Appalachian State has been playing football since 1928, and over that period 20 men have led App State onto the field of battle. Eliah Drinkwitz will be the 23rd head coach in the program’s history when the team opens the season on Aug. 31 versus East Tennessee State.

As is the case with many programs, App went through numerous head coaches in the early years, as 10 different men led the program over its first 17 years, which comprised 15 seasons. App State did not field teams in 1943 and 1944 because of World War II.

E.C. Duggins had two different stints at the helm, running the program from 1947-50 and again from 1952-55. App went 35-7-1 in his first run and 22-18-1 in his second. In addition, Flucie Stewart also had two tenures, as he coached single seasons in 1939 and 1946. His records were 7-1-2 and 6-3, respectively.

Jerry Moore led the Mountaineers for the longest stretch, a 24-year period that firmly put the program on the map. Conversely, eight tenures lasted just a single season, including 1983, when eventual College Football Hall of Fame inductee Mack Brown ran the show. Brown left App to a 6-5 mark that season.

With Drinkwitz less than two months from his official debut, we thought it would be fun to look at the inaugural seasons of every App State coach. Here’s how they fared in their first seasons:

1928: Graydon Eggers – 3-6

1929: C.B. Johnson – 4-1-3

1933: Eugene Garbee – 7-2

1935: Kidd Brewer – 5-2-2

1939: Flucie Stewart – 7-1-2

1940: Red Watkins – 6-4

1942: Beattie Feathers – 5-2-1

1945: Francis Hoover – 1-6

1946: Flucie Stewart – 6-3

1947: E.C. Duggins – 9-1

1951: Press Mull, 6-3

1952: E.C. Duggins, 2-6-1

1956: Bob Broome, 3-6

1959: Bob Breitenstein – 6-4

1960: Jim Duncan, 8-2

1965: Carl Messere – 5-5

1971: Jim Brakefield – 5-5-1

1980: Mike Working – 6-4-1

1983: Mack Brow – 6-5

1984: Sparky Woods – 4-7

1989: Jerry Moore – 9-3

2013: Scott Satterfield – 4-8

2019: Eliah Drinkwitz - ???