Arkansas Business

This story is from the archives of ArkansasSports360.com.

Arkansas State 34, Western Kentucky 20

OFFENSE – B-plus

HIGHLIGHTS:  It took until the second quarter for Arkansas State to get up to steam against Florida International Thursday, but it was able to keep it its momentum going for most of the night. The Red Wolves put up their first offensive points when Ryan Aplin found freshman J.D. McKissic on a 74-yard touchdown pass with 11:46 left in the first half to give ASU the 7-3 lead. McKissic finished with a career high five catches for 124 yards. Aplin would run for his own touchdown in the third quarter, but it was the three rushing touchdowns from junior David Oku that proved to be the difference. Even with the touchdowns Oku didn’t lead the running attack. Freshman Rocky Hayes, who hadn’t produced much in the last couple of games, led with 84 yards on three carries. Most of that came when Hayes took off on a 74-yard run in the second half to set up one of Oku’s touchdowns. Hayes’ play was the longest for an ASU player since Derek Lawson had an 80-yarder against Texas Southern in 2008.

LOWLIGHTS: The Red Wolves didn’t move the ball much early, only totaling 63 yards in the first quarter. The Red Wolves were forced to punt after three plays on three of their first four drives. Their first drive went 49 yards but stalled at the FIU 26, which forced the only Brian Davis field goal attempt of the night, a 43-yarder that went wide left with 11:26 left in the first quarter.

DEFENSE – B-plus
HIGHLIGHTS: It was the defense that turned the game in ASU’s favor permanently. Behind interceptions giving the Red Wolves short field position, the turnovers led to the deciding 14 points in the game. Sterling Young intercepted FIU’s freshman quarterback E.J. Hilliard for his second career interception and the 29-yard return put ASU at the FIU 7. After sitting out the WKU game last week for a suspension, Qushaun Lee nabbed his third career interception on a diving catch with just over seven minutes to go in the third quarter. Both interceptions set up Oku touchdowns. Lee also led the team in tackles with 12, nine unassisted. Ronnell Wright earned his first career sack to give ASU at least one sack in 20 consecutive games.

LOWLIGHTS: Fourth down has proven to be the defense’s kryptonite this year. Red Wolves opponents have converted nine of 11 fourth-down attempts this year. FIU finished the night three for four. The defense began to lose some of its momentum in the third quarter when the Panthers marched 80 yards in 17 plays to score on a 5-yard run from Darian Mallary with 6:32 left in the game. That drive kept the offense off the field for eight minutes, and contributed to the Panthers winning the time of possession battle, with a time of 37:52.

SPECIAL TEAMS — C-minus

HIGHLIGHTS: Neely Sullivent averaged 53 yards on six punts for a total of 242 yards. A 38-yard punt in the second quarter pinned FIU inside its 10 and led to the first interception of the game.

LOWLIGHTS: Davis entered Thursday with a streak of five field goals, but that came to an end on ASU’s first drive when he sent a 43-yard attempt just left, giving FIU the ball. Davis would also miss on an extra point later in the game. Sullivent’s one hiccup came on a 21-yard punt that gave FIU the ball at the ASU 39. FIU would take an early three-point lead a few plays later. One of FIU’s three, fourth-down conversions came on a fake punt in the second quarter. Punter Josh Brisk ran up the middle untouched for 33 yards before FIU tackled him at the ASU 29. Three plays later Hilliard found Jacob Younger for a 19-yard touchdown to give FIU a 10-7 lead. Hayes avoided repeating a McKissic miscue that came in the Memphis game when Hayes managed to fall on a muffed punt reception.

OVERALL — B
WHAT WE LEARNED:  Except for the slow start for the offense, both units looked solid Thursday. The pass defense is clearly the backbone of John Thompson’s defense and Lee is a necessity, with ASU not allowing more than 200 yards passing in four games, though Thursday’s game could have an asterisk next to it since FIU was starting a freshman quarterback for the first time in a decade. Aplin looked like his old self, utilizing both his arm and legs the way he did in ASU’s championship season last year. After losing Dwayne Frampton last season, it didn’t take long for ASU to find his replacement. McKissic, with his career high night, has given every reason to be considered the No. 1 receiver on the team after six games. Also, the special teams has not instilled faith,outside of kickoff returns, where Hayes averaged 15 yards per return Thursday night.

PLAYERS OF THE GAME
OFFENSE: Oku had a career-high three touchdowns with only 57 yards rushing. The three touchdown runs are the most by an ASU player since Aplin had four against Florida Atlantic last year. Oku now leads the team with six touchdown runs.

DEFENSE: Lee made his presence felt after being absent last week, picking off a pass to set up a key touchdown while also making a team high 12 tackles.

SPECIAL TEAMS: Not Applicable.