Mack Brown glad he won’t face Appalachian State again, encourages rivals to schedule them

Appalachian State gave Mack Brown and North Carolina a doozy of a game for the second straight year and third time overall since his return to Chapel Hill. That’s why, as happy as he was for the Mountaineers, he’s glad to not have them on the Tar Heel’s schedule again for the foreseeable future.

Brown sang App State’s praises during his postgame press conference after UNC’s 40-34 win in double overtime. He said he wasn’t surprised by the near upset considering how the Mountaineers have played them before and he gave them all the credit for a job well done yesterday inside Kenan Stadium.

“We knew they were a good football team. Shawn Clark has done a great job. There’ll be some people whining at him. We’ve played App State three times. A three-point field goal at the end that we missed, two points where we stopped them on a two-point play last year, and then an overtime game,” Brown said. “He has done a great job and I went down and told those kids that.”

“Nobody lost this game. Those kids deserve a lot of credit for going on the road, fighting their guts out, and playing down to the end,” said Brown. “(I’m) really proud for those guys as well. They fought their guts out. I’m glad that we don’t play them again.”

Appalachian State held leads during and throughout the contest. They then made a field goal with less than two minutes to go to send it to overtime. However, a rushing touchdown from QB Drake Maye sealed it for North Carolina to hold on for the six-point win.

Still, for all the nerves and pressure that their matchups have given him and his team, Brown highly recommends scheduling the Mountaineers to other programs in the state.

“I think it’s a great thing for the state of North Carolina to have,” said Brown. “I encourage NC State, East Carolina, and all of those people to schedule them and play them. It is a fun game. I’m proud for App State.”

“One of the problems with those types of games? We play Charlotte, we play NC Central next year. All the pressure is on our kids,” said Brown. “There’s no pressure on App State because nobody thinks they’re gonna win the game. All the pressure is on us and, unless we win, we’re awful. It just kills you. I think that’s the most difficult thing.”

App State has certainly given North Carolina plenty of competition, almost too much in some instances, in the past two seasons. Now, in Brown’s opinion, he’s fine with not seeing them on the slate for a bit considering how insane some of their matchups have gotten.

“I’m 72. It’s no my style,” said Brown. “I don’t want to go to overtime anymore at home with App State. I’ve had enough.”