BIG HAUNTED HOUSE: Appalachian State Pulls Upset For the Ages

Silence befell Ann Arbor, while jubilation erupted in Boone, North Carolina. Television viewers around the nation did double takes, took shots of whiskey and checked their contact prescriptions. Had this really happened? Had a little school from rural North Caroline slain a football giant? Indeed it had; those other Mountaineers had done the unthinkable.

In quite possibly the greatest upset in college football history, the other Mountaineers scored early and often, never letting up. After being one of the stingiest units in the nation last year, the Michigan defense showed that they have a very long way to go. The middle of the field was literally left for the taking, and Appalachian State QB Armanti Edwards seized the opportunity, throwing for 227 yards and three touchdowns and eluding the young Michigan defense all afternoon.

Working with a tweaked hamstring, Michigan RB Mike Hart gave all he had, but neither his three touchdowns and 188 yards nor Mario Mannigham’s 46-yard reception with six seconds left in the game were enough to prevent the Wolverines from becoming the highest ranked “Bowl Subdivision” team to fall to a “Championship Subdivision” team…ever.

Blown opportunities and inconsistent play haunted Michigan all game long, and when Corey Lynch blocked a 37-year FG attempt that would have given Michigan the win, what was once unfathomable was now reality.

Perhaps, it was karma.

At that very moment, the Big House became haunted, and the thud from that FG block will echo throughout it forever.

Looking at App State’s credentials makes you wonder why no one saw this coming.They have won their division’s National Championship for the last two seasons.

Still, this wasn’t supposed to happen.

Michigan has nine more National Championships, 356 more total wins, 29 more bowl appearances, 257 more NFL players, and 28 more players in the College Football Hall of Fame.

But these things didn’t matter. The intangibles played a huge role in this win.

Appalachian State played with the right amount of heart and mettle to do just what they weren’t supposed to be able to do.

Once again, David has slain Goliath, and at that moment Appalachian State was the center of attention in the world of sports. And they deserved it.

Many favored Michigan to win the Big Ten, now they look extremely vulnerable. And as they downright embarrassed the Wolverines in front of 107,000 of their fans, it was Armanti Edwards and Appalachian State that were hot on Saturday, now the only thing hot in Ann Arbor is the seat Lloyd Carr is sitting on.

—C. Nierman and R. Cooper