Sept. 20, 2009

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford football team will open Southern Conference play Saturday afternoon by travelling to Boone, N.C., to take on defending SoCon champion and 10th-ranked Appalachian State.

Samford enters the game with a 2-1 record. Last week, the Bulldogs overcame a 12-3 halftime deficit to defeat Miles College by a score of 31-12 at Seibert Stadium.

"We played hard, though I don't know if we were as focused as we needed to be," Samford head coach Pat Sullivan said. "We made some mistakes, but Miles had something to do with that. I thought it was a good win for us. We played a little better in the special teams and that was encouraging."

Sullivan said he thought the Bulldogs' offensive line played well in Saturday's win, especially in the second half.

"Our offensive line played well and played hard," Sullivan said. "We were close on several plays that we just didn't quite break, or had a breakdown here or there. I thought Thomas Gray and Jon Weber really played well."

Appalachian State enters this week's game with a record of 0-2. The Mountaineers took last week off after dropping a 40-35 decision to then-16th-ranked McNeese State in ASU's home opener on Sept. 12.

Despite the 0-2 start, Appalachian State comes in as, not only the defending SoCon champions, but as the winners of three of the last four Division I-FCS national championships.

"They're the defending champion," Sullivan said. "They've gotten off to a rough start for them and they've had a week off to prepare for us and get everybody back healthy. We have a lot of respect for them. They've set the bar for our conference as well as for our division. So, we know we have our hands full going to Boone."

Sullivan said it is always important, regardless of the opponent, to get off to a good start in your first conference game.

"If you are fortunate enough to win your first conference game, it gives you a leg up," Sullivan said. "If you happen to lose it, you're not out of it, but you are one down. With our team, what we have talked about it playing it one game at a time. This is a huge game, but it won't be the end of the world, not matter what happens."

The Bulldogs did some light running Sunday afternoon at Seibert Stadium. The team will take Monday off, before returning to practice to put in this week's game plan on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.

Saturday's game at Appalachian State is scheduled for a 2:30 p.m. (CT) kickoff from Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone, N.C. The game can be heard locally on WVSU-FM 91.1, or worldwide on the internet at www.samford.edu/wvsu.