North Carolina’s mountain matchup with Appalachian State on Sept. 3 is officially a sellout. In late July, it was reported that all 30,000 seats in Kidd Brewer Stadium will be filled in what some are calling the biggest home game in Boone history.
According to TickPick, tickets to UNC vs. Appalachian State in Boone are going for $371. It makes it the second most expensive ticket in college football for Labor Day Weekend.
Current FIVE most expensive W1 College Football Games (prices from @TickPick)
1. ND @ Ohio State – $380
2. UNC @ App State – $371
3. Pitt @ WVU – $236
4. Arizona @ SDSU – $230
5. Oregon @ Georgia – $182— Ben Chase (@BenGChase) August 8, 2022
The Tar Heels, who start the season against Florida A&M on Aug. 25, will have an experience edge as the in-state matchup marks the first game of the season for the Mountaineers.
App State is coming off a successful 2021 season in which they went 10-4, including a 59-38 loss to Western Kentucky in the Boca Raton Bowl. The Mountaineers were equally successful on offense and defense, averaging 34.5 points per game (22nd of 130 in nation) while allowing 22 (30th of 130).
The Mountaineers’ offense will be led once again by quarterback Chase Brice, who opted to return for his sixth year this offseason. Brice is coming off a strong season in which he completed 62.1 percent of his passes for 3,337 yards, 27 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions.
Brice did not play in the 2019 matchup.
In their most recent matchup (2019), App State upset UNC 34-31 in Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels were three-point favorites in the game.
The two programs had only faced off one-time before then, which resulted in a 56-6 UNC win in 1940.
Appalachian State’s Sept. 3 season opener at home vs. North Carolina is officially a sellout. All 30,000 tickets are gone. Mountaineers also sold out entire season ticket allotment of 11,000
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) July 20, 2022
The game also marks a homecoming of sorts for UNC head coach Mack Brown. Brown’s first head coaching gig was with the Mountaineers in 1983. He stayed one season with the team, leading them to a 6-5 record, before leaving to become the offensive coordinator at Oklahoma.
In hopes of avoiding an upset, the Tar Heels will need strong play from one of their two young quarterbacks. The court is still out on whether it will be Drake Maye or Jacolby Criswell starting for the Tar Heels, as Brown wants the competition to continue throughout the summer.
“We have two quarterbacks,” Brown said during the ACC Media Day. “Jacolby Criswell, he was the Gatorade Player of the Year in Arkansas. We have Drake Maye, who was the Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of North Carolina, that’s been there for a year. Those guys have both played and practiced a lot. We’ve started Sam Howell when he didn’t have any experience the year before, so we’re really, really excited about our offense, and we think we have a chance to be good.”
Maye, a sophomore and former four-star recruit, appeared in two games a season ago and saw the majority of his action in the Nov. 20 win over Wofford. Against the Terriers, he completed 7-of-9 passes (77.7 percent) for 89 yards and one touchdown.
Criswell, a junior, appeared in three games last season, with the majority of his action coming against Wofford. On the year, he was 13-of-21 passing (57.9%) for 179 yards and a touchdown. He also carried five times for 55 yards and one score in the win over the Terriers.
