Having passed its first league test against Bulldogs of a different sort, Appalachian State travels to the Port City of Charleston, S.C., to battle the SoCon’s lone service academy, when the Mountaineers face The Citadel on Saturday afternoon.
The Mountaineers have had tremendous run of success against the Bulldogs over the past couple of decades, which includes winning 14 of the last 15 tilts with the Bulldogs. The only loss during that 15-year period came back in 2003, when the Mountaineers were 24-21 losers to the Cadets, accounting for only one of two league games the Apps would drop during that particular campaign.
Appalachian State and The Citadel will be squaring off for the 38th time when the two meet on Saturday, with the Black and Gold holding a commanding 26-11 all-time series edge.
After beginning the season with a 40-6 loss to 20th-ranked North Carolina, the Bulldogs have rebounded to win two contests, getting consecutive victories over Princeton (38-7) and Presbyterian (46-21). In the preseason polls voted on by the league’s media and coaches, the Bulldogs were selected to finish sixth by the coaches and seventh by the media.
The Bulldogs have 13 starters back from a team that finished 4-8 last season. Leading that Citadel attack on the offensive side of the football is junior signal-caller Bart Blanchard. Last season was Blanchard’s first full season as the starting quarterback for the Bulldogs, but actually took over the role late in the 2007 season, when starting quarterback Duran Lawson actually went down with a season-ending injury in a loss at Georgia Southern.
His first start in the ‘07 season came against eventual national champion Appalachian State. Blanchard finished the ‘08 season by connecting on 20-of-345 passes for 2,436 yards, 19 TDs and 11 INTs. In last season’s 47-21 loss in Boone, Blanchard connected on 17-of-41 passes for 172 yards, with a TD and an interception. So far this season, Blanchard has connected on 57-of-93 passes for 574 yards, with seven TD passes and five INTs. Blanchard is coming off an impressive performance in The Citadel’s 46-21 win over Presbyterian last Saturday, Blanchard was impressive, completing 20-of-30 passes for 263 yards, tying a school-record with six TD passes and threw a couple of INTs. For his efforts, Blanchard was named SoCon Offensive Player of the Week.
Blanchard has one of the top receivers in the nation to throw the ball to, in Walter Payton Award candidate Andre Roberts. Roberts finally got untracked in the ‘09 season in Saturday night’s win over Presbyterian, as he caught 12 passes for 184 yards and was on the other end of four of those six TD passes from Blanchard. His four TD receptions also accounted for a school-record for most TD receptions in a game for a Bulldog player. He increased his career receiving yards to 3,221 improving him to third all-time in the Southern Conference, while his 233 catches improved him to second all-time in the SoCon.
The talented senior wide receiver is also one of the nation’s most-talented punt return men, as evidenced by his 50-yard punt return for a score in The Citadel’s loss to Appalachian State last fall. In the 47-21 loss to the Mountaineers last season, Roberts caught six passes for 52 yards. Appalachian managed to do one of the best jobs in limiting Roberts’ success in the passing game last season.
So far this season, Roberts is the league’s second-leading receiver, having caught 25 passes for 270 yards and four TDs, including averaging 10.8 yards-per-reception in three outings this season. As a punt return threat this season, Roberts has three returns for 66 yards on the campaign.
Joining Roberts as a legitimate receiving option for the Bulldogs entering Saturday’s showdown with Appalachian State is sophomore speedster Kevin Hardy. The 6-0, 184-pound native of Ocala, FL., also excels as a member of The Citadel’s track team. Hardy is a player that saw very limited action as a freshman wide receiver last fall. On the season, Hardy has five receptions for 49 yards, averaging 9.8 YPR.
The Bulldogs second-leading pass-catcher and the team’s most-reliable possession receiver is junior Scott Harward. Harward, a 5-10, 190-pound native of Spartanburg, S.C., is seeing his first action in the Bulldogs’ starting wide receiver rotation this season, after catching only one pass for four yards as a reserve wide receiver last season. This season, Harward, despite the lack of previous playing time, has proven to be a reliable receiving option, having caught 15 passes for 166 yards, averaging 11.1 YPR.
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