Dear Red Wolf Club Members,
What a thrilling start it has been to our 2011-12 athletic year! Our football team has won a Sun Belt Conference championship, accepted an invitation to the GoDaddy.com Bowl and is on the verge of achieving a top-25 national ranking. With an opportunity to complete a flawless run through the Sun Belt Conference and a chance to wrap up our home schedule with an undefeated record, we hope you can join us for a strong finish to the regular seasson when we host Troy on Dec. 3 at ASU Stadium. The football team will then look to put the finishing touches on one of the best seasons in school history when it plays in the GoDaddy.com Bowl in Mobile, Ala., on Jan. 8.
But our football team isn't our only program to turn in a great season so far this year. Our women's soccer team tied the school record for Sun Belt Conference wins and made a return trip to the legaue tournament, our volleyball team won the Sun Belt Conference West Division and our bowling team is ranked No. 6 in the nation as their season is underway.
Our student-athletes have been awarded multiple honors for their competitive achievements and are countinuing to excel in the classroom. We will be excited to honor them for their academic achievements when we announce our most recent Athletic Director's Honor Roll at halftimne of our men's basketall game against SEMO on Nov. 29.
We are proud of the great we are off to in 2011-12, and we are excited to see what the rest of the year has in store for our athletic programs. From our ASU Athletic Department family to yours, we hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Go Red Wolves!
Sincerely,
Dean Lee
ASU Director of Athletics
ARKANSAS STATE ATHLETICS RECENT ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND NEWS
· Morrill Earns Conference Honor (11/22/11): Following her performance in Arkansas State's 84-71 victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, forward Jane Morrill was named the Sun Belt Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Week.
· Sun Belt Champs and GoDaddy.com Bowl (11/19/11): Following its 45-19 victory at Middle Tennessee that clinched at least a share of the Sun Belt Conference title, the Arkansas State Red Wolves football team officially accepted an invitation to the GoDaddy.com Bowl.
· Volleyball All-Sun Belt (11/16/11): Senior Cayla Fielder earned All-Sun Belt Conference first team honors and junior Allison Kearney and sophomore Ashley Tipps were named second team selections.
· 2012 Non-conference Football Schedule (11/16/11): The Athletic Department announced the completion of the 2012 non-conference football schedule with the addition of Alcorn State to next year's slate.
· Volleyball Sweeps Awards (11/14/11): Jasmine Terry and Megan Baska were voted the Sun Belt Conference's Volleyball Player of the Week and Defensive Player of the Week after leading the Red Wolves to their third consecutive SBC West Division Championship.
· Joiner Honored (11/14/11): Senior defensive end Brandon Joiner was named the Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Week and the National Defensive Lineman Performer of the Week by College Football Performance Awards.
· Weekly Awards (11/14/11): Following his performance in Arkansas State's 30-21 Sun Belt Conference victory over Louisiana-Lafayette, junior quarterback Ryan Aplin was named SBC Offensive Player of the Week by CollegeSportsMadness.com, and sophomore placekicker Brian Davis and senior punter Neely Sullivent were named to the national honorable mention list by College Football Performance Awards.
· Aplin Wins SBC Award (11/7/11): Junior quarterback Ryan Aplin was named the Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Week after rushing for four touchdowns and adding another through the air in ASU's 39-21 victory over FAU.
· Tag Day (11/2/11): The Red Wolf Club held a “Tag Day” on Nov. 3 at the Convocation Center, where current and prospective Red Wolf Club members had the opportunity to view and purchase available season ticket seats for the men's basketball season.
· Evening Out with the Red Wolves (11/2/11): The women's basketball program hosted its annual “Evening Out with the Red Wolves” at the ASU Convocation Center.
· Aplin Honored (10/31/11): Following his performance in ASU's 34-17 victory over North Texas, junior quarterback Ryan Aplin was named the Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Week by Rivals.com and College Sports Madness.
· Davis Recognized by the CFPA (10/31/11): Senior Demario Davis was one of 11 players from across the nation to be named a CFPA Honorable Mention Linebacker of the Week following ASU's game against North Texas.
· Baska Named Defensive Player of the Week (10/31/11): Sophomore Megan Baska was named the Sun Belt Conference Volleyball Defensive Player of the Week after helping the Red Wolves go undefeated at home with victories over UL Lafayette and UL Monroe.
