Red Wolves proud of new state mark

ASU's head coach Blake Anderson
ASU's head coach Blake Anderson

JONESBORO -- When the Arkansas State University football team beat Texas State 30-12 Saturday, it gained the sixth victory necessary to become the first Arkansas college football program to go to seven consecutive bowl games.

The streak began for ASU (6-3, 5-1 Sun Belt Conference) when Hugh Freeze coached the Red Wolves to a 10-3 season in 2011 that ended with a 63-44 loss to Toledo in the GoDaddy.com Bowl. A seventh bowl will surpass three separate streaks of six by the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville -- most recently from 1998-2003 under coach Houston Nutt.

Saturday’s game

Arkansas State at Louisiana-Monroe

WHEN 2 p.m. Central, Saturday

WHERE James L. Malone Stadium, Monroe, La.

RECORDS Arkansas State 6-3, 5-1 Sun Belt Conference; Louisiana-Monroe 4-6, 4-3

INTERNET ESPN3

Before the streak, ASU had been to only one NCAA Division I bowl game -- a 31-19 loss to Southern Miss in the 2005 New Orleans Bowl.

"I think it means a lot for the program," said redshirt junior quarterback Justice Hansen, who began his college career at Oklahoma, which is now eligible for its 19th consecutive bowl game. "I think Arkansas State's best football is still ahead of it. Getting bowl eligible again is just the next step."

ASU Coach Blake Anderson said in July that the program's ultimate goal is to bring "that signature season to Jonesboro" by earning the New Year's Six Bowl slot guaranteed to the Group of 5 conferences' highest-ranked champion.

With No. 15 Central Florida (10-0), No. 21 Memphis (9-1) and No. 25 Boise State (9-2) each ranked in the College Football Playoff poll, it is all but certain a Sun Belt member will not represent the Group of 5.

That leaves the Sun Belt's bowl ties with the New Orleans Bowl, Dollar General Bowl, Camellia Bowl, Cure Bowl and Arizona Bowl, which choose their teams in that order in a draft-selection process.

The Sun Belt's season has been too inconsistent to earn the automatic bid.

ASU began the season with a 43-36 loss to Nebraska, which resembled Troy's narrow loss to Clemson last season that helped the Trojans earn a No. 25 ranking they would later surrender. The Nebraska loss offered promise until the Red Wolves lost 44-21 to SMU.

Troy followed its 24-21 victory over then-No. 25 LSU with a 19-8 loss to South Alabama, which also beat ASU 24-19 on Nov. 11.

Then on Saturday, South Alabama lost 52-0 to winless Georgia Southern, which led to South Alabama's only coach in its 10-year history, Joey Jones, to resign Monday afternoon.

"Nothing surprises me anymore in terms of a win or a loss," Anderson said. "If you don't bring it on Saturday, you're going to get beat. That's your job. If you don't bring it, you're asking to get beat.

"It doesn't matter if the team you're playing has not won a game, or if they're 10-0, it does not matter. The team that brings the intensity, plays a game on Saturday, has a chance to win. That's what you love about the game."

Anderson announced that redshirt sophomore Javier Carbonell will be out for the season with a high ankle sprain that "could need surgery." Carbonell had 18 tackles and half a sack on the season before he suffered the injury in Saturday's game against Texas State.

Redshirt sophomore running back Jamal Jones also broke his hand, Anderson said, but could play in Saturday's game against Louisiana-Monroe with a cast.

photo

Javier Carbonell

Sports on 11/21/2017

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