The 2007 Appalachian State Mountaineers football team represented Appalachian State University in the 2007 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The team was coached by Jerry Moore and played their home games at Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone, North Carolina.
The football team competes in the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly I-AA, as a member of the Southern Conference. Appalachian is the only university in North Carolina, public or private, to win a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) national championship in football. The Mountaineers won the 2005 Division I-AA Football Championship and repeated as FCS national champions in 2006 and 2007. They also captured a third consecutive Southern Conference Southern Conference title.
The team is one of only five from its division to ever defeat a team ranked in the Associated Press Poll (the others being Cincinnati in 1983, James Madison in 2010, Eastern Washington in 2013, and North Dakota State in 2016), in a game against Michigan that was hailed as one of the biggest upsets in the history of American sports. Additionally, two players from the 2007 team were selected in the 2008 NFL Draft: wide receiver Dexter Jackson (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) and safety Corey Lynch (Cincinnati Bengals).
Schedule
Game summaries
Michigan
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Appalachian State opened the season on September 1 at Michigan Stadium on the campus of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It pitted the homestanding Michigan Wolverines against the two-time defending champions of the Division I FCS, the Appalachian State Mountaineers. In what was hailed as one of the biggest upsets in the history of American sports, the Mountaineers shocked the fifth-ranked Wolverines 34–32. It is believed to be only the first win ever by a team in Division I FCS (still frequently known by its former name of Division I-AA) over a ranked team in Division I FBS (formerly Division I-A) since the NCAA split its Division I into two football subdivisions in 1978.
Following the game, the Associated Press made FCS schools eligible to receive vote in the AP Poll that ranks college football teams; the poll was previously limited to FBS teams. On September 9, Appalachian State received 19 points and was 33rd in overall voting in the AP Poll. In the final AP Poll of the 2007 season issued in January 2008, Appalachian State earned five points, good enough for a tie at 34th place and making Appalachian State the first non-FBS program to receive votes in a season-ending AP Poll.
Lenoir–Rhyne
The Mountaineers returned home after the Michigan win for their first contest at Kidd Brewer Stadium against Division II Lenoir–Rhyne on September 8. In front of a record crowd of 28,802, senior quarterback Trey Elder started the game, filling in for an injured Armanti Edwards, and threw for 210 yards and rushed for 90 more. The Mountaineers scored touchdowns on their first five possessions en route to racking up 403 yards of offense. The Bears were limited to 195 total yards. Freshman linebacker D. J. Smith lead the defense with 12 tackles. With the win, the Mountaineers extended their Division I leading win streak to 16 games and their home winning streak to 28 games.
Northern Arizona
A crowd of 27,104 packed Kidd Brewer Stadium to see the Mountaineers put up 429 yards of offense in a win over Northern Arizona. The win was the 17th straight overall and 29th straight home victory. Trey Elder, starting in place of an injured Armanti Edwards, accounted for 298 yards. Running back Kevin Richardson set a career-high with seven receptions for 122 yards and two touchdowns. Lumberjack quarterback Lance Kriesien paced the Northern Arizona offense with 171 passing and 129 rushing yards.
Wofford
A crowd of 11,042, the fourth largest in Gibbs Stadium history, saw the Terriers end the Mountaineers Division I leading winning streak at 17 games, 42–31. The Terriers outgained the Mountaineers 431 to 320 in total yardage with running back Kevious Johnson accounting for 104 rushing yards. Armanti Edwards, starting in his first game since the Michigan win, re-injured his shoulder at the start of the second half. Trey Elder replaced Edwards and threw for 105 and rushed for 33 yards. Senior wide receiver Hans Batichon had a career-high six receptions for 93 yards. The only other bright spot for the Mountaineers was CoCo Hillary's 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the second quarter.