LITTLE ROCK — The top two offenses in the Sun Belt Conference will be on display today in Troy, Ala.
Arkansas State - ranked second in total offense in the Sun Belt - will face the conference’s top offense at Troy at 2:30 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Stadium. The Red Wolves average 432 yards per game, while Troy’s offense leads the conference with 470.7 yards per game.
“We’ve got a tremendous challenge ahead of us,” Red Wolves Coach Steve Roberts said.
ASU (1-2, 1-1 Sun Belt) has lost three consecutive to Troy (1-2, 0-0), including losses of 35-9 in the 2008 season finale and 30-27 last year in Jonesboro. The Red Wolves’ last victory against the Trojans was in 2006 (33-26).
ASU leads the series 5-4, although the series is tied at 3-3 since both teams have played in the Sun Belt Conference. The Red Wolves won the first three Sun Belt games in 2004-2006, but Troy has won the past three in the series.
“It’s been a very good series,” Roberts said. “We’ve been very evenly matched.”
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Ryan Aplin has powered the Red Wolves’ high-octane offense under first-year offensive coordinator Hugh Freeze. Aplin has completed 73 of 119 passes (61.3 percent) for 959 yards with 4 touchdowns and 1 interception. He has rushed for 57 yards on 37 carries with 2 touchdowns.
Aplin was named the Sun Belt’s co-offensive player of the week along with Troy freshman quarterback Corey Robinson on Monday. Aplin completed 20 of 32 passes for 243 yards and 1 touchdown and ran for another score in ASU’s 34-20 victory over Louisiana-Monroe last Saturday in Jonesboro.
“We’ve come to expect a lot from him,” said Roberts of Aplin, who will make his seventh career start today.
ASU is fourth in the nationin passing offense (333.7 yards per game) and Aplin is fifth in total offense (338.7 ypg). The Red Wolves offense has averaged more than 350 yards of offense in each of their first three games.
“I’m real proud of where we are,” Roberts said. “What’s intriguing is that we’ve left some points out on the field every time we’ve played. We have to cash in the opportunities.”
Over the past four years, Troy has been the class of the Sun Belt, winning four consecutive conference championships under veteran coach Larry Blakeney. The Trojans lost to Central Michigan last season in the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, Ala.
Troy will be playing its first conference game today after suffering close losses at Oklahoma State (41-38) andAlabama-Birmingham (34-33), the latter on a last-second Hail Mary pass. The Trojans’ only victory came at home in the season opener against Bowling Green, 30-27.
Robinson has completed 79 of 120 passes for 928 yards with 6 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. Wide receiver Jerrel Jernigan is the Trojans’ top receiving threat with 21 receptions for 175 yards and 1 touchdown. He also leads the nation in kickoff return yardage, averaging 46.4 yards per return with one touchdown.
“They’re very athletic,” Roberts said. “They’ve got great team speed. They move the ball offensively. ... Nobody has won there twice. We’ve got to dominate up front with our defensive line. Offensively, we have to stay on the ball and on schedule.”
Last year’s loss to Troy set the tone in a negative way for the Red Wolves, as they finished 4-8 overall and 3-5 inthe Sun Belt. A victory today could give the Red Wolves a boost going into October and more important, a 2-1 conference record.
“A win this week would be huge,” Roberts said. “To be a champion, you have to beat the champion. It would be a huge win.”Arkansas State at TroyWHERE Veterans Memorial Stadium, Troy, Ala.
WHEN 2:30 p.m. Central today RECORDS Arkansas State (1-2, 1-1 Sun Belt Conference); Troy (1-2, 0-0) COACHES Steve Roberts (42-57 in nine seasons at Arkansas State, 91-90-1 in 17 seasons overall); Larry Blakeney (155-79-1 in 20 seasons at Troy) SERIES Arkansas State leads series 7-5.
TV Comcast SoutheastRADIO KABF-FM, 88.3, in Little Rock; KFINFM, 107.9, in northeast Arkansas; KTLOAM, 1240, in Mountain Home; KWYN-AM, 1400, in Wynne; KRLW-AM, 1320, in Walnut Ridge/Pocahontas; KRLW-FM, 106.3, in Walnut Ridge/Pocahontas; KWAK-FM, 105.5 FM, in Stuttgart; KQEW-FM, 102.3, in Fordyce; KOOU-FM, 104.7, in Hardy;
KAPW-FM, 99.3, in Brinkley/Forrest City;
KAFN-FM, 102.5, in Gould/Monticello INTERNET astateredwolves com
Sports, Pages 28 on 09/25/2010