Red Wolves Win Homecoming Game Beating Idaho 48-24

Featured, Football, Red Wolves | October 13, 2013 by Sporting Life Arkansas | 1 Comment

Red Wolves Win Homecoming Game With Big Offensive Plays, Strong Defense

JONESBORO, Ark. – The Arkansas State University football team provided its fans and alumni with plenty to cheer about as the Red Wolves win homecoming game 48-24 over Idaho Saturday (Oct. 12) night at Liberty Bank Stadium in Jonesboro, Ark.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A REPLAY OF THE GAME.

The victory, which marked A-State’s second consecutive homecoming win and the ninth in its last 10 homecoming outings since 2003, came in front of 26,781 fans as the Red Wolves evened their overall record to 3-3. Idaho drops to 1-6 this season with the non-conference loss.

“I’m excited about the win,” said A-State head coach Bryan Harsin. “Coming off these last few games, getting a win was the main thing we needed to accomplish tonight. I’m proud of our players and the preparation leading into the game this week coming off the loss to Missouri and just the changes that we felt like we needed to make. That needs to continue.”

Arkansas State struck first on its initial play from scrimmage as senior quarterback Adam Kennedy hooked up with senior wide receiver Julian Jones on an 80-yard out-and-up touchdown pass play to give the Red Wolves a 7-0 lead. Jones, who would end up with 111 first-half receiving yards, managed to get open behind the Idaho secondary and outran two Vandals’ defenders for the end zone after hauling in a Kennedy pass near midfield.

The Red Wolves increased their first-quarter advantage to 14-0 a little over four minutes later whenKennedy completed a 13-yard scoring toss to sophomore wide out J.D. McKissic, who pulled in the deflected ball while on flat on his back in the end zone as A-State moved the ball 65 yards in seven plays to paydirt. Idaho chipped into the Red Wolves’ lead and cut the deficit into half at 14-7 with 1:29 left to go in the frame as running back James Baker scored untouched off right tackle from four yards out.

A 38-yard field goal by A-State senior kicker Brian Davis gave the Red Wolves a 10-point cushion at 17-7 in the second quarter with 6:43 left on the clock. Davis’ field goal ended a 16-play, 66-yard scoring drive, which was helped by a 19-yard Darion Griswold pass catch from Kennedy. The Kennedy-Griswold combination struck again on A-State’s next possession as Kennedy hit the Red Wolves’ sophomore tight end on a 13-yard TD strike with 2:13 remaining to finish an 85-yard march as the hosts went up 24-7 before the end of the half.

A-State managed to increase its lead to 31-7 early in the third quarter as Adam Kennedy hit Darion Griswold in the back of the end zone from one yard away with 10:48 showing on the clock as the pair accounted for their second scoring play in a row. Idaho countered on its next possession with a field goal by kicker Austin Rehkow, who booted a 28-yarder around the seven-minute mark as the Vandals to make it 31-10. A R.J. Fleming 56-yard return on the ensuing kickoff put the ball into Idaho territory at the UI 43-yard line, but Adam Kennedy’s pass was intercepted three plays later and returned 37 yards by safety Trey Williams to the A-State 39-yard line. The turnover helped set up an Idaho touchdown, a 15-yard TD pass from quarterback Taylor Davis to wide receiver Dezmon Epps, exactly three minutes later as the Vandals cut the margin to 31-17.

Idaho came right back with another touchdown on its second play in the fourth quarter as the Vandals scored 17 unanswered points as a result of running back James Baker’s one-yard TD run to draw within 31-24 at the 14:22 mark. However, A-State would get those points back in one play, 12 seconds later to be exact as J.D. McKissic took an Idaho kickoff from his two-yard line and ran a school third-longest 98 yards for the touchdown to give the Red Wolves a 38-24 advantage. The Red Wolves added a Brian Davis’ 21-yard field goal with 6:19 remaining and tacked on seven more points at 2:39 on senior running back David Oku’s three-yard TD scamper.

The Red Wolves piled up 26 first downs and 565 yards in total offense, which featured 375 yards in passing and 190 yards rushing. Adam Kennedy threw for a career game-high 375 yards, which included 260 in the first half, and four scores on 22-of-32 passing. J.D. McKissic hauled in nine of those aerials for 80 yards, Darion Griswold five for 89, and Julian Jones had four grabs for 135 yards as the trio accounted for a combined 304 receiving yards and all three of A-State’s TD receptions. Senior running back Sirgregory Thornton’s 85 rushing yards led the Red Wolves.

Idaho, which netted 386 total offensive yards with 212 in the air and 174 on the ground, was led by James Baker’s game-leading 150 rushing yards on 23 carries and Taylor Davis’ 199 yards in passing with a 14-of-39 performance.

Junior linebacker Qushaun Lee turned in a game-high 15 tackles for A-State and was aided by junior linebacker Kyle Coleman’s career-best nine stops. Junior free safety Sterling Young and senior defensive tackle Ryan Carrethers supplied seven tackles apiece. For Idaho, linebacker Marc Millan led the way with 11 tackles.

Overall I thought our guys played really hard,” said Harsin. “I thought our guys came off the sidelines and made adjustments that they needed to make. Idaho was a team that is improved, which you knew they would be after the teams that they played. They’re going to come back after the loss. That’s what happens, you get coached harder, and that’s how it is. We knew the mentality of those guys would be tougher and about doing more things. The nice thing about it is that we can go back and make all of those corrections with a win next to it before we go back on Tuesday and play Louisiana-Lafayette.”

