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by ROB JENKINS
Sports Editor
The Matchup
Western Carolina is 2-8 on the year after defeating Eastern Kentucky 24-7 last weekend.
Appalachian State is 8-2 after beating Elon last Saturday to clinch its fifth-straight Southern Conference championship.
How ASU can win
Coming off a very emotional win last week against Elon, the Mountaineers’ biggest hurdle this week will be avoiding a let down.
Frequently
after big wins, teams can come out sluggish the next game because they
spent so much energy the previous week. This is especially true when
teams have already clinched a playoff berth.
Appalachian
has two things going for them that should help them avoid the let down
Saturday: they are playing their biggest rival, and Appalachian is a
vastly better team than Western.
On
offense, the Mountaineers need to limit Armanti Edwards’ playing time;
that is if he plays at all. Edwards is listed as day-to-day after
injuring his knee at Elon.
Appalachian
should rest Edwards as much as possible on Saturday because they need a
healthy Edwards to make a run at another national title.
With
Travaris Cadet likely to take most of the snaps at quarterback,
Appalachian needs to have a game plan that eases Cadet into the game
and allows him to get comfortable.
ASU should call designed QB runs and short passes early to get Cadet’s confidence up.
Defensively,
ASU must get a lot of pressure on quarterback Zack Jaynes. Jaynes
played well last week against Eastern Kentucky, going 24-34 for 232
yards and three touchdowns.
How WCU can win
I really don’t see a way Western can win this game.
Head
coach Dennis Wagner has the Catamounts moving in the right direction,
but they aren’t capable of competing with Appalachian for four quarters
yet.
Western’s only chance of winning is if Appalachian does have a let down Saturday.
The Catamounts also must not think about the past, because the last time they came to Boone, ASU dropped 79 points on them.
The bottom line
Even if Edwards is not able to play, Appalachian should coast to a relatively easy win.
The defense and a good running game will lead the Mountaineers to another victory in the Battle for the Old Mountain Jug.
ASU 56, Western 14
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