The first college football Saturday has produced some great games thus far, but North Carolina’s game against Appalachian State is a game that has stood out to college football fans as by far the craziest of the day.
App State made it clear from the start that they came to play, getting off to a 21-7 lead with some impressive play by senior quarterback Chase Brice.
When I talked to Mack Brown this week, he jokingly wondered why UNC had scheduled a game at Appalachian State (before he was hired). Now we know: UNC down 21-7 early in 2nd quarter
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) September 3, 2022
UNC battled back in a big way, scoring 31 unanswered points to jump out to a 20-point lead heading into the fourth quarter, which is when things truly got crazy.
Appalachian then came all the way back from the deficit to tie the game back up again at 49-49 late with a rushing touchdown from running back Camerun Peoples late into the fourth quarter.
ALL TIED UP 👏
UNC and App State are coming down to the wire in Boone.
📺: ESPNU pic.twitter.com/K96uqS8Gsv
— ESPN (@espn) September 3, 2022
North Carolina would then score another touchdown to put them up by a touchdown, and App State needed to pull off another touchdown drive to have a shot at victory.
Shockingly, they did just that with another touchdown pass from Brice to wide receiver Dashaun Davis to bring them within a point with an extra-point pending to potentially send the two teams to overtime.
APP STATE!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/LUc03Nb0et
— Unnecessary Roughness (@UnnecRoughness) September 3, 2022
That is when Appalachian State head coach Shawn Clark made the bold move to try and go for a two-point conversion to win the game.
Chase Brice had a wide open receiver on the play, but he overthrew him and App State did not convert on the play.
Oh no App State pic.twitter.com/M81LTAK50n
— Jeff Eisenband (@JeffEisenband) September 3, 2022
As if this game couldn’t get any wilder, Appalachian State then went for an onside kick to try and get the ball back with one last ditch effort, and North Carolina proceeded to take the kick attempt all the way to the house for a touchdown.
MADNESS 🤯
UNC returns the onside kick for a TD!
pic.twitter.com/7LfhLfNIEG— OddsChecker (@OddsCheckerUS) September 3, 2022
With one last attempt at coming back with 28 seconds left down by 8 points, Appalachian State then went on to take the kickoff back into North Carolina territory, and unbelievably was able to score yet again with nine seconds remaining in the game.
"WHAT ELSE CAN THIS GAME BRING US?!"
This UNC at App State game has been ridiculous 🤯 pic.twitter.com/aiBqjWFY8z
— ESPN (@espn) September 3, 2022
That presented the Mountaineers with an opportunity to tie up the game with another pivotal two-point conversion, but the game was finally ended despite a pretty good effort on a rushing attempt from Chase Bryce.
AFTER ALL OF THAT NORTH CAROLINA IS STILL GOING TO WIN pic.twitter.com/Yy1IxjE6Mz
— Mr Matthew CFB (@MrMatthewCFB) September 3, 2022
Despite the loss for Appalachian State, many are giving the program a ton of credit for just how many times they came back when the game seemed to be over.
Tragic ending for App State. What a game. Remember when my Mortal Lock was over 56 in a game that finished 63-61?
— Big Cat (@BarstoolBigCat) September 3, 2022
App State. Amazing. And amazingly awful by North Carolina.
— Rece Davis (@ReceDavis) September 3, 2022
App State should be awarded Iowa’s win
— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) September 3, 2022
Iowa did not score a touchdown and won.
App State scored 40 points in a quarter and lost.
The duality of man.
— David Eckert (@davideckert98) September 3, 2022
It is so good that college football has App State. They pull so much weight in the Fun Department every single year without fail
— Alex Kirshner (@alex_kirshner) September 3, 2022
While this is just the start of the college football season, it seems very unlikely that we will see a game for the rest of the season that matches just how wild this Week 1 affair truly was.
[ESPN]