BOONE, N.C. (AP) _ Appalachian State held off two late East Tennessee State rallies to beat the Buccaneers 23-19 Saturday in the Southern Conference.

ETSU (4-1, 3-1) jumped out to a 9-0 lead eight minutes into the game on a 26-yard touchdown pass from Jamey Chadwell to Lamar Cooper and a safety after the snap on a Mountaineers punt attempt went awry.

Appalachian State (3-1, 2-0) took the lead at 13-9 with a 26-yard touchdown pass to Rashad Slade and a 5-yard run by Neil Cornatzer.

East Tennessee took a 16-13 lead into halftime on a 3-yard run by Raymondo Miller with 1:24 left.

Troy Albea's 51-yard run was the only play of an Appalachian State drive at 11:29 left in the third quarter to take back the lead at 20-16. The teams then traded field goals.

Tim Ramsuer picked off a pass to end an ETSU drive with 2:38 left. Time ran out on a defensive pass interference call that forced a final play with no time on the clock. Weslan Hunter broke up the pass in the end zone to secure the Mountaineers win.