2019 Sun Belt Football News and Notes:
Championship Central | Standings | Composite Schedule | Stats | Media Guide
Game Notes: Sun Belt | Appalachian State | Louisiana
Live Links: Game Broadcast on ESPN | Postgame Presentation on ESPN3

AROUND #SUNBELTFB
• The Sun Belt Conference Football Championship Game takes center stage as East Division champion Appalachian State hosts West Division champion Louisiana in the first-ever conference matchup of teams with 10 or more wins. Kickoff on Saturday, Dec. 7 is Noon ET/11 a.m. CT on ESPN, immediately following ESPN College GameDay, with Clay Matvick (play-by-play), Ryan Leaf (analyst) and Quint Kessenich (sidelines) set to call the action from Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone, N.C.

• Appalachian State is in the midst of a historic season, becoming the first Sun Belt program to earn a College Football Playoff Top 25 in-season ranking (21st in the Dec. 3 release) and also be ranked in both national polls (20th in both the Associated Press Top 25 and Amway Coaches powered by USA Today Sports Top 25 polls in the Nov. 30 release) at the same time. This week's CFP ranking is an all-time high in school and conference history and national poll rankings tie the school's and conference's all-time high with the Mountaineers' poll placements from earlier this season on Oct. 27. Appalachian State is ranked in the CFP rankings for the fourth-straight week (25th on Nov. 12, 24th on Nov. 19, 25th on Nov. 26 and 21st on Dec. 4). The Mountaineers are ranked in national polls for the seventh week this season –  Oct. 13 (24th in the AP and Coaches), Oct. 20 (21st in the AP and 22nd in the Coaches), Oct. 27 (20th in the AP and Coaches), Nov. 10 (24th in the Coaches), Nov. 17 (23rd in the AP and 22nd in the Coaches), Nov. 24 (22nd in n the AP and Coaches) and Dec. 1 (20th in the AP and Coaches). The Mountaineers have received votes in 18 straight weeks of the AP Top 25 dating back to last year.

• Louisiana received points in the Coaches Poll for the fourth-straight week. The Ragin' Cajuns also received one point in the Nov. 24 AP poll. Louisiana has achieved a 10-win season and seven conference wins for the first time in school history. The Ragin' Cajuns are one of only four FBS teams in the top 15 in scoring offense (12th, 38.8) and scoring defense (11th, 17.8), joining Ohio State, Clemson and Baylor.

• The Sun Belt boasts five bowl-eligible teams in Appalachian State (11-1, 7-1 Sun Belt), Louisiana (10-2, 7-1), Arkansas State (7-5, 5-3), Georgia Southern (7-5, 5-3) and Georgia State (7-5, 4-4). The Red Wolves are bowl eligible for the ninth-straight season while the Mountaineers are bowl eligible for the fifth-straight season. The Eagles and Ragin' Cajuns are bowl eligible for the second-straight season and the Panthers are bowl eligible for the third time in five seasons.

• Arkansas State has posted its ninth-straight winning seasons and is bowl eligible for the 12th time in the last 15 seasons. The Red Wolves' nine-straight, bowl-eligible seasons is the 15th-longest streak in the FBS.

• Georgia Southern has won 19 straight games when leading at halftime, a streak that began on Nov. 18, 2017, and 17 of its last 19 games when winning the rushing battle.

• Georgia State has posted seven regular-season wins for the first time in the program's 10-year history and put up a program-best 5-1 record at Georgia State Stadium.

• The Sun Belt has recorded four wins against Autonomy Five conference opponents in the same season for the first time in conference history. Appalachian State is the first team in conference history to achieve two wins against Autonomy Five conference schools in the same season – 34-31 at North Carolina on Sept. 21 and 20-15 at South Carolina on Nov. 9.

• Appalachian State's win at South Carolina marked the conference’s 12th win over an Autonomy Five opponent in the last 10 seasons (2011-19). Ten of the league’s 12 Autonomy Five wins during that span have been on the road. The Mountaineers are the first team since 1999 to win on the road against an Atlantic Coast Conference and Southeastern Conference team in the same season.

• The Sun Belt built on its non-conference success from a year ago with 22 regular-season wins and the third-best winning percentage among the Group of Five conferences.

1. American - 33-14 (.702)
2. Mountain West - 29-18 (.617)
3. Sun Belt - 22-18 (.550)
4. Conference USA - 24-32 (.429)
5. Mid-American - 18-30 (.375)

• Appalachian State led the way in All-Sun Belt selections with 21, including six on the first team (three on offense, three on defense), and Arkansas State redshirt senior Omar Bayless as Sun Belt Player of the Year and first-team All-Sun Belt headlined the league's postseason honors.

2019 SUN BELT FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME NOTES
• The inaugural Sun Belt Football Championship Game saw Appalachian State defeat Louisiana 30-19 at Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone, N.C. The host Mountaineers were led by running back Darrynton Evans, who surpassed 1,000 rushing yards on the season during a belt-hoisting, Most Valuable Player-winning performance – 218 all-purpose yards that included 111 rushing yards and a 97-yard kickoff return.

• The 2018 game was one of the highest-rated Sun Belt football games in conference history and was the 15th-highest rated cable program on Dec. 1, 2018 in the United States.

• The 2018 game kicked off at 12:03 p.m. ET and ended at 3:07 p.m. ET. Louisiana won the coin toss and elected to receive. Appalachian opened the game defending the north end zone. The opening kickoff was a touchback. 

Notable firsts in the game:
- The first score came at the 10:13 mark in the first quarter (12:13 p.m. ET) when Louisiana senior placekicker Kyle Pfau connected on a 37-yard field goal. The scoring drive was nine plays, 55 yards and lasted 4:47.

- The first offensive touchdown came at the 9:56 mark in the first quarter (12:15 p.m. ET) when Appalachian State sophomore running back Marcus Williams Jr. scored on a one-yard run. The scoring drive was just that one play and took only four seconds. The touchdown set up by the 97-yard kickoff return by sophomore running back Darrynton Evans.

- Appalachian State junior defensive back Josh Thomas recorded the first interception at the 1:42 mark in the second quarter (1:17 p.m. ET).

• The Sun Belt Conference is the final of the 10 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision conferences and the 12th NCAA Division I football-playing conference (FBS or Football Championship Subdivision) to stage a football championship game. The Sun Belt was the first FBS conference to hold an inaugural football championship game since the American Athletic Conference conducted its first title game in 2015.

Southeastern – 1992 to present
Western Athletic – 1996-98
Big 12 – 1996-2010, 2017 to present
Mid-American – 1997 to present
Southwestern Athletic (FCS) – 1999 to present
Atlantic Coast – 2005 to present
Conference USA – 2005 to present
Big Ten – 2011 to present
Pac-12 – 2011 to present
Mountain West – 2013 to present
American Athletic – 2015 to present

UPCOMING SCHEDULE   
Saturday, December 7    
2019 SUN BELT FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
/RV Louisiana at No. 21 Appalachian State (ESPN), Noon ET/11 a.m. CT

Sunday, December 8    
Bowl Selections Announcement