Mountaineers Roll Over Maine in 2026 Football Opener

BOONE, N.C. — App State Football opened the 2026 season with a dominant home win over Maine, recording a 55-3 victory in front of a sold-out crowd of 33,664 at Kidd Brewer Stadium on Saturday.

Beginning their second season under the direction of head coach Dowell Loggains, with 73 newcomers on the roster, the Mountaineers posted the program's largest margin of victory since a 72-7 win against Gardner-Webb in 2018. They play at East Carolina next weekend for an ESPNU game at noon.

App State shut out Maine (1-1) until the final minute of the third quarter, building a 38-0 lead as Malachi Singleton completed 22 of 24 passes for 291 yards and three touchdowns in less than three full quarters of work.

App State's 10 possessions resulted in a turnover-capped march to the Maine 5-yard line on the opening series and then nine straight scoring drives, with seven touchdowns and two James London field goals. Sam Pickett III followed a Darrin Fugitt touchdown reception with two scores of his own, and the Mountaineers' four rushing touchdowns came from Treyaun Webb, Jaquari Lewis, Nate Branch and Jackson Grier. Branch and Grier, both receivers, scored on runs of 36 and 28 yards.

Caleb Sandstrom produced App State's first sack of the season right before edge rusher Caleb Pitts intercepted a pass that he tipped to himself late in the first half, setting up a touchdown drive that led to a 31-0 halftime advantage, and Colton Phares came down with another interception early in the third quarter. Phares also added a sack thanks to his pressure on a penalty for intentional grounding, part of the Mountaineers' eight tackles for loss.

App State's defense limited Maine to 12 first downs and 250 yards of offense, compared to 34 first downs and 647 yards of offense from the Mountaineers.

App State finished with 299 rushing yards (on a 7.7-yard average per carry) and totaled 348 passing yards from three quarterbacks, with Henry Hasselbeck and Tommy Ulatowski contributing to 29 completions in 33 attempts.

Webb punched in a 2-yard touchdown midway through the first quarter, reaching the end zone immediately after true freshman tight end Jamel Howse nearly scored on a 35-yard reception, and Singleton threw three touchdown passes in the second quarter.

Fugitt scored on a 5-yard reception before Pickett hauled in touchdown receptions covering 14 and 7 yards in the final five minutes of the half.

The first takeaway of the season by the Mountaineers' stingy defense halted a Maine drive into scoring range and set up the next Pickett touchdown with seven seconds remaining before halftime. The Black Bears had reached the App State 24 before Sandstrom recorded a first-down sack, and Pitts came down with an interception on the next play after deflecting a line-drive throw with his right hand.

While Singleton completed 18 of his 20 first-half passes for 250 yards, App State limited Maine to three first downs and 74 yards of offense on 23 plays. Six plays into the second half, Phares intercepted a fluttering throw down the right sideline following backfield pressure from a blitzing Dre Walker, and Lewis capped a seven-play, 69-yard drive with a 12-yard touchdown run to give the Mountaineers a 38-0 lead.

Maine broke up the shutout bid on a field goal in the final minute of the third quarter. Hasselbeck then sprinted 75 yards for a touchdown on his first collegiate snap, but a holding penalty wiped out the score. He completed three passes and had an 11-yard keeper on an eight-play drive that ended with the touchdown run from Branch, who picked up a key block from running back Kanye Roberts, who had a 19-yard gain on his first game carry since Nov. 2, 2024.

Grier scored on a 28-yard run three minutes later, and London closed the scoring with a 32-yard field goal.

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