2017 Dollar General Bowl Preview
The 2017 Dollar General Bowl brings forth a match-up between two dominant teams from the Sun Belt and the Mid American Conference. The Appalachian State Mountaineers from the Sun Belt finished 10-2 and were co-champions of the conference. The Toledo Rockets won their division in the MAC. Both teams had strong seasons, and are seeking to end 2017 on a winning note.
What: Dollar General Bowl
Where: Ladd-Peebles Stadium, Mobile Alabama
When: 6pm CST, Saturday, December 23rd
TV: ESPN
Appalachian State; Perennial Offense
This bowl match-up pits two teams that are dominant on the offensive side of the ball. For the Mountaineers, quarterback Taylor Lamb has thrown for 2,606 yards with 27 touchdowns and six interceptions. Those are very stellar numbers from a quality Sun Belt team. But their offense is not triggered by Lamb alone. Running back Jalin Moore has been a versatile running back for this App State offense with just under 1,000 yards rushing and nine touchdowns. The combination of those two players really signify what the Mountaineers are accomplishing as an offensive unit. Sharing the Sun Belt title with the Troy Trojans was a huge achievement for this team. But sharing a conference championship isn’t enough. The Mountaineers still have one thing to accomplish before the end of their season. They want a bowl win. They can get one on Saturday by taking down a tough Toledo team.
Toledo Rockets; Offensive Attack
For the Rockets, Logan Woodside has been their star at quarterback for the past few seasons. He has accomplished a lot in his career at Toledo. A team that has produced NFL talent the past few years, Woodside is in good shape and could play in the NFL. He is an under-rated player that has a tremendous upside. in 2017, he has thrown for 3,759 yards with 28 touchdowns and only five interceptions. But Woodside is not the only attack for the Toledo offense. Running back Terry Swanson has been shredding it in the backfield. Swanson has piled on 1,319 yards and 14 touchdowns this season.
Both of these teams have great offenses. But the one key to this game for both the Mountaineers and Rockets will be defense. Toledo has to put a stop to Lamb’s aerial attack. And for App State, they have to stop the dynamic duo of Woodside and Swanson. Those two pivotal playmakers for the Rockets could be the key to this game. But don’t expect this to be a blowout. Toledo and App State can find the end zone often, and this could become a high scoring game. If the Mountaineers can follow suit with what Troy did, the Sun Belt could have their top two offenses showcasing style points in bowl games.
This bowl season so far has been tremendous to say the least. Troy started it off last week with a 50-30 win over North Texas in New Orleans. Arkansas State was defeated by Middle Tennessee in a close game. But the Sun Belt still has a few teams left. Appalachian State wants to be the next team to earn a bowl win for their conference. But from the Toledo perspective, they want to get the MAC a win as well.
The Dollar General Bowl could be another epic bowl game just like 2016. Troy took down Ohio in a close match-up last season. The two teams this season want to repeat that stellar game. And what other place to get a bowl win than Mobile? App State and Toledo will look to do just that when they clash.
