Photo by Ibuki Hinohara | Photo Editor

The Arkansas State Red Wolves football team gained their first win since August over the Texas State Bobcats in a 31-30 down-to-the-wire finish.

Arkansas State entered the game with a 1-4 record and a four-game losing streak. For the first time in 15 years the Red Wolves lost a game to Louisiana-Monroe. Texas State had only lost one game before coming to Jonesboro and the Bobcats were considered by many to be the frontrunners for the Sun Belt West division.

The Bobcats certainly looked like the best in the west when they marched down the field on their opening drive for a touchdown. Bobcats quarterback Brad Jackson struck the first blow when he ran 24 yards into the endzone and made the score 7-0.

The Red Wolves took their time in the first to get a score of their own, but the defense stepped up to the moment for the first time this season. The Bobcats would not score again until the end of the second quarter. The Red Wolves scored much sooner than that, as QB Jaylen Raynor ran for a 13-yard touchdown and tied the game 7-7.

The second quarter was a defensive struggle, as the Bobcats offense was mostly locked up by the A-State defense and the A-State offense struggled to find continued success. Both teams scored field goals and entered halftime with a 10-10 tie. 

The third quarter saw neither team score. The Red Wolves defense stood up a promising Texas State drive on 4th and 3 to force a turnover, but not much else happened. The fourth quarter saw both teams score more than they had in the previous three combined. Every single drive of the quarter ended in a touchdown.  

Texas State scored the first one when Jackson passed to Bobcats tight end Titus Lyons, who dove through Red Wolves defenders for the touchdown. With the score 17-10 in favor of Texas State, Raynor began a masterclass in passing, completing 20 straight passes by the end of the quarter. He began by going 6/6 in this drive that ended with a dot to WR Hunter Summers in the corner of the endzone. This tied the game 17-17.

Texas State responded with another touchdown, with this drive mostly on the back of Bobcats running back Lincoln Pare. The former Red Wolf capped off the drive with a 4-yard touchdown run and made the score 24-17.

The Red Wolves got another touchdown through the air. Raynor led the offense down the field, aided greatly by a pair of long catch-and-runs by WR Corey Rucker Jr. Raynor dumped a short pass off to RB Kenyon Clay, who took it to the house for a 5-yard tying touchdown.

With only 1:20 left, Jackson broke off a long run to the goal line, running 63 yards before a diving tackle from cornerback Trenton Alan Yowe dropped him. Pare ran in nearly untouched for a touchdown, but this play happened at the consent of the Red Wolves defense. “We burned a timeout to preserve as much time as possible,” Red Wolves head coach Butch Jones said. “And then we had a ‘give up play’ where we let him score. It’s the first time in my career we’ve ever called give up. And I hate it. It ate at my foundational core, but that was the only way we were going to have a chance to get the ball back and have an opportunity.”

The gamble from Jones paid off, as Bobcats kicker Tyler Robles missed the extra point. With 1:05 left on the clock, the Bobcats soon realized they left far too much time for the Red Wolves. Raynor went 5/5 on passing this drive, exploiting open receivers in the middle of the field on every play. “They were trying to keep us in bounds to keep the clock running,” Raynor said. “They were kind of short in the middle of the field so it gave us the opportunity to get the checkdowns and crossing routes.” 

Near the goal line, the Red Wolves called a read option play and Raynor took the ball himself across the goal line for the game tying touchdown. Kicker Clune Van Andel did not miss his extra point attempt and the Red Wolves took a 31-30 lead. This held as the Texas State hook-and-ladder play attempt was fumbled and the game was over.

Coach Jones addressed concerns for the team’s success and struggles this season after the game. “This football team has gone through more ebbs and flows than any team I’ve ever been a part of,” Jones said. “Today was a microcosm of all those ebbs and flows, and we didn’t blink.”

Raynor went 27/35 with 248 yards. He passed for two touchdowns. Raynor also led the Red Wolves in rushing with 19 carries for 92 yards and two touchdowns. Rucker led the receivers with eight receptions and 102 yards. 

On defense, the Red Wolves held one of the best offenses in the Sun Belt to just 10 points in the first three quarters. Though they somewhat collapsed in the fourth, the defense managed to force a fumble on the last play of the game and lock up the win. Linebacker Kyle Taylor led the team in tackles with 12, including 4 solo tackles.

The offensive line has been hampered by injuries, and they were the only unit to not have a very good day. Raynor was sacked five times and the Texas State defense got eight tackles for loss. Coach Jones said that injuries have plagued the unit, to the point that the third string linemen made their first starts in this game

Arkansas State improves their record to 2-4 with the win. They will take on the South Alabama Jaguars in an unusual Tuesday game on ESPN2.

Categories: Sports