SUN BELT: ASU sparked by lightning delay, struck down

— Arkansas State was less than a minute away from beating the fourtime defending Sun Belt Conference champions. But its defense couldn’t hold on.

Corey Robinson threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Shawn Southward with 22 seconds left as Troy rallied for a 35-28 victory over Arkansas State in a game that was delayed almost two hours by lightning at Veterans Memorial Stadium on Saturday.

The Red Wolves (1-3, 1-2 Sun Belt) went up 28-27 after redshirt sophomore Ryan Aplin threw a 30-yard touchdown pass to Allen Muse with 50 seconds left.

But Robinson, who completed 17 of 37 passes for 316 yards, spurred Troy in the final minute, throwing for 67 yards on the final drive. JamieHampton’s pass to Jerrel Jernigan was good for the two-point conversion.

ASU had one last chance to win it, but Aplin was sacked by Kanorris Davis on the final play of the game.

The game was delayed one hour and 45 minutes because of lightning.

Troy (2-2, 1-0) has won four in a row against ASU, dating to 2007. The Trojans outgained ASU 505-450, with 319 yards passing. The Red Wolves turned the ball over twice while Troy had two turnovers.

Aplin completed 16 of 32 passes for 237 yards with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. He also ran 17 times for 89 yards. The second-year starter has thrown for 1,196 yards and 6 touchdowns infour games this season.

Muse had 7 receptions for 119 yards and 1 touchdown to lead ASU’s receiving corps.

Jernigan caught 10 passes for 209 yards and 1 touchdown. Chris Anderson ran 15 timesfor 74 yards and 1 touchdown.

ASU returns home Saturday to face Big East member Louisville at ASU Stadium for homecoming. Louisville (1-2) is coached by Batesville native and former Florida offensive coordinator Charlie Strong.

In games involving Sun Belt Conference teams, Phillip Tanner ran for 104 yards and a touchdown and D.D. Kyles scored twice to lead Middle Tennessee to a 34-14 victory over host Louisiana-Lafayette. The Blue Raiders (2-2, 1-0) took a 10-0 lead early in the second quarter on Kyles’ 8-yard touchdown run. Tanner rushed for a 26-yard touchdown to put Middle Tennessee ahead 17-7 midway through the second. The Ragin’ Cajuns (2-1, 1-1) cut the margin to three points twice on Chris Mason’s 3-yard pass to Ladarius Green and Blaine Gautier’s 2-yard run that made it 17-14 with 3:04 left in the first half. MTSU’s Alan Gendreaumade a 55-yard field goal - the secondlongest in school and conference history - to give the Blue Raiders a 20-14 halftime lead. Logan Kilgore connected with Malcolm Beyah for a 62-yard touchdown and Kyles scored from 74 yards away inthe third quarter. ... Riley Dodge threw two touchdown passes to Darius Carey and North Texas beat Florida Atlantic 21-17 in the conference opener for both teams in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. James Hamilton also scored a touchdown for North Texas (1-3), which amassed 257 rushing yards. Dodge completed 10 of 15 passes for 146 yards in the Mean Green’s first victory over Florida Atlantic (1-2) in the seven game series. North Texas stretched its lead to 21-10 on Hamilton’s 32-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter, but the Owls would close the gap on the ensuing possession. Jeff Van Camp’s 36-yard touchdown pass to Rob Housler pulled Florida Atlantic within 21-17. Van Camp finished 20 of 31 for 273 yards. ... Kolton Browning ran for a touchdown and passed for another as Louisiana-Monroe beat Southeastern Louisiana 21-20 in Monroe, La.Browning threw a 47-yard touchdown pass to Tavarse Maye on the Warhawks’ first offensive play of the fourth quarter. Radi Jabour’s PAT provided the winning margin. The Warhawks (1-2) scored two touchdowns in the second quarter to take a 14-7 lead. Browning scored on a 10-yard run, and Anthony McCall recovered a fumble in the end zone. The Lions (1-3) led 20-14 after Zeke Jones’ 2-yard run in the third quarter, but missed the point after.

Sports, Pages 30 on 09/26/2010

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