playing those traditionally decent D1 schools as openers (teams like Southern Miss, Marshall, etc) where you get nothing for a win but lose a ton for a loss, and those teams are probably better..

[eman]

I can't see how this game is going to be any problem for Michigan, they'll handle it easily.

This is no different than playing those traditionally decent D1 schools as openers (teams like Southern Miss, Marshall, etc) where you get nothing for a win but lose a ton for a loss, and those teams are probably better..

Yes, but a loss to ASU would be a lot worse just because they're a lower division....rather than saying UM lost to a poor team, people could say UM lost to a D-1 AA team, which basically puts UM out of the running for a NC right then and there. I do expect them to win easily though.