RALEIGH, N.C. — The matchup between Appalachian State and NC State in Boone is back on. App State announced on Tuesday that the two programs have agreed to meet in Kidd Brewer Stadium on Sept. 30, 2028 as part of a home-and-home series starting in on Sept. 26, 2026 with the Mountaineers traveling to Carter-Finley Stadium.

The two sides agreed to cancel the previously-scheduled matchup set for this fall in favor of hosting Virginia in a non-conference game. This will mark the Wolfpack’s first trip to Boone to play at App State in the history of the in-state series. NC State holds a 6-0 advantage in the series, but has yet to face the Mountaineers since 2006, when App State was still an FCS program.

According to sources, NC State will no longer make the trip to Troy in 2028, which was originally scheduled for Sept. 30. Though it hasn’t passed yet, there is currently legislation that would require NC State and other Power 4 programs to play more in-state matchups in both football and men’s basketball.

Back in July, NC State head coach Dave Doeren discussed the decision to cancel the game at Kidd-Brewer Stadium in favor of a home-and-home non-conference series with Virginia, pointing out instruction from the ACC not to play road games against mid-major schools.

“We were asked by the league to play as many Power 5 games as we can,” Doeren told Josh Graham of WSJS. “We were also told not to play mid-major games on the road because it’s not good for television, it’s not good for the rankings that we’re trying to have to be in the top 11. Getting another Power 5 game against a team that we weren’t playing a lot in Virginia that has a state line between us made sense.

“It’s not anything against App State. I’m a huge App State fan. I have a son that goes to App State. I love Sean Clark. But I have to protect our league and I have to protect our university. They asked us not to play on the road against teams that aren’t Power 5. That’s a pretty clear statement.”

Along with the trip to Boone in 2028, the Wolfpack is scheduled to host Campbell and Vanderbilt at Carter-Finley Stadium. State will also play in Greenville against ECU to open the season on Sept. 2, 2028, marking three in-state opponents that season.

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