Appalachian State In Top 25?

After the Mountaineers shocking upset over the Michigan Wolverines the AP decided to balk at tradition and let formerly Division 1-AA schools, now known as FCS (Football Championship Subdivision), to be included in the AP poll.

For the last 71 years of the AP poll, only teams that competed in Division 1-A were able to be ranked. However, some voters felt that if a small school like Appalachian State could compete with the big boys why should they not be included? Adam Van Brimmer, an AP poll voter, said he wanted to put Appalachian State at No. 25 after their win over the Wolverines.

Adam had covered Georgia Southern earlier in his career when they were Division 1-AA powerhouses, much like Appalachian State is now. Mister Brimmer went on to state that some of the FCS schools could compete and beat teams from the MAC and Sun Belt conferences, both of which are Division 1-A conferences.

Unfortunately for the Mountaineers this was there one and only shot to shock the world. They have no games following their win at Michigan which would propel them any higher in the AP poll should they crack the Top 25. USA Today, which also does a Top 25, said they have no intention of deviating from their rule of only considering Division 1-A teams.

East Coast Bias - September 3rd, 2007

Today's Headlines

- Appalachian State Win at The Big House

- Clay Buchholz Throws No-Hitter

- NFL Division and Playoff Predictions


On today's podcast I run down the Mountaineers stunning victory over the Michigan Wolverines followed by Boston Red Sox pitcher Clay Buchholz and his place in Red Sox history. I finally end today's show with a lengthy segment on NFL division winners and playoff predictions. Since college has started Jason and I are planning to make East Coast Bias a weekly podcast in which we record on Mondays. Look forward to another episode of ECB next week. Until then keep checking back here for all the latest news and notes from the sports universe.

Mighty Michigan Falls To I-AA Appalachian State

The #5 team in NCAA football lost this afternoon 34 to 32 to a team that isn't even a Division 1 football team. Grant it, the Appalachian State Mountaineers have won the I-AA Championship(now known as FCS) the last two years, but no one saw this coming. This is arguably the biggest upset in college football history.

The Mountaineers were down 14-7 after the first quarter but followed up with 21 points in the 2nd quarter thanks to a great effort by Appalachian St. QB Armanti Edwards. Edwards threw for 2 touchdowns and ran 1 in himself to boot. At one point during the 2nd quarter the Mountaineers were up by as much as 14 points.

Michigan finally woke up in the second half no thanks to their All-American running back Mike Hart. Hart ran for 2 scores including a thrilling 54 yard touchdown run in the 4th quarter. After that play the Mountaineers looked as if their effort to spoil Michigan's season was over.

Appalachian State however had no quit in them. After blocking the Wolverines first field goal attempt of 47 yards at the 1:47 mark the Mountaineers took the field and drove all the way to the Michigan 5 yard line. Their 24 yard field goal put them up by 2 with :30 seconds left on the clock. Michigan QB and Heisman hopeful Chad Henne connected with talent WR Mario Manningham for a 46 yard play that set up the Wolverines to win the game.

The 37 yard field goal never got more than 3 feet off the ground. The Mountaineers blocked their 2nd field goal of the day and sealed what is possibly the greatest upset in college football history. Congrats to the Mountaineers for not only taking down Big Blue, but making Penn State's Big Ten Championship dreams a better reality.