Despite a "white out" by fans and Furman players in Greenville, South Carolina on Saturday afternoon, the golden-clad Appalachian State Mountaineers rode both the left arm and the two legs of QB Armanti Edwards to its 17th consecutive conference win, a convincing 52-27 triumph over the Furman Paladins at rainy Paladin Stadium.ASU got things going early, scoring within the first three minutes of the game when Armanti Edwards hit Ben Jorden for a 16-yard touchdown pass. The extra point put the Mountaineers on the board at 7-0.
Later in the opening quarter, the Mountaineers doubled its advantage when Edwards topped a 13 play, 86 yard scoring drive with a three-yard run, the first of four touchdown runs for the contest as the Black and Gold led 14-0 midway through the first period. Edwards ran for his second score, a four-yard scamper in the opening minutes of the second quarter. The Jason Vitaris PAT staked Appalachian to a commanding 21-0 edge.
Furman finally got on the board when Tersoo Uhaa rushed for a four-yard score. Matthew Cesari converted the extra point to cap an 8-play, 62-yard drive and cut the ASU lead to 21-7.
The Armanti Edwards rushing machine continued to roll over the Furman club, as he scored his third rushing touchdown of the half, a one-yard plunge to finish off a 71-yard scoring drive and help rebuild the ASU lead to 28-7 with 5:43 left in the first half.
Furman answered the Appalachian tally with its own score on its next drive. Furman quarterback Jordan Sorrells completed a 33-yard touchdown pass to Colin Anderson. A two-point conversion attempt failed, leaving ASU with a 28-13 bulge.
Late in the half, ASU running back Devon Moore made his presence felt with a four-yard touchdown jaunt, demoralizing the Paladin defense as Appalachian held a decisive 35-13 lead at halftime.
On its first drive of the third quarter Appalachian
picked up where it left off offensively. Edwards ran for his fourth and final touchdown of the day, a five-yard run to cap off a 68-yard drive. The extra point gave the Apps a 42-13 lead.Furman continued to play hard despite the deficit. Sorrells led the Paladins on a third scoring drive of the day, connecting with Adam Mims on a 72-yard touchdown pass. The point after brought Furman within 42-20 with 10:07 left in the third quarter.
Any thoughts of a comeback were quickly quelled by the Mountaineers. Edwards found wide receiver Coco Hillary on a 21-yard touchdown pass play to culminate a drive that elapsed only 1:03 off the third quarter clock. The PAT left ASU comfortably ahead 49-20.
Furman answered the ASU score with its final points of the contest, capping a three-minute drive with a Chris Forcier 25-yard touchdown run. Appalachian added a final field goal, a 25-yarder by Jason Vitaris, to close out the scoring in the 52-20 final score.
The Mountaineers outgained Furman 554-350 in total yards and was an impressive 10 of 15 in third down conversion attempts.
Armanti Edwards finished the game 25 of 36 passing for 355 yards and a pair of touchdown passes. Edwards also amassed 13 carries for 106 yards and four scores. In the game, Armanti became the first player in Division I football history to amass 9,000 yards passing and 4,000 yards rushing over an illustrious career.
The win improves the Mountaineers to 6-2 overall, with a 5-0 SoCon mark to tie Elon for the lead. Appalachian returns to The Rock on Saturday, November 7th to take on the Chattanooga Mocs.
