In their biggest regular season test against a Power 4 opponent this season, Arkansas State football saw their offense crumble against Texas Christian University (TCU), dropping the match 31-7. 

Marking the fourth consecutive year playing a Big 12 conference opponent, A-State went into Fort Worth with a 0-2 all-time record against the Horned Frogs. Hoping to flip the script, the Red Wolves put their best foot forward and kept the game close throughout the first half. 

From the first snap on offense, quarterback Trey Owens struggled in the face of TCU’s defense. 

Tight secondary coverage from the TCU defense prevented Owens from making any substantial passes. TCU forced Owens to either scramble for a short yardage play or throw the ball away to avoid a sack. In the first quarter, he only hit half of his six targets for 19 yards. 

What really hurt Owens the most was an early injury to A-State’s leading rusher Kenyon Clay. While head coach Butch Jones said Clay will return to practice before their next game, the loss of the high-producing player put a major handicap on the offense against TCU.

Without Clay’s work on the ground, Jones rotated four other running backs as play progressed. The unknowns from the remaining depth at running back put additional pressure on Owens to focus on enforcing a pass-heavy offense. This unexpected hole in A-State’s game plan completely derailed the team’s play for the night. 

A prime example of the injury’s impact appeared on third and fourth down conversions.

When the Red Wolves needed a short play of four or fewer yards to get a first down, Owens mostly opted for passes instead of handing off to his running backs, who had 131 yards on the night. The inconsistency with the passing game caused more harm than good throughout the game.

A-State was 5-13 on 3rd downs against TCU, struggling to keep drives alive by passing the ball instead of trusting the run game in short-yardage situations. Even Owens’s scramble attempts proved to be the better course of action over passing; he ran a team high 58 rushing yards on seven carries.

As Owens and the running backs continued to struggle, the offense stalled until the final possession of the first half for A-State. 

Owens hit his stride on the first snap of the drive, throwing a 31-yard completion to wide receiver Hunter Summers before setting up running back Ezell Jolly with a six yard pass on the next play. Taking control of the tempo, Owens drew up the biggest play of the game for the Red Wolves’ offense, throwing a 46-yard deep ball to running back Jabari Bush to set the team at the one-yard line. Following the string of perfect passes from Owens, Jolly punched his first touchdown of the season on the single yard rushing score, ending the first half with a bang for A-State. 

This scoring possession showcased what the Red Wolves’ offense is capable of when in sync. Owens took control of the flow of the game and proceeded to pick apart the TCU secondary to find open routes with major yardage for his receivers. When they made it to the final push towards a score, he relied on the consistent effort of the running backs, allowing them to break through the final layer of defense from the home team.

However, the successes in this touchdown drive turned out to be a flash in the pan for the Red Wolves as the team abandoned this fiery play after their lone touchdown.

After attempting a balanced offense of rushing and passing before halftime, the Red Wolves relied too much on the run game to close out the game. The running backs produced the most consistent results of the night but their gains could not sustain the offense completely. 

As A-State plateaued with their single score, TCU took control of the game. A-State relied on their defense to keep the game within reach, but even their improved efforts couldn’t put a dent in the Horned Frogs’ momentum.

Following the beating from Memphis’ 335 rushing yards in the season opener, the Red Wolves’ defensive line showed major growth in Fort Worth, allowing only 131 yards on the ground from TCU. The defenders at the front found much more success maneuvering around holes in the offensive line, totalling up four tackles for loss and a sack. 

However, the secondary fumbled continuously, bringing up flashbacks from the Memphis loss. 

The Red Wolves gave up another career high performance to the opposing offense, similar to their trip to the City of Blues earlier this month. Horned Frog’s wide receiver Ed Small benefitted from A-State’s struggles in pass coverage and caught seven passes for 164 receiving yards along with a touchdown. 

While the defensive unit grabbed an interception in the red zone from TCU quarterback Jaden Craig, holes in the defense popped up downfield on nearly every snap. Even when the defensive formation held up, TCU’s receivers still burnt the defenders on their routes. The Horned Frogs ended the game with 160 yards after catch (YAC), showing the fruits of failure from the secondary in coverage. 

The offense and defense for the Red Wolves showed plenty of glaring flaws, however one issue trumped all of the others. 

Throughout the course of the game, there were a number of failed plays drawn up for the offense on high-pressure snaps. One key example of this came from one of A-State’s two trips to the endzone. 

A nine-play drive led the Red Wolves to TCU’s one-yard line on fourth down. A-State declined a field goal attempt and went for the touchdown, the opposite of their usual conservative approach to game management. 

Even with the meager distance needed to tie the game, A-State could not convert. Owens held the ball for too long and threw a pass into heavy coverage, forcing a turnover on downs. The decision to attempt a ball-fake and throw a pass into the end zone seemed unwise with how tightly TCU’s secondary covered receivers all game. The defense probably prepared for an A-State rush, but the consistency from the running backs outweighed the gamble of a pass in this instance.

The hesitance to rely on running backs took away a possible score to keep the Red Wolves competitive in the second half and ended up being a crippling blow to the team. 

After losing a disappointing statement game against an opponent from one of the biggest conferences in college football, A-State looks to finish out non-conference play as Kennesaw State visits Jonesboro on Sept. 26.

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