By Joshua Huff, sports editor
BOONE, N.C. — Behind former Hewitt-Trussville honorable mention Class 7A All-State quarterback Zac Thomas’ two touchdown passes, Appalachian State won its fourth consecutive Sun Belt championship after defeating Louisiana, 45-38, on Saturday.
Thomas, the 2018 Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year, threw for 149 yards with the two touchdowns as the Mountaineers jumped out to a 21-0 lead and held off the Ragin Cajuns in the second half to claim their second straight Sun Belt Championship game victory on its home field. Conference championship MVP Darrynton Evans recorded 162 all-purpose yards with three touchdowns.
The Mountaineers now sit at 12-1 on the season and ranked No. 21 in the nation. They will next appear in their fifth consecutive bowl game.
The Mountaineers scored the first touchdown of the afternoon on their sixth play of the game as Thomas hit Noah Hannon on a screen pass that went 58 yards for the score. Appalachian State would extend that lead to 42-17 in the third quarter before Louisiana drew to within a touchdown with about a minute left.
Thomas, who is a junior, entered this season on a slew of preseason award watchlists: the Maxwell Award watch list, the Walter Camp Player of the Year watch list, the Davey O’Brien Award watch list, the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award watch list, the Manning Award watch list, and the CFPA National Performer of the Year watch list. Last season, Thomas was named the New Orleans Bowl MVP after passing for three touchdowns.
Thomas finished his career at Hewitt-Trussville with 3,675 passing yards and 25 touchdowns after going 267-for-437 in his three seasons as a starter. He recorded 6,000 yards of total offense in 31 games played.
Champions 🏆 pic.twitter.com/o5kDgkdUYe
— App State Football (@AppState_FB) December 7, 2019