JONESBORO -- It wasn't pretty. Far from it.
FCS opponent Southern Illinois gave Arkansas State University all it wanted, and then some, in Coach Blake Anderson's return to Centennial Bank Stadium on Saturday night.
The Red Wolves fended off SIU 41-28 in a game that felt much closer than what the scoreboard showed.
The Salukis (2-2) turned the ball over twice, had two turnovers on downs -- including one in their own territory and the other inside the red zone. They missed a field goal and dropped a potential touchdown pass. The Red Wolves (2-2) turned those mistakes into a combined 28 points.
"Never gripe about a win, even when it's not a really pretty win," Anderson said. "We found a way to get it done."
The Salukis' offense had no trouble hitting ASU with big plays all night, and their defense sacked junior quarterback Logan Bonner five times, all in the first half.
Bonner had a big night in spite of that, finishing 17-of-31 passing for 320 yards, 4 touchdowns and hauling in one 37-yard reception off a wide receiver pass from Omar Bayless on the second play from scrimmage, which set up an early Ryan Graham rushing touchdown.
"Well I felt like if Omar gave me a better ball, I might have scored," Bonner said with a grin.
With starting quarterback Stone Labanowitz sidelined with a shoulder injury, SIU relied on backup Kare Lyles, as well as loads of designed running plays out of the Wildcat for Javon Williams Jr., a bruising, 6-1, 239-pound running back. The Salukis found plenty of success moving the ball, outgaining ASU 526-474 and holding the ball 15 minutes longer. Lyles threw for 288 yards and 2 touchdowns, and Williams rushed 17 times for 103 yards and a touchdown.
"All in all, I thought Southern Illinois did a great job offensively keeping us off balance, frustrated us all night," Anderson said. "Just really, really a frustrating evening just trying to find something that we could get some rhythm with defensively."
But it was big mistakes by SIU throughout that turned a close game into a two-score victory for the Red Wolves.
With the game tied 7-7 early in the first quarter, SIU Coach Nick Hill gambled, going for it on fourth and 2 on the Salukis' 45. It didn't pay off, as a Williams pass fell incomplete. Moments later, Bonner hit senior wide receiver Kirk Merritt for a 43-yard touchdown pass, which put ASU up 14-7 with 7:47 left in the opening quarter.
Merritt finished with 10 catches for 131 yards and 2 touchdowns. Bayless had 3 receptions for 141 yards and a touchdown, and junior receiver Jonathan Adams added a touchdown catch.
"It's great in this offense that we have so many guys," Merritt said. "Just in case they try to double team one guy, we have another guy as a weapon."
Early in the second quarter, with the Red Wolves leading 17-14, the Salukis hurt themselves again. SIU receiver Avante Cox put the ball on the ground on a reverse, and the ball fell at the feet of junior defensive end William Bradley-King for an easy recovery.
ASU took over at SIU's 30, and five plays later, Bonner and Merritt hooked up for a 10-yard touchdown pass over the middle for a 24-14 lead with 11:23 left in the half.
The Salukis then had two promising drives to close the second quarter that could have tightened things. But one resulted in a missed 26-yard field goal, and the other in a Tajhea Chambers interception in the end zone with 1:07 left before the half.
Bonner then marched ASU down field 91 yards in six plays and hit Adams for a 25-yard touchdown pass, giving the Red Wolves a 31-14 lead heading into the half.
After opening the third quarter with a nine-play, 75-yard touchdown drive, which trimmed ASU's lead to 31-21 with 11:50 left in the third quarter, the Salukis decided to gamble again.
Facing fourth and 1 from ASU's 7, SIU rolled Williams out, but his throw to the end zone fell incomplete. The Red Wolves took over, and Bonner hit Bayless deep seconds later for an 89-yard touchdown pass -- the second-longest passing play in ASU history. The Red Wolves led 38-21 with 5:16 left in the third quarter.
"They gave us a perfect look. I was just trusting Omar," Bonner said. "I told him before the drive, 'Hey, if we get that look, just run. Put your head down and run, and I'll give it to you.' "
Trailing 41-28 late in the fourth quarter, SIU still had a chance to keep the game close. But another mistake -- this time a dropped pass by running back Romeir Elliott on a fourth and goal at ASU's 5 -- helped seal the ASU victory.
Sports on 09/22/2019