The Appalachian State football program will retire the jersey of one of their all-time greats this Saturday.
Former Mountaineer quarterback Armanti Edwards will be honored in Boone when his alma mater face longtime rival Georgia Southern. From 2006 through 2009, Edwards guided the Mountaineers, then at the FCS level, to two national championships in 2006 and 2007. Edwards would also become the first two-time Walter Payton Award winner in FCS history. That award is given to the division's best player every year, colloquially referred to as the "FCS Heisman."
RELATED: App State End JMU's Unbeaten Run In Harrisonburg
Edwards broke or set several dozen App State program records while with the program, the majority of them in the passing category. He finished his college days with 10,392 passing yards, 74 passing touchdowns, 4,361 rushing yards, and 65 rushing touchdowns.
Notably, Edwards was the App State quarterback that guided the Mountaineers to their famous 2007 win over #5 Michigan in Ann Arbor.
"He's one of the all-time greatest players to ever player", current Appalachian State head coach Shawn Clark said of Edwards on Monday. "You think about Armanti Edwards, you think about National Championships, players of the year. He's up there on the statue with Coach Moore and Dexter Coakley and all the great ones. So it's a great honor for him. It's a great honor for our program to retire that number and we're very proud of him."
RELATED: James Madison Defensive Coordinator Bryant Haines Named Semifinalist For Broyles Award
App State and Georgia Southern kick off this Saturday at 3:30 PM on ESPNU. If Appalachian State wins and Coastal Carolina loses to James Madison, the Mountaineers would make an appearance in the Sun Belt title game.
More must-reads: