Arkansas Business

This story is from the archives of ArkansasSports360.com.

Arkansas State had the kind of season Red Wolves fans have been dreaming about for years in 2011.

But quarterback Ryan Aplin dares to dream of more.

A Sun Belt championship, a perfect run through the conference, national notoriety and a bowl berth beyond the conference's usual tie to the New Orleans Bowl all came A-State's way last year.

Aplin was a huge part of the success, leading the team in passing as well as rushing. Aplin is a two-time, all-Sun Belt first-team selection who passed for 3,588 yards and 19 touchdowns and led ASU to its 8-0 Sun Belt record. Aplin also led the Red Wolves with 588 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns.

It was the best season since 1986 for A-State (10-3) and marked its first Sun Belt Conference championship and bowl appearance, the GoDaddy.com Bowl, since 2005.

“I think it’s always been a dream,” Aplin said in Aplin Still Has Appetite To Help A-State Advance part of our 2012 ArkansasSports360.com Football Preview. “This group of guys I came in with, when we got here we always talked about how we wanted to turn things around and change things before we left.

“The transformation between when we got here and now is almost a complete 180.”

How can it get much better than last season, when Aplin was No. 20 in the nation in passing, just ahead of guys like Robert Griffin III and Andrew Luck?

“I had good numbers last year but there’s always room for improvement,” Aplin said.

Find out Aplin's thoughts on life under new coach Gus Malzahn, his desire to improve and what he thinks is next for the Wolves in our 2012 ArkansasSports360.com Football Preview magazine.

•Tempo will be key for the offense at Arkansas State this season.

•Plenty of folks will get to watch the ASU offense. There's no shortage of Red Wolves' TV games in 2012.

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As always, our football preview is free. You can pick up a copy of our primer for the 2012 season today at locations across Central Arkansas, Northwest Arkansas and Northeast Arkansas. There is still a limited number of copies available though print versions of the magazine are going fast. Click here for a map of locations. Remember, the magazine is free.

Can’t get your hands on a copy of the print edition? We’ve still got you covered with our digital edition of the 2012 ArkansasSports360.com Football Preview.