#140 ASA PLAY ON 8* Appalachian State -10 over East Carolina, Thursday at 7:30 PM ET - We like the value of the move in this game as App State opened a 13-point favorite and are now laying -10-points. There is one decided advantage Appalachian State has in this match-up and it's their ground game against the Pirates rush defense. The Mountaineers return a bevy of playing time on the O-line and 8-starters on offense. App State averaged 253-rushing yards per game a year ago (8th best) and 5.2-yards per rush (5th). They exploited an ECU defense that couldn’t stop the run allowing 201.3-rushing yards per game (95th) and 5.2-yards per rush allowed (103rd). Appalachian State has a void to fill at QB, but Chase Brice, a Clemson/Duke transfer, should fit in nicely. The ‘Neer’s defense has historically been a strength and will be again in 2021-22 with 9 starters back on that side of the football. East Carolina is expected to finish near the bottom of the conference again and will have a tough time in this game against a veteran App State team. ECU does return talent on the offensive side of the football, but their defense allowed 42PPG in 2019 and 34PPG last year. ECU was 3-6 SU last year with four of those losses coming by double-digits. Appalachian State was 9-3 SU last season with an average margin of victory of +13.8PPG.