Red Wolves head football coach Bryan Harsin addresses fans before the A-State homecoming bonfire Thursday on campus in Jonesboro.
After Saturday the college football season for the Arkansas State Red Wolves will hit the midway mark.
In a way it seems like we got here rather quickly.
But time moves on. And so do football seasons.
And Saturday’s homecoming game in Jonesboro with the Idaho Vandals will likely determine which direction this season takes. I guess this might be the proverbial fork in the road.
A nice Red Wolves’ A-State homecoming victory could go a long way in establishing confidence for the home stretch. And rebuild the faith of the fan base.
A week from Tuesday, A-State plays host to the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns in the team’s second Sun Belt Conference game of the season. With the victory over Troy last month, the Red Wolves have been the leader of the SBC for a while. But what has happened since then gives an indication it could be a wild ride to the finish line.
Depending upon what happens this Tuesday Oct 15, the Red Wolves could likely be the only team unblemished in league play. On that night, ULL will travel to Western Kentucky. The Cajuns opened with a league victory over Texas State. Bobby Petrino’s Hilltoppers have one defeat, which came at South Alabama a while back. No doubt a lot of emphasis will be placed on this one by the BMFP.
We must add that at this time Georgia State has not played an SBC game. And even though the Panthers did something Ole Miss could not do against Alabama – score – we don’t see much hope for G-State. They open league play with resurgent Troy tomorrow. We predict it will the beginning of their ride to the cellar.
So with four of the seven teams already with a conference loss, and a sixth will be added by the time ULL visits Jonesboro, it looks like an adventurous year where two losses could earn a share of the title.
It makes winning your home games vital. With seven Sun Belt Conference games, A-State was fortunate to get four home games. The Red Wolves defeated Troy on ESPN. The ULL game will be on ESPN as well. ASU also gets Georgia State at home and Texas State, which has opened some eyes in its first year in the league.
Going 4-0 at home is a huge step toward a third-straight conference title. A-State has road trips to South Alabama, UL-Monroe and Western Kentucky.
The next two weeks will give us better indications. Until then, ASU fans just want the Red Wolves back on track. And Idaho could be the right elixir for that.
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Jeff Reed is editor of Astatenation.com
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