LAFAYETTE, La. -- Dijon Paschal thought maybe, just maybe, his Arkansas State football team was about to escape with a most improbable victory Saturday afternoon.
"I was jumping for joy," the junior wide receiver said of a wild final play at Cajun Field that at first appeared to give the Red Wolves a come-from-behind victory.
Instead, ASU left with a 24-19 loss to Louisiana-Lafayette, when a replay official ruled that quarterback Justice Hansen's knee touched down before he lateraled the ball to offensive tackle Joseph Bacchus, who scooped it up and ran 7 yards into the end zone.
One official signaled touchdown, which led to ASU's sideline spilling onto the field.
Then, after an official announced that a review showed Hansen's knee had touched down, it was the Ragin' Cajuns' turn for jubilation. One Louisiana-Lafayette player did a cartwheel, then a backflip on the turf field before the team gathered to kneel the final 2 seconds off the clock.
"What a few minutes to be in limbo to say the least," Cajuns Coach Mark Hudspeth said. "Unbelievable release for everyone on that field when they finally got that call."
The final sequence highlighted ASU's regular-season troubles when it neared the end zone Saturday, as it lost to a Sun Belt team for the first time in over two years as well as its chance to win an outright conference title.
"I'm down and frustrated and disappointed," Coach Blake Anderson said. "But, it's what I told the guys was possible. Lafayette is a physical, big football team. Backs against the wall, got to win to go to a bowl game. Don't expect it to be any less than 60 minutes."
Anderson's list of frustrations was long while speaking near the team's bus. He noted the team's red-zone struggles, and its defense giving up four pass plays of 30 or more yards.
But, at the top was an attitude that he said was evident from the outside.
Defensive end Ja'Von Rolland-Jones said the team played "flat" even as it took a 7-0 lead before falling down 14-7 at halftime and 21-10 entering the fourth quarter.
"Playing around with them too much," Rolland-Jones said. "When you're on the road and they have something up for grabs and we have something up for grabs, it's all about who is going to shut it down and focus and get the job done."
Neither Anderson, Rolland-Jones, Hansen nor Paschal could pinpoint a reason why ASU came out flat nine days after taking control of the Sun Belt race. But it was easy for them to pick out moments in which it was costly.
There was a first-quarter interception return of a tipped-pass for a touchdown that made it 7-7.
There were 128 yards rushing, 6 trips to the Louisiana-Lafayette red zone, but only 1 touchdown and 2 J.D. Houston field goals to show for it.
ASU got all the way to the Ragin' Cajuns 1 in the second quarter when Chad Voytik was stuffed on fourth down. The Cajuns then responded with a 99-yard drive ending with Elijah McGuire's 14-yard touchdown catch that made it 14-7.
"If we can't get a foot, we don't deserve to win and honestly that's how the day went," Anderson said. "We've got to get it in."
Cajuns quarterback Anthony Jennings, the former LSU quarterback, passed for 242 yards, a good chunk coming on big pass plays to Ja'Marcus Bradley, Al Riles and Keenan Barnes.
ASU (6-5, 6-1) pulled within 14-10 on a 20-yard Houston field goal, then Jennings connected with Bradley for 42 yards, then Riles for a 34-yard touchdown to cover 76 yards in two plays and a 21-10 lead.
ASU managed to give itself a chance.
Houston's 30-yard field goal made it 21-13, before Stevie Artigue's 34-yard field goal to give the Cajuns (5-6, 4-3) a 24-13 lead.
ASU responded with its best drive, going 75 yards in 5 plays capped by a 1-yard Warren Wand touchdown dive. ASU went for two to get within three points, but Sterling Stowers dropped a pass from Hansen leaving it at 24-19.
ASU started from its 20 on its final chance.
Hansen completed passes to Omar Bayless, Chris Murray, Paschal and Christian Booker to help get to the Cajuns' 11. But, again, ASU stalled after three incompletions before the fourth-down play.
"That's the last play, we've got to score, don't go down with the ball," Hansen said.
The play was ASU's last in a game when it outgained the Ragin' Cajuns 521-292 and held them to 50 yards rushing. It also means ASU needs one more victory for a share of the Sun Belt title.
"We'd love to have a share," Anderson said. "We didn't earn it outright. But there's a lot of teams in the country that would love a share of the title."
APPALACHIAN STATE 37,
NEW MEXICO STATE 7
LAS CRUCES, N.M. — Taylor Lamb accounted for three touchdowns, Jalin Moore ran for 111 yards and a score and Appalachian State cruised past New Mexico State.
Lamb completed 20 of 28 passes for 220 yards and 1 touchdown while rushing for 71 yards and two touchdowns. Marcus Cox had 140 yards on the ground and Michael Rubino kicked field goals of 20, 31 and 27 yards for Appalachian State (9-3, 7-1 Sun Belt). Moore scored on a 1-yard run and Lamb hit Shaedon Meadors for a 42-yard touchdown to make it 17-0 with 5:43 left in the first quarter.
A 54-yard touchdown pass from Conner Cramer to Tyrian Taylor pulled New Mexico State (3-8, 2-5) within 17-7, but Appalachian State scored the final 20 points — including scoring runs of 4 and 48 yards by Lamb.
The Mountaineers had 604 total yards and limited New Mexico State to 240, including none in the first quarter.
TROY 40, TEXAS STATE 7
SAN MARCOS, Texas — Brandon Silvers was 20 of 28 for 217 yards and 2 touchdowns as Troy beat Texas State. Troy (9-2, 6-1 Sun Belt) bounced back from last week’s 35-3 loss to Arkansas State. But with the Red Wolves losing to Louisiana-Lafayette, the Trojans can still clinch a share of the Sun Belt title with a victory over Georgia Southern next Saturday.
Jordan Chunn ran 19 times for 74 yards and 1 touchdown and Tevaris McCormick had 5 catches for 76 yards and 1 touchdown. Josh Anderson added 36 yards rushing and two touchdown runs for Troy.
Anderson’s second touchdown run made it 37-0 with 9:44 left in the third quarter.
Stedman Mayberry put the Bobcats (2-9, 0-7) on the board with a 10-yard run with 1:10 left in the third and Ryan Kay’s second field goal capped the scoring late in the fourth quarter.
IDAHO 38, SOUTH ALABAMA 31
MOSCOW, Idaho — Isaiah Saunders ran 23 times for 142 yards and 3 touchdowns Saturday and Idaho guaranteed itself a bowl game with a victory over South Alabama.
Saunders’ 1-yard score midway through the third quarter gave Idaho (7-4, 5-2 Sun Belt) the lead for good at 31-28. His 7-yard touchdown run with 14:27 left in the fourth quarter made it 38-28.
South Alabama (5-6, 1-6) cut the deficit to seven on Gavin Patterson’s field goal with 9:43 left, but the Jaguars punted with 5:55 remaining and ran out of time on their final possession after driving to the Idaho 32.
Matt Linehan passed for 231 yards and Callen Hightower had 5 catches for 111 yards and 1 touchdown for Idaho, which last played in a bowl game in 2009.
Dallas Davis threw for 320 yards and two touchdowns for South Alabama. Mseiah Francis had 7 catches for 146 yards and 2 scores.
Sports on 11/27/2016