CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2018 App State

11–⁠2 (7–⁠1 Sun Belt Conference), coached by Scott Satterfield, then Mark Ivey (interim, bowl game).

Schedule and results

App State in 2018, game by game: lost at No. 10 Penn State 38–45; won at Charlotte 45–9; won vs. Gardner-Webb 72–7; won vs. South Alabama 52–7; won at Arkansas State 35–9; won vs. Louisiana 27–17; lost at Georgia Southern 14–34; won at Coastal Carolina 23–7; won at Texas State 38–7; won vs. Georgia State 45–17; won vs. Troy 21–10; won vs. Louisiana 30–19; won vs. Middle Tennessee 45–13+65−20Lost 38–45 at No. 10 Penn State-7No. 10 Penn StateWon 45–9 at Charlotte+36CharlotteWon 72–7 vs. Gardner-Webb+65Gardner-WebbWon 52–7 vs. South Alabama+45South AlabamaWon 35–9 at Arkansas State+26Arkansas StateWon 27–17 vs. Louisiana+10LouisianaLost 14–34 at Georgia Southern-20Georgia SouthernWon 23–7 at Coastal Carolina+16Coastal CarolinaWon 38–7 at Texas State+31Texas StateWon 45–17 vs. Georgia State+28Georgia StateWon 21–10 vs. Troy+11TroyWon 30–19 vs. Louisiana+11LouisianaWon 45–13 vs. Middle Tennessee+32Middle Tennessee
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 1at10Penn StateL 38–⁠4531%
Sep 8atCharlotteW 45–⁠974%
Sep 22vsGardner-WebbW 72–⁠793%
Sep 29vsSouth AlabamaW 52–⁠782%
Oct 9atArkansas StateW 35–⁠954%
Oct 20vsLouisianaW 27–⁠1779%
Oct 25atGeorgia SouthernL 14–⁠3463%
Nov 3atCoastal CarolinaW 23–⁠767%
Nov 10atTexas StateW 38–⁠781%
Nov 17vsGeorgia StateW 45–⁠1789%
Nov 24vsTroyW 21–⁠1060%
Dec 1vsLouisianaSun Belt Championship GameW 30–⁠1978%
Dec 15Bowls & playoffvsMiddle TennesseeNew Orleans BowlW 45–⁠1367%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Middle Tennessee 45–⁠13 in the New Orleans Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; Sun Belt Conference champions.

In program history: The 2nd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 58 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 9: 25

Sun Belt Conference champions7–⁠1 in the conference, won the Sun Belt Championship Game

Record
11–⁠2
Conference
7–⁠1 shared first in Sun Belt Conference
AP final
Unranked peak No. 25
Points
485–⁠201
Coach
Scott Satterfield, then Mark Ivey (interim, bowl game)
Elo
1697 +107 this season
SP+ rating
11.9 No. 29 of 130; offense No. 56, defense No. 20, special teams No. 30
SRS
9.8 No. 26 of 130 in FBS
Returning
31% of last season’s EPA, No. 114 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 113 roster talent No. 111 in FBS
Offensive coordinators
Frank Ponce and Shawn Clark
Defensive coordinator
Bryan Brown
Offense
Spread option
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense25th of 130
  • Defense3rd of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted46th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted4th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1842%1.3525th of 130
Defense-0.1037%1.053rd of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.14 off
-0.05 def		40% off
39% def		—46th off
4th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense4.1own 3114% allowed
Defense2.5own 2918% caused

CORE rating 11.6, 21st of 130 (offense -0.9, defense -12.5).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsZac Thomas QB2,039 yds
Passing touchdownsZac Thomas QB21 TD
Rushing yardsDarrynton Evans RB1,187 yds
Rushing touchdownsZac Thomas QB10 TD
Receiving yardsCorey Xavier Sutton WR773 yds
Receiving touchdownsCorey Xavier Sutton WR10 TD
TacklesAkeem Davis LB103 tkl
SacksJordan Fehr LB5.5 sacks
InterceptionsDesmond Franklin DB4 INT

Top recruits in the 2018 class

Braden Collins WR★★★No. 1785
Jay Person ILB★★★No. 1789
Harrison Taylor OLB★★★No. 1817
Trey Ross TE★★★No. 2030
Zareon Hayes OLB★★★No. 2153

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2018 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.804
Running backs12.00.730
Receivers42.50.801
Offensive line42.30.774
Defensive line32.30.793
Linebackers72.60.801
Defensive backs22.00.780
Athletes and specialists13.00.800
Whole class232.40.790

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 105

The 2018 roster

105 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2018 line; 66 have a stat line. See the roster

2018 Sun Belt Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
App State7–⁠111–⁠2
Troy7–⁠110–⁠3
Georgia Southern6–⁠210–⁠3
Arkansas State5–⁠38–⁠5
Louisiana5–⁠37–⁠7
UL Monroe4–⁠46–⁠6
Coastal Carolina2–⁠65–⁠7
South Alabama2–⁠63–⁠9
Texas State1–⁠73–⁠9
Georgia State1–⁠72–⁠10

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.