JONESBORO, Ark. (11/22/08) ? Junior quarterback Corey Leonard
passed for 280 yards and three touchdowns and junior tailback Reggie Arnold
added 150 yards and a score on the ground to lead the Arkansas State Red Wolves
(5-5, 3-2) to a 28-14 Sun Belt Conference victory over Florida Atlantic (5-6, 2-3) Saturday afternoon at ASU Stadium.
Leonard completed 19-of-27 passes on the day, including six for a
game-high 98 yards and a touchdown to wide receiver Brandon Thompkins, helping
ASU outgain Florida Atlantic 482 to 259 yards on the afternoon. Arnold's 150 yards on the ground gave the
junior from Little Rock 3,022 yards for his career and moved him from sixth to
third place on the ASU career rushing charts.
The ASU defense was led by junior defensive lineman Alex
Carrington's six tackles, while sophomore safety M.D. Jennings added four
tackles, an interception and three pass breakups.
After going into the locker room with a 14-14 halftime deadlock, Arkansas
State used a five-yard touchdown run from Arnold to go on top 21-14 with 6:32
remaining in the third quarter, then got a two-yard touchdown pass from Leonard
to junior tight end J.T. Jordan on the first play of the fourth quarter to make
it 28-14, ASU. The Red Wolves defense
held Florida Atlantic to just 52 yards in the final two quarters to get the
second-half shutout.
“It was a complete team victory,” said ASU head coach Steve
Roberts. “I thought the defense was
absolutely dominant in the second half.
Our players played extremely well and extremely hard and it's great to
get a win over a very good Florida Atlantic team. They had won four straight games coming in
here and they are basically the same team of conference champions as last year.”
Florida Atlantic took a 7-0 lead on its first possession when the
Owls drove 80 yards in 10 plays, capping the drive with a 2-yard plunge from
senior tailback Charles Pierre. Senior kicker
Leroy Warley added the first of two extra points on the day to complete the
possession with 10:57 remaining in the first quarter.
Arkansas State answered with a 5-play 43-yard drive that ended
with Leonard's first touchdown pass of the afternoon. Facing 4-and-10 at the Owl 34, Leonard found
a wide-open Thompkins in the left corner of the end zone for the touchdown
strike. Placekicker Josh Arauco tacked
on the first of his four extra points to tie the game at 7-7 with 2:17 to play in
the opening quarter.
The Red Wolves went on top 14-7 less than three minutes later when
Leonard connected with junior tight end Trevor Gillott for a 28-yard touchdown
on the first play of the second quarter, but Florida Atlantic tied the game
just 10 seconds before halftime when junior quarterback Rusty Smith hit junior
tight end Rob Housler with a 3-yard touchdown pass.
With the win, Arkansas State remains in the hunt for the Sun Belt
Conference championship, one game behind league-leading Troy and
Louisiana-Lafayette. The Red Wolves will
be back in action Nov. 29 when ASU travels to Denton, Texas to take on the Mean
Green of North Texas.
