JONESBORO -- Tajhea Chambers' legs went into shock.
Needing 34 yards to score his first touchdown since 2014, the sophomore linebacker scooped up one of four fumbles Arkansas State University's defense produced and plunged forward on a night the Red Wolves' offense gashed Georgia State for 530 yards to overshadow a fine evening from ASU's defense.
Chambers was untouched for the 34 yards. Touchdown.
" 'Is this really happening?' " He said he asked himself. "That was a good experience."
Chambers' fumble recovery for a touchdown increased ASU's lead Thursday to 34-7 to help put the Panthers away, Chambers said.
"Yeah," Chambers said. "That gave us a big confidence boost."
After rolling up a season-high 51 points, 257 passing yards and 273 rushing yards, Thursday was the boost ASU's offense needed to right a ship that capsized during ASU's two losses to open Sun Belt Conference play.
Given the offense's fireworks, ASU's defense received little fanfare after it bottled up one the country's premier receivers and barrelled through Georgia State's offense.
Panthers junior wideout Penny Hart, who led all active FBS receivers in career receiving yards per game (81.7) prior to Thursday did not catch a pass until the third quarter. He finished with four receptions for 58 yards and no touchdowns.
"You definitely want to know where he's at," said ASU Coach Blake Anderson. "He's one of the best in the league. He is dynamic. We had a good plan. I thought we always tried to keep guys having help. When we didn't have help, we were bringing bodies to get to the quarterback, and I thought we made him really uncomfortable."
Junior dual-threat quarterback Dan Ellington, whose 249 total yards per game entering Thursday was the fourth-best average among Sun Belt players, was sacked 4 times and gained 52 rushing yards on 18 carries (2.9 yards per carry).
The Red Wolves (4-3, 1-2 Sun Belt) brought a relentless pass rush at Ellington throughout the evening. Eight tackles for loss, 5 pass breakups, 4 sacks and 4 fumbles (2 recovered by Chambers) made for an uncomfortable outing for the Panthers.
The Red Wolves also prioritized sending multiple defenders to Hart's area, making sure the speedster could not gouge them.
Senior edge rusher Ronheen Bingham said he noticed Georgia State attempted to free up Ellington better in the second half, but the Red Wolves' pass rush was overwhelming.
The Panthers brought additional bodies, often a tailback or tight end, to block Bingham and reduce his effectiveness.
"Yeah, they were chipping me a lot in the second half," said Bingham, whose two sacks and two tackles for loss led all Red Wolves.
Thursday was about the revival of ASU's offense, but there was enough room for the defense to share the limelight.
"We've got their back 100 percent," Chambers said. "They know that."
Sports on 10/20/2018