After surviving home opener, Mountaineers hit the road for conference play

Photo: App State Athletics / Jon Pearl

On the heels of a comfortable 34-11 victory over in-state FBS opponent Charlotte, the Apps returned to Boone for the 2025 home opener against Lindenwood. The Lions just transitioned from Division II to FCS in 2022 and lost their season opener to fellow FCS newcomer St. Thomas (MN), 35-13.

AJ Swann hit Dalton Stroman for a 72-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage and the Mountaineers went on to out gain the Lions 503-216. Clearly, this was a runaway victory with the reserves getting game reps throughout the second half while the starters rested up for conference play... right?

Hold onto the ball, boys

Three lost fumbles, two turnovers on downs and an interception later, the App State defense found themselves on the field in the final minutes of a 20-13 contest needing a stop to save themselves from overtime or worse yet, a humiliating defeat.

Fortunately, they were able to do so but despite all the yardage production, their offense did them few favors. For the second week in a row, a potential touchdown was lost to a goal line fumble. This time, it was Dalton Stroman who had the ball poked out for a touchback, negating what would have been his second touchdown of the first quarter.

An AJ Swann interception, his first of the season, killed the final drive of the first half right as it picked up steam with a 21-yard completion to Jaden Barnes. In the second half, the story was dropped passes throughout the receiving corps and two lost fumbles by Rashod Dubinion, ending encouraging drives of 43 and 36 yards.

Heading into conference play, the big question is whether this is the start of a concerning trend or simply an odd confluence of events that turns out to be a speed bump in the larger context of a season.

After two weeks, the Apps rank 12th nationally in total offense but 77th in scoring offense, a clear illustration of the drag that turnovers is having on production. If that continues on Saturday in Hattiesburg, the Mountaineers are far less likely to escape with a victory facing a team with championship experience throughout the roster on their home field.

On the bright side, there is some data to suggest that it will be an exception rather than an expected norm. In 278 touches prior to Saturday, Dubinion had lost one fumble in his career. Putting the ball on the ground twice in four drives is an extreme outlier and something I would expect him and the coaching staff to get cleaned up.

With the biggest test of the season coming this weekend, ball security will have to improve for the Apps to keep their perfect record intact.

Consistency in the receiving corps

Two games into the season, the Mountaineers' top two targets have clearly emerged in Dalton Stroman and Jaden Barnes. Both have over 200 receiving yards and a touchdown including some highlight-worthy explosives.

Though the production has been high-level, it has also come with some frustrating miscues. Both have had would-be touchdowns poked free at the goal line and while defenders deserve some credit for the hustle, both came down to lapses in judgement and not finishing the play.

On Saturday, both also had drops on intermediate routes that would have kept drives alive. In all, the good has far outweighed the bad but as the competition stiffens, those are the types of mistakes that can be the difference between a win and a loss.

Developing depth behind them in the wide receiver room will also be a key storyline to watch. Stroman and Barnes have combined for 25 catches, 435 yards and three touchdowns. No other Mountaineer wideout has more than three catches.

Newcomers Sam Mbake (#1 JuCo WR) and Davion Dozier (Arkansas transfer) each came in with the measurables and recruiting pedigrees that generated expectations, although both have been sidelined with injuries. True freshman Doopah Coleman was a standout in fall camp but has yet to make an impact in his young career.

Louisville transfer tight end Izayah Cummings has slotted into the offense nicely, with nine catches for 90 yards in his first two games in black and gold. He is a match-up problem with a 6-foot-4, 240-pound frame and agility that belies his size.

Between getting healthy and having young playmakers step up, the Apps will need more varied production from their receivers for the offense to take the next step.

Keep the whistles quiet

In addition to turnovers, the other shortcoming that has held the Mountaineers back in 2025 is penalties. Averaging 98 penalty yards per game, the Apps rank 132nd out of 135 FBS teams. For reference, they averaged 56.6 penalty yards per game a year ago.

While there were no targeting ejections in week two, there were several pre-snap penalties that got the offense behind the chains and holding calls that negated a Jaden Barnes punt return and a 20-yard run from Jaquari Lewis.

On the other sideline, Southern Miss is 92nd in the FBS at 60 penalty yards per game, so playing clean will have been a focal point in both meeting rooms this week.

Be it early season jitters, growing pains of integrating more than 50 new players together or a simple lack of concentration, the Apps let an overmatched opponent hang around far too long with self-imposed errors.

---

Since joining the Sun Belt, App State is 1-1 against Southern Miss. They dropped a 21-10 heart breaker on a missed PAT in their one trip to Hattiesburg back in 2013, before defeating the Golden Eagles 48-38 in Boone in 2023.

With head coach Charles Huff and all-conference quarterback Braylon Braxton among the familiar faces from the Marshall team that put up 52 points on the Mountaineers a year ago, the Apps will have to step up and improve their execution to start their conference slate off with a victory.