By Steve Behr

sports@wataugademocrat.com

Appalachian State head football coach Jerry Moore is good friends with James Madison coach Mickey Matthews.

They call each other on the phone every now and then. Moore said he followed James Madison’s progress to the 2004 national championship.

But friendship goes just so far. The two coaches will be on opposite sidelines when Appalachian State hosts James Madison in the first round of the 2007 playoffs, beginning at noon Saturday at Kidd Brewer Stadium.

The two teams have combined to win the last three national championships. After James Madison beat Montana in the 2004 title game, Appalachian State won the next two, beating Northern Iowa 21-16 in 2005 and Massachusetts 28-17 in 2006.

One of the teams Appalachian State beat on its way to the 2006 title was James Madison. The Mountain-eers took a 21-10 decision at Kidd Brewer in the second week of the season.

But much has changed since that day. For starters, the Dukes have traded a traditional offense for the Spread offense. The result is the Dukes are averaging 33.9 points per game.

“They’re quite a bit different,” Moore said. “They’re more along the lines to what we’ve gone to. Some call it a Spread of a gun, but they’re basically doing the same thing we’re doing.”

Then there’s the quarterback situation at Appalachian State.

Trey Elder was the starter that day, but current starter Armanti Edwards saw playing time. Edwards took over the reigns the next week against Mars Hill and did not lose a start until the Mountaineers lost to Wofford this year.

Edwards was nursing a sore shoulder during that start, and was coming off that injury in Appalachian State’s 38-35 loss to Georgia Southern three weeks later. Since that game, Appalachian State has won four straight and has rolled up big numbers, including a 79-35 win over Western Carolina.

But big offense is nothing new to the Mountaineers this season. Appalachian State averages 42.8 points per game and has never scored under 31 points this season. Moore said the Mountaineers don’t lack confidence in their offense, no matter who in on the other side of the ball.

“We’ve got a lot of confidence when we play anybody,” Moore said. “We had confidence when we played Michigan and we had confidence when Wofford beat us, so I don’t know about that. We’ve all got confidence when you work hard and prepare hard.”

It’s not like James Madison struggles when it comes to moving the ball. The Dukes stuck 55 points on William and Mary in a 55-34 shootout two weeks ago.

Quarterback Rodney Landers is a big reason why. Landers has thrown for 1,554 yards and 12 touchdowns, but that’s only the beginning. He also has rushed for 1,144 yards and 12 more touchdowns, which leads the Dukes.

“They’re similar to the way we run the ball,” Appalachian State defensive tackle Gary Tharrington said. “We stepped it up last game against Chattanooga. We’ll have to come out and stop the run like we did last week.”
“We have to stop anyone’s run,” safety Corey Lynch added. “The passing game is a little better for us, but we can be a good defense.”

Moore said the Dukes’ look has changed, but they still are physical in their running game.

“They are completely different on offense,” Moore said. “They have a receiver who is a running back for them and they’ve got a good quarterback. I don’t think their philosophy is different. They can run many of the same plays that they ran in the traditional set.”

Appalachian State can run the ball pretty well on its own. Mountaineers running back Kevin Richardson set a new career rushing yardage record last weekend with his 103-yard game against the Mocs. Richardson has 1,030 yards and 12 rushing touchdowns this year. He also has gained 4,486 yards in his college career.

Edwards continues to carry a hot hand into the playoffs. Edwards ran for 157 yards and four touchdowns against Chattanooga and has 982 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns this season despite missing four games.