SoCon: Weekend Primer

By Russell Varner
SouthernPigskin.com

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It is not any stretch to call this weekend the biggest weekend in the Southern Conference football season this year.

 It is this weekend that will pretty much determine the conference champion. Will it be the defending champions Appalachian State, who are coming off their first conference loss in years? Will it be the Wofford Terriers, who look to complete an amazing bottom of the league to champions turnaround in just one year. No offense to the other games this weekend, which are great in their own rights, but all eyes are on Boone this weekend, and for good reason.

Before moving into the standings and game previews, I’d also like to note that the SoCon has determine its selection for the second Wild Card game to be shown on SportSouth next weekend. Congratulations go out to Wofford and Chattanooga, as their matchup in Spartanburg will be shown live with a 3 p.m. kickoff.

Here’s how the conference standings look. Tell me if you notice anything different about it.

Current SoCon Standings (Conference record, Overall Record)

Wofford 6-0 (8-1)
Appalachian State 6-1 (8-1)
Chattanooga 4-2 (5-4)
Furman 3-3 (5-4)
Georgia Southern 3-3 (5-4)
Elon 3-3 (4-5)
Samford 2-4 (4-5)
Western Carolina 1-5 (2-7)
Citadel 0-7 (2-8)

Catch it? Need help? Here’s a hint, look at the top. That’s right. Someone other than App is listed at the top of the conference standings. Weird, huh? Five bucks to whoever can name the last time App was not in first place in the Southern Conference.

Furman at Elon, 1:30 p.m.

In what was supposed to be a matchup to determine which of these teams may be going to the playoffs, this year’s Elon-Furman matchup instead is between two teams trying to separate themselves from the middle of the pack in the conference. Both teams have underperformed this year and are looking to finish strong. Furman is on their third different starting quarterback this year, sophomore Dakota Derrick, who helped lead Furman to their 31-17 victory last week. Elon may be without Scott Riddle again, meaning Thomas Wilson would get his second straight start. He looked solid and Elon showed a new side to their offense, one that focused on running the ball. Expect more of the same on Saturday.
Elon 27, Furman 18.

Samford at Chattanooga, 2 p.m.

Samford was nearly able to pull off the second-biggest upset last weekend in their narrow 10-3 defeat to Wofford. That said, the Bulldogs had an awful offensive output, totaling 262 yards and scoring their lowest total of the year (yes, they scored more against FSU than they did against Wofford). It won’t get much easier this week when they have to travel to Tennessee to face the high-powered Mocs offense. The Bulldogs will need a much better offensive performance against Chatty, who is coming off a very respectable game at Auburn. A week after throwing five picks against Elon, quarterback B.J. Coleman threw none against the Tigers and will look to put up some big numbers against a middle of the pack Samford defense.
Chattanooga 23, Samford 13.

Georgia Southern at Western Carolina, 3 p.m.

With all due respect to the Catamounts, their only chance for a win is to hope that the Eagles have a big letdown this week, which is possible. Coming off an emotional win last week over App in what was one of the best games this year, Georgia Southern now travels to face a Western Carolina team that has struggled all year long. Yes, there is a very real chance of a letdown by an inconsistent Eagles squad. But, I really struggle to see them losing.
Georgia Southern 33, Western Carolina 14.

Game of the Week/Year: #4 Wofford at #3 Appalachian State, 3 p.m., SportSouth

So here it is, the defacto Southern Conference championship game. App has been here before, beating Elon on the road last year to clinch the title. Before that, App and Wofford met on a cold Halloween night for a game that was broadcasted on ESPN2 and ended with a blowout victory for the Mountaineers. App clearly has the talent, but their defense has been inconsistent for most of the year and the team is coming off a loss to a Georgia Southern team that mirrors Wofford in many ways. Both run variations of the triple option and both have great defenses (the two best in the conference, in fact). If I’m Wofford coach Mike Ayers, I had my team watch what the Eagles did last week to shut down App and then doing everything I can to copy what they did. I truly believe that Wofford stands a great chance of upsetting the Mountaineers and taking the conference this weekend, but I just can’t pick against App at the Rock.
#3 Appalachian State 33, #4 Wofford 31.

If you want some more coverage of the game, you can also check out B.J Bennett’s preview of the game: /SOCON/view/socon-showdown.