LINCOLN, Neb. (09/12/09) - The Arkansas State Red Wolves slipped to 1-1 on the season with a 38-9 loss to the 18th-ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers (2-0) before a Memorial Stadium crowd of 85,035 Saturday afternoon in Lincoln. Saturday's attendance was the fifth-largest crowd to ever witness an Arkansas State football game.
Arkansas State senior tailback Reggie Arnold rushed for 83 yards and a touchdown, senior wideout Jahbari McLennan hauled in a career-high seven passes for 69 yards and senior quarterback Corey Leonard accounted for 153 yards of total offense on the day.
Defensively, the Red Wolves were led by a career-high 10 tackles from sophomore linebacker Demario Davis and seven stops from senior defensive back Cordarious Mingo, also a career high.
Junior quarterback Zac Lee completed 27-of-35 passes for 340 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Cornhuskers.
"Obviously I'm disappointed," said ASU head coach Steve Roberts. "We didn't play the way we're capable of playing. I have to give Nebraska a ton of credit, I thought they played very, very well. I thought they kept us off balance. Their quarterback had a tremendous night. He was on fire. I think that was a big difference in the game, their speed advantage. We did some things that we can build off of."
Nebraska scored on both of its possessions in the first quarter to open up an early 14-0 lead. Lee threw a pair of touchdown passes in the opening quarter, connecting with fullback Tyler Legate from three yards out with 11:40 to play in the period before hooking up with tight end Mike McNeill on a 13-yard strike with 1:15 remaining in the quarter.
Nebraska added a 30-yard touchdown run on a reverse from wide receiver Niles Paul early in the second quarter to take a 21-0 lead before the Red Wolves got on the board with a 1-yard touchdown run from Arnold with 5:30 to play in the first half.
Arnold's touchdown completed a 6-play, 32-yard drive, but placekicker Josh Arauco's extra-point was off the mark.
The Cornhuskers added a 26-yard field goal from Alex Henery with nine seconds remaining in the half to take a 24-6 lead into the locker room at the break.
A 32-yard touchdown pass from Lee to McNeill with 9:47 remaining in the third extended the Cornhusker lead to 31-6, but the Red Wolves answered with a 42-yard field goal from Arauco with 12:05 to play to trim the Nebraska advantage to 31-9.
The Cornhuskers completed the scoring when Lee found Paul in the end zone from two yards out with 8:14 remaining to set the final score at 38-9.
Following an open date next week, the Red Wolves will return to action Sept. 26 when they host the Troy Trojans in the Sun Belt Conference opener for both teams. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. and the game will be televised by the Sun Belt Network.
