Bucs battle but fall in season opener at Appalachian State - East Tennessee State University (2024)

BOONE, N.C. (Aug. 31, 2024)– The ETSU football team was within one score of FBS foe Appalachian State, 17-10, past the midway point of the third quarter in its 2024 season opener. However, the Mountaineers reeled off 21 unanswered points to pull away late from the Bucs winning Saturday's clash of former SoCon rivals, 38-10.

The Buccaneer offense totaled 306 yards on the afternoon. Running back Devontae Houston had an impressive debut for the Blue and Gold running for 127 yards on 15 carries and a touchdown. Defensively, Cam Sims led the charge with a team-high eight tackles and two pass breakups.

SCORING PLAYS

How it Happened – Appalachian State jumped out to an early lead on ETSU in Saturday's contest. The Mountaineers, who won the coin toss but deferred to the second half, scored points to cap each of their first three drives. An 83-yard touchdown pass from Joey Aguilar to Christan Horn got the scoring started. Michael Hughes made App State's lead 10 points with his first field goal of the 2024 campaign with a little over four minutes to go in the opening stanza. Another touchdown by App State from Aguilar put ETSU in a 17-0 hold with 7:38 to go before halftime.

However, the Buccaneer defense made some adjustments and played well over the next few drives. ETSU held the Mountaineers off the scoreboard in its next four possessions (75 yards on 24 plays) allowing its offense an opportunity to swing the momentum back to the Blue & Gold side.

The Bucs received a jolt of momentum from Houston shortly before halftime. Houston, who played in 23 games at UCONN before transferring to ETSU, ripped off the longest run of his collegiate career (80 yards) to get the Bucs on the board and trim the App State lead back to 10 points, 17-7, heading into halftime.

As the second half began, the Buccaneers closed the gap even further with a 25-yard field goal by Ewan Johnson with 5:49 to go in the third quarter.

With the Bucs back within one score, the Mountaineer offense found its rhythm again. App State scored touchdowns on three straight drives to push their lead to 38-10, which turned out to be the final score.

Other Notables on the Bucs
· Houston's 80-yard touchdown run before halftime was not only the longest of his career but also the longest by a Bucs since the program brought back football in 2015 passing the previous best mark held by former Buc Quay Holmes in 2019 vs. Mercer. Furthermore, his 127 yards were just eight yards shy of his career-high (135 vs. FIU)
· In his first start with the Blue & Gold, Jaylen King completed 10 of 19 passes for 122 yards.
· Playing his first game since 2022, Cameron Lewis was ETSU's leading receiver on Saturday with three catches for 47 yards.
· App State has now won eight straight games against the Bucs. With Saturday's loss, ETSU moves to 44-43-3 all-time in season openers.
· The Mountaineers did most of their damage offensively on their scoring drives. 414 of 500 yards on the day came on their six scoring drives.
· Overall, 29 players made their Buccaneer debuts on Saturday.

Next Up – The Buccaneers will be back in action next Saturday when they welcome UVA Wise to Johnson City for their home opener. Kickoff for that game is set for 5:30 p.m. from Bank of Tennessee Field at William B. Greene Jr. Stadium.

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