Appalachian State and Charlotte will have new head football coaches when they face each other next August in the Duke’s Mayo Classic at Bank of America Stadium.
Both schools introduced their new coaches on Monday after disappointing seasons that led to coaching changes.
Dowell Loggains is now the head coach at Appalachian State, taking over for Shawn Clark, who was fired last week after the Mountaineers finished 5-6 in their first losing season since 2013.
Loggains, who was the offensive coordinator at South Carolina, inherits a program with a strong football tradition, including three national championships at the FCS level, 22 conference titles, six consecutive bowl wins from 2015-2020, and the famous 2007 upset of No. 2 Michigan when Appalachian State was in FCS.
The 44-year-old Loggains has experience as an offensive coordinator in the NFL, working with Tennessee, Cleveland, Chicago, Miami, and the New York Jets. He also spent two seasons as an assistant at Arkansas, his alma mater.
“I promise you this, we’re going to work from dusk until dawn to get this thing right,” Loggains said during his introductory press conference in Boone, North Carolina.
About two hours south, Charlotte introduced their new head coach, Tim Albin.
Albin, 59, had a successful four-season run at Ohio, where he went 32-19 and led the team to a 38-3 win in the MAC Championship game against Miami of Ohio, improving their record to 10-3. Ohio will play Jacksonville State in the Cure Bowl on Dec. 20 under interim head coach Brian Smith.
Albin replaces Biff Poggi, a former Michigan assistant coach, who was fired after going 6-16 in two seasons with Charlotte.
Since moving to the FBS level in 2015, Charlotte has had just one winning season.
“In my 30-plus years in coaching, I’ve learned that building a championship program takes a village,” Albin said. “We are off to a hell of a start. … There is work to be done here, but I’m confident that with the leadership and the people in place, we can work to make Niner Nation proud.”
