Most Important Saturday Yet on SoCon Gridiron

GREENVILLE,S.C.—Saturday will mark the biggest day in the Southern Conference in quite some time, as four teams look to stay alive for a SoCon playoff spot.

The biggest matchups will take place in upstate South Carolina, as three of the four teams vying for those four spots will be in action within a 40-mile radius.

The Southern Conference title will be on the line in the 'Hub City' of South Carolina, as No. 9 Wofford hosts No. 4 Georgia Southern in a game that for will likely decide the 2011 Southern Conference champion.

The Terriers will be looking to defeat the Eagles in Spartanburg for the first time since 2005, as the Eagles have won three straight on the Gibbs Stadium turf.

It will be "Black Saturday" in Spartanburg, with the Terriers taking a page out of Appalachian State's book in terms of marketing, hoping it might bring the Terriers a step closer to a fourth SoCon football crown, including their third in the past five seasons.

Wofford last posted a 21-17 win over Georgia Southern in 2005. With a win by the Eagles this afternoon, Georgia Southern would claim its first Southern Conference football crown since 2004, when the Eagles shared the regular-season crown with Furman.

With a Wofford win, it keeps both Furman and Appalachian State in the title chase. Of course, Appalachian State's pulse remains faint in search of an unprecedented seventh straight crown, while Furman hopes also remain distant of capturing the school's 13th league title and first since 2004.

Meanwhile, just up the road in Greenville, S.C., although No. 17 Furman's game with Elon won't be important in terms of deciding a Southern Conference regular-season title, it will be vitally important for the Paladins to get a victory to secure a playoff bid for the first time since 2006.

The Paladins haven't beaten the Phoenix since a 52-49 win in Greenville back in 2007 at Paladin Stadium, in a game that likely sealed Elon's playoff fate in that particular campaign.

It will be "Senior Day" at Paladin Stadium, honoring a talented class of seniors that includes the likes of defensive All-Americans Ryan Steed (CB) and Kadarron Anderson (LB), while Chris Forcier (QB), Sedderik Cunningham (WR) and Ryan Lee (OT) will be playing their final respective regular-season games in front of the Paladin Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

At stake for Elon is keeping hopes alive for a fifth straight winning season, but the Phoenix would need victories in their final two games against Furman today and next week on Senior Day at Rhodes Stadium against No. 10 Appalachian State.

Appalachian State will be looking to keep its playoff hopes alive with wins in its final two games against Old North State rivals Western Carolina and Elon over the next two weeks. With wins in those two games, the Mountaineers would make their seventh straight playoff appearance dating back to the 2007 season. A loss in either one of those games and the Apps would be squarely on the bubble of a post-season bid.

The chances are that the loss won't come this week against a Western Carolina team whom Appalachian State has simply dominated isn't too likely, as ASU holds a commanding 56-18-1 all-time series advantage against the Catamounts in the 75 previous meetings.

The two schools have met 35 times since the tradition of the "Old Mountain Jug'" trophy was awarded to the victor, with the Mountaineers holding a commanding 28-7 series edge in "Jug" games.

Senior Day in Boone will see the final regular-season act in front of the home faithful for the likes of Brian Quick, who needs just eight receiving yards to set ASU's all-time career receiving yards record, Orry Frye (OT), Matt Ruff (OG) and Travaris Cadet (RB) on offense, while Dan Wyile (NT) and DeAndre Presley (CB/WR) will be playing their final respective games on the defensive side of the ball for the Apps.

One thing is for sure—at about 7:30 this evening, we will know if four teams still remain in the hunt for a playoff hunt, while we might even have a new Southern Conference champion.