BOONE — Appalachian State closed with 17 straight points to pull away for a 44-10 defeat of visiting Elon on Saturday in its football home opener at sold-out Kidd Brewer Stadium.
Camerun Peoples and Anderson Castle scored on touchdown runs for the Mountaineers during the game’s final 11 minutes, after McKinley Witherspoon’s 2-yard touchdown moved Elon within 27-10 late in the third quarter.
Appalachian State quarterback Chase Brice finished 19 of 25 passing for 293 yards and hit Malik Williams on a 47-yard touchdown strike in the first quarter to get the scoring started, in front of the capacity crowd of 30,224.
Elon was within 13-3 at halftime, before Brice added a 1-yard touchdown run to put the Mountaineers ahead 20-3 in the third quarter. Appalachian State converted a fourth-and-4 from the Elon 8-yard line to extend that drive. Brice connected on his first eight passes before throwing an incompletion.
Corey Sutton hauled in seven catches for 128 yards and Williams had four catches for 123 yards. Peoples and Nate Noel combined for 153 rushing yards. Appalachian State’s D’Marco Jackson sacked Elon quarterback Davis Cheek three times and collected 13 tackles. Chandler Staton made field goals of 44, 45 and 28 yards for the Mountaineers (2-1).
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Cheek went 22 of 36 passing for 225 yards. Jackson Parham (five catches for 83 yards) and Kortez Weeks (four catches for 35 yards) were among his top targets.
Elon (1-2) had a promising drive derailed in the third quarter, when Cheek’s pass intended for Bryson Daughtry in the end zone was picked off Appalachian State’s T.D. Roof. He returned the interception 90 yards to set up the first of Peoples’ two touchdown runs, and the Mountaineers led 27-3.
“Every game comes down to five or six plays,” Cheek said. “If we change some things, if I make a throw here or make a block there, then the game is completely different. I feel like we were hanging around with them. We were driving the ball well and for me it really comes down to that pick.”
Roof was trailing Daughtry when Cheek’s throw bounced off the Elon receiver’s hands in the end zone.
“Every blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while,” Roof said. “Just kind of right spot, right time. I obviously got hawked (chased down) and was pretty gassed.”
Elon linebackers Devonte Chandler and Jamir Malone recorded eight tackles apiece. Marcus Hillman had a sack and forced two fumbles, the latter providing Elon with a short field that ended in Witherspoon’s touchdown.
“We knew coming into the game that we always want to get takeaways as a defense,” Hillman said. “We just do whatever we can to get the ball back to our offense and we’re always taught, when we go to sack the quarterback, to try to get the ball and come over top. So I just did what I was coached to do.”
Elon remained winless against Appalachian State since 1964. The teams were part of the Southern Conference and league foes from 2003-13, before the Mountaineers moved up from the Football Championship Subdivision to compete on the bowl level.
The Phoenix plays host to William & Mary next weekend in the Colonial Athletic Association league opener for both teams.
“I expect us to build off our performance from the first half,” Elon coach Tony Trisciani said. “We’re going to prepare for next week the same way we prepared for the last three weeks. We’re not going to change anything we do from a preparation standpoint. I do expect us to grow as a football team.”
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This article originally appeared on Times-News: App State football pulls away from Elon with finishing burst in sold-out home opener
