PHOTO COURTESY OF A-STATE ATHLETICS
Yes, you read that headline correctly. For the first time in 15 years, the Arkansas State Red Wolves lost a football game to the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks by a final score of 28-16.
The Red Wolves offense was lifeless and defense was mostly ineffective in this game. There were no offensive touchdowns scored by A-State. The defense gave up four touchdowns.
A-State started off great. On the third play of the game safety Brandon Greil picked off a pass and took it 32 yards back for a touchdown to make the score 7-0 Red Wolves. Quarterback Jaylen Raynor threw an interception of his own in the first offensive drive for the Red Wolves. The Red Wolves ended the first quarter with a 10-0 lead after kicker Clune Van Andel nailed a 51-yard field goal.
The game fell apart for A-State after the first quarter. ULM made several long plays to move downfield efficiently and Warhawks QB capped the drive with an 8-yard touchdown pass to ULM wide receiver Jordan Nixon, after Armenta scrambled around in the backfield for what seemed like an eternity.
ULM got the ball back after the Red Wolves inexplicably attempted and failed to convert a 4th and 7. A short drive ended in a 37-yard touchdown pass to a wide open Warhawks WR Jake Godfrey, despite the fact that he had two Red Wolves attempting to cover him. The Red Wolves responded with a Van Andel kick getting blocked.
The Red Wolves opened the second half with a fumble lost by Raynor. It took ULM only four rushing attempts to drive 45 yards for a touchdown. Warhawks running back Braylon ended the drive with an 18-yard run for a touchdown, breaking three tackle attempts in the process. The score became 21-10 ULM.
Arkansas State finally scored on their next possession when Van Andel kicked a 43-yard field goal. They scored on the next Red Wolves drive with another Van Andel field goal. ULM responded with another touchdown drive, as Warhawks RB Zach Palmer-Smith ran in a 2-yard touchdown and made the score 28-16 ULM. This would be the final score as the Red Wolves would go on a 16-play drive that resulted in a grand total of zero points.
The loss drops the Red Wolves record down to 1-4 and last place overall in the Sun Belt Conference. The 1-4 start is also tied for the worst start that head coach Butch Jones has had in his tenure at Arkansas State.
“We’re still searching for our identity, and that’s the truth,” Jones said after the game. “And leadership. We’re going to find out what we’re made of with everyone on our program. There’s still a lot of football left to be played and we have to continue to learn from it and be better as a football team.”
Raynor ended the game completing 30 of 47 passes with 285 yards and an interception. WR Chauncy Cobb grabbed 8 receptions for 126 yards, and was closely followed by WR Corey Rucker Jr., who caught 11 passes for 123 yards.
The Red Wolves were hampered by struggles from the offensive line, who were allegedly at the game. Raynor was sacked seven times in the game and fumbled three times in the process. The Warhawks also got 13 tackles for loss against the Red Wolves. The run game for A-State managed only 12 yards on 27 carries. And yes, that is all the running backs combined. For comparison, the Warhawks ran for a combined 199 yards and 2 touchdowns.
The Red Wolves will take on the Texas State Bobcats on Saturday at 4 p.m.
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