Appalachian State’s Jaden Barnes (15) tries to avoid getting pushed out of bounds by Lindenwood’s Alex Dawkins during Saturday’s game in North Carolina. (Photo: Ellie Parker)
| NCAA Football | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lindenwood (0-2) | 0 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 13 |
| Appalachian State (2-0) | 14 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 20 |
DeMarcus Dixon
Staff Writer
BOONE, NC — The Lindenwood University football team fell behind by two touchdowns in the first quarter in its matchup against Appalachian State on Saturday, and was unable to fight back from deficit, as the Lions eventually lost, 20-13, to the host Mountaineers in a non-conference contest at App State’s Kidd Brewer Stadium.
App State began the game with an exhilarating start, with quarterback A.J. Swann hitting receiver Dalton Stroman for a 72-yard touchdown on the first play of the game to put the Mountaineers on the board.
Then, after the teams traded turnovers, Swann threw his second touchdown of the day to tight end Jaden Barnes to give App State a 14-0 lead late in the first quarter.
Lindenwood spent the rest of the day trying to rally — and nearly did — as the Lions rallied back to within a touchdown and were driving for a potential tying score, before a final minute interception ended any chance of a win.
Lindenwood receiver Rico Bond caught seven passes for 102 yards and a touchdown in the Lions’ 20-13 loss to Appalachian State on Saturday. (Photo: Ellie Parker)
The rally began midway through the second quarter, when Lindenwood stopped App State on a 4th-and-3 at the Lindenwood 46 yard line to take possession of the ball. The Lions then drove 54 yards on eight plays, capped by a 1 yard touchdown run by LU quarterback Nate Glantz that put the Lions on the board.
The point-after attempt was blocked, so the score remained 14-6. App State added field goals in the third and fourth quarters to go up 20-6 and seemed like it might cruise the rest of the way to a win. But the Lions did not give up.
Lindenwood recovered an App State fumble with just under 10 minutes left in the game. Safety Sanjay Strickland made a big hit to force the ball loose from App State running back Rashod Dubinon and it was recovered by defensive lineman Kobe McClendon to give the Lions the ball at App State’s 46.
Glantz then completed five straight passes, before hitting sophomore receiver Rico Bond for a 24 yard touchdown. Kicker Will Graham connected on the PAT to pull Lindenwood back to within a touchdown.
The Lions attempted an onside kick and recovered it to re-take possession with 3:28 left in the game.
Unfortunately, they weren’t able to move the ball much before Glantz was intercepted for the second time on the day, with 1:51 left.
The Mountaineers were able to run out the clock the rest of the way to close out the victory.
App State is now 2-0 on the season, while Lindenwood fell to 0-2.
The Lions will play their third straight road game to begin the season, next Saturday, September 13, when they’ll begin Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Football Association play with a game in South Carolina against Charleston Southern.
The Buccaneers have also begun the season with two straight road games and like Lindenwood, will come into next Saturday’s game 0-2.
Kickoff at Buccaneer Field is set 3 p.m., with the game being streamed live on ESPN+.
SCORING SUMMARY
| Qtr | Time | Scoring Play | LU | APP ST. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 14:42 | APP ST. – Stroman, Dalton 72 yd pass from Swann, A.J. (De Freitas, Dominic kick) 1 plays, 72 yards, TOP 00:11 | 0 | 7 |
| 1st | 03:32 | APP ST. – Barnes, Jaden 13 yd pass from Swann, A.J. (De Freitas, Dominic kick) 6 plays, 75 yards, TOP 02:27 | 0 | 14 |
| 2nd | 07:15 | LU – Glantz,Nate 1 yd run (kick failed), 8 plays, 54 yards, TOP 04:31 | 6 | 14 |
| 3rd | 05:36 | APP ST. – De Freitas, Dominic 29 yd field goal 12 plays, 67 yards, TOP 04:31 | 6 | 17 |
| 4th | 14:12 | APP ST. – De Freitas, Dominic 24 yd field goal 11 plays, 61 yards, TOP 04:06 | 6 | 20 |
| 4th | 03:34 | LU – Bond, Rico 24 yd pass from Glantz, Nate (Graham, Will kick) 9 plays, 46 yards, TOP 05:41 | 13 | 20 |
2025 LINDENWOOD LIONS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
| Date | Time | At | Opponent | Location | TV | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 28, 2025 (Thursday) | 6 pm | Away | St. Thomas | St. Paul, Minn. |  | L 35-13 (0-1) |
| September 6, 2025 (Saturday) | 2:30 pm | Away | Appalachian State | Boone, N.C. |  | L 20-13 (0-2) |
| September 13, 2025 (Saturday) | 3 pm | Away | Charleston Southern | Charleston, S.C. | | |
| September 20, 2025 (Saturday) | 6 pm | Home | Stony Brook | Hunter Stadium | | |
| September 27, 2025 (Saturday) | 2:30 pm | Away | Miami (OH) | Oxford, Ohio | | |
| October 4, 2025 (Saturday) | 1 pm | Home | Tennessee-Martin | Hunter Stadium | | |
| October 18, 2025 (Saturday) | 1 pm | Home | Tennessee Tech | Hunter Stadium | | |
| October 25, 2025 (Saturday) | 2 pm | Home | Gardner-Webb | Hunter Stadium | | |
| November 1, 2025 (Saturday) | 3:30 pm | Away | Tennessee State | Nashville, Tenn. | | |
| November 8, 2025 (Saturday) | 1 pm | Away | Western Illinois | Macomb, Ill. | | |
| November 15, 2025 (Saturday) | 2 pm | Home | Eastern Illinois | Hunter Stadium | | |
| November 22, 2025 (Saturday) | 1 pm | Away | Southeast Missouri State | Cape Girardeau, Mo. | |