Arkansas State closes out its two-game homestand Tuesday, Oct. 22, as the Red Wolves go up against the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns at Liberty Bank Stadium in Jonesboro, Ark. A 7 p.m. (CT) kickoff is scheduled for the Sun Belt Conference (SBC) contest, which will be televised to a nationwide audience on ESPN2. The Red Wolves, the two-time defending SBC Champions, are currently 1-0 in league play this fall.

Red Wolves Howl: A-State registered its third straight homecoming victory and is now 10-1 in such contests over the last 11 seasons … The Red Wolves are 39-8 at Liberty Bank Stadium to date since 2005 and have won 14 of their last 15 home appearances … A-State extended its win streak in the month of October to nine games … The Red Wolves improved to 58-27-1 all-time in their annual homecoming game as a result of the win over Idaho … Adam Kennedy‘s 375 passing yards represents the sixth highest single-game output in school history … Qushaun Lee tied a personal career game high with 15 tackles, matching his output at Nebraska last season … A-State eclipsed the 400-yard mark in total offense for the fifth time this campaign with its 565-yards output.

ARKANSAS STATE FOOTBALL POSTGAME NOTES Vs. Idaho (October 12, 2013)

Arkansas State is 3‐3 through six games for the second consecutive year.
A‐State recorded two non‐conference victories for the third straight season.
A‐State won its sixth consecutive game at Liberty Bank Stadium and secured at leasta .500 home record.
Arkansas State won its ninth straight game in the month of October.
A‐State now has three consecutive Homecoming victories and improved its record to10‐1 in such games over the last 11 seasons.OFFENSIVE NOTES

A‐State’s 80‐yard touchdown pass on its first possession was its longest completion of the season and its second longest play of any kind.
A‐State recorded over 300 yards total offense for the 40th time over its last 44 games.
A‐State finished with 565 yards total offense, marking the fifth time over its first sixgames its gone over 400 yards.
A‐State finished with over 500 yards total offense for the third time this season, andits 565 total was its second most of the year.
A‐State scored over 30 points (48) for the third time this season and the 21st timeover its last 29 games.
Sr. QB Adam Kennedy threw multiple touchdown passes in a game for the first time this season, finishing the game with a career‐high four. Kennedy now has seven TD passes on the season, more than doubling his total entering the game. His 4 TD passes tied the second most in school history for a single game . . . Kennedy threw for a career‐high 375 yards and went over 300 yards passing for the second straight game. His 375 yards passing were the sixth most in school history for a single game.
Sr. WR Julian Jones recorded his team‐leading third TD reception of the season and the 10th of his career, which ties the sixth most in school history. The touchdown covered a career‐long 80 yards . . . Jones went over 100 yards receiving for the second straight game (also the second time of his career).
Soph. WR J.D. McKissic recorded his second receiving TD of the season and the seventh of his career, which leaves him one shy of tying the 10th most in school history . . . McKissic extended his streak of consecutive games with a reception to 19 (every game of his career) . . . McKissic led A‐State in receptions for the second straight game and now has 24 catches over that span.

Sr. RB Sirgregory Thornton led Arkansas State in rushing for the first time this season, finishing with 85 yards on just 13 attempts.
Sr. RB David Oku recorded his fifth rushing TD of the season, which was also his first since the Troy game . . . He now has 21 career rushing TDs and a rushing score in 13 of his 19 career games at A‐State.
Soph. TE Darion Griswold recorded his first two career touchdown receptions, while also setting a new career high for receiving yards with 89 and tying his career‐high for receptions with 5.DEFENSIVE NOTES

Arkansas State recorded at least one turnover for the fifth consecutive game, posting its fourth interception of the season. The interception was its first since the Troy game.
Sr. DL Dexter Blackmon recorded his second sack of the season, but his first since the Troy game. He also finished with a career‐high two TFL and a career‐high five tackles.
Sr. DL Ryan Carrethers recorded one sack, giving him a team‐leading 3.5 for the season . . . Carrethers also finished with seven tackles – only one shy of his season‐ high eight against UAPB.
Jr. LB Qushuan Lee recorded tied his career high for tackles in a game with 15 (also had 15 against Nebraska last season . . . It was the second time this season he has recorded double‐digit tackles and the fifth time of his career.
Soph. CB Rocky Hayes recorded his team‐leading second interception of the season to go along with four tackles. Hayes also had a career‐high two tackles.
Sr. LB Kyle Coleman recorded a career‐high nine tacklesSPECIAL TEAMS

Sr. K Brian Davis was 2‐of‐2 on field goal attempts in the game, making him 9‐of‐9 on the season . . . Davis now has 50 career field goals made, making him one of two A‐ State players to ever record 50‐plus FGs – Josh Arauco is the other . . . Dating back to last season, he has now connected on his last 11 field goals in a row for the second longest streak in school history.
Sr. WR R.J. Fleming took his first kickoff return of the season 56 yards, which was the longest by an A‐State player since the 2011 season.
Soph. WR J.D. McKissic posted a 98‐yard kickoff return for a touchdown that was the third longest return in school history . . . It was the first kickoff return for a touchdown by an A‐State player since 2001 when James Hickenbautham had a 93‐ yard return against Idaho.