With its fifth-consecutive Southern Conference title and NCAA Division I Football Championship berth already clinched, No. 6 Appalachian State University closes the regular season versus archrival Western Carolina on Saturday afternoon. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. at Kidd Brewer Stadium.

NOTING SATURDAY'S MATCHUP
• Appalachian (8-2, 7-0 SoCon) has won eight-straight games en route to its 10th SoCon championship.

• Western Carolina brings 2-8 record (1-6 SoCon) to Boone but is fresh off an impressive 24-7 triumph at Eastern Kentucky last weekend.

• Saturday’s game is the annual Battle for the Old Mountain Jug between ASU and WCU. Since 1976, the winner of the Mountaineer-Catamount gridiron rivalry has taken home the Old Mountain Jug, a 25-pound relic emblazoned with Appalachian black on one side and Western purple on the other. 

• The Apps lead the all-time series with the Cats, 54-18-1, including a 26-7 record since the inception of the Jug in ‘76.

• Appalachian has been even more dominant as of late, winning 22 of the last 24 meetings in the rivalry.

• ASU has won 12-straight over WCU in Boone. Western’s last victory in the High Country came in 1984.

• Appalachian’s 73 previous gridiorn meetings with Western Carolina are its most against any opponent.

• In the last installment of the ASU-WCU rivalry at The Rock, the Mountaineers set series records for points (79) and yards (743) in a 79-35 victory.

• Saturday marks the final regular-season home game for ASU’s 13 seniors, including co-captains Armanti Edwards, Jacque Roman and Mario Acitelli.

• A victory would be ASU’s 20th in a row in SoCon play, which would tie Alabama (1924-26) and Tulane (1929-32) for the second-longest conference winning streak in SoCon history. West Virginia set the league record with 30-straight conference wins from 1952-59.

• Western Carolina’s last win in Boone — a 34-7 win over ASU at then-Conrad Stadium on Oct. 6, 1984 — was also the last time Appalachian lost to an in-state opponent at home. Since that setback, ASU has won 26 in a row over in-state foes at The Rock.

For more on Saturday's matchup, including links to live video, audio and stats, both teams' stats, rosters, depth charts, game notes and much more, click HERE to visit GoASU.com's official Gameday Central page.