· Bowling Ranked Sixth in the Nation (10/27/11): The women's bowling team was ranked sixth in the firstNational Tenpin Coaches Association poll with 360 points.
· Preseason Men's Basketball Honors (10/26/11): The men's basketball team was picked to win the Sun Belt Conference's West Division, and junior Trey Finn was a preseason second team All-Sun Belt Conference selection.
· Preseason Women's Basketball Honors (10/25/11): The women's basketball team was picked to finish second in the Sun Belt Conference's West Division, and senior NeNe Hurst was named preseason first team all-conference.
· TopDrawerSoccer.com Honors (10/24/11): Freshman Jessica Jingblad and junior Ashley McMurtry were named top-20 players in the Sun Belt Conference by TopDrawerSoccer.com.
· Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame (10/24/11): Arkansas High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame member, former Newport High School head football coach and current Arkansas State football radio color analyst Bill Keedyhas been selected as a part of the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame Class for 2012.
· Men's Basketball Community Service (10/20/11): Several members of the men's basketball team donated their time to the Northeast Arkansas Food Bank to help move and box up food for those in need.
· Lady Red Wolf Classic Champions (10/18/11): The women's golf team won the Lady Red Wolf Classic for the third consecutive year, and junior Jennifer Loiacano captured the first individual title of her career.
· Walk to Cure Diabetes (10/14/11): The men's basketball team participated in the Walk to Cure Diabetes, benefiting the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, in Jonesboro.
· Phil Steele's Mid-Season Recognition (10/14/11): The football team placed 11 players on Phil Steele's 2011 Midseason All-Sun Belt Conference Team, including three first team selections. Tom Castilaw was also named to the publications All-America Team as an honorable mention selection.
· Bleymaier Guest Speaker (10/17/11): A highly respected administrator and leader in college athletics, former Boise State Athletic Director Gene Bleymaier was featured as a guest speaker at the ASU Convocation Center auditorium.
· Sun Belt Recognizes Jones and McCray (10/10/11): Senior safety Kelcie McCray and junior defensive back Don Jones were both named Sun Belt Conference Football Players of the Week following the Red Wolves' 24-19 victory over ULM.
· Three Honored by CFPA (10/10/11): Senior safety Kelcie McCray, sophomore punter Ryan Wilbourn and senior wide receiver Dwayne Frampton were all honored by the CFPA as honorable mention national players of the week.
· Fielder Receives Pair of Weekly Honors (10/4/11): Senior Cayla Fielder was named the Sun Belt Conference Volleyball Player of the Week and the CVU.com National Player of the Week on Oct. 3 and Oct. 4, respectively.
· Aplin Named SBC Player of the Week (10/3/11): A junior on the football team, quarterback Ryan Aplin was named the Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 3.
· Davis Receives Recognition (9/26/11): Following his ASU and Sun Belt record-setting performance against UCA, sophomore kicker Bryan Davis was name d the Sun Belt Conference Special Teams Player of the Week, aLou Groza Award Star of the Week and the CFPA's National Placekicker of the Week.
· Baska Earns Weekly SBC Honor (9/19/11): Sophomore libero Megan Baska earned her second Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Week award this year after helping the volleyball team post a 4-0 record.
· Manning Award Star (9/12/11): Following his performance in ASU's 47-3 victory over Memphis, quarterback Ryan Aplin was selected as one of eight quarterbacks from across the nation to be named to the Manning Award Stars of the Week list.
· Jarboe Honored by CFPA (9/12/11): Junior wide receiver Josh Jarboe was selected as one of nine wide receivers from across the nation to be named to the honorable mention list for the College Football Performance Awards' Wide Receiver of the Week award following the Memphis game.
· Hall of Honor (9/9/11): The Arkansas State Lettermen's Club inducted three new members into the ASU Hall of Honor at its annual Lettermen's Banquet at the Cooper Alumni Center. All three inductees were members of the ASU football program, including offensive tackle Garry Johnson, defensive end Marvin Neloms and linebacker Joe Turner.
· 9/11 Tribute (9/9/11): To honor the 10th anniversary of 9/11, the athletic department held several tributes to honor our nation during its home football opener against Memphis.
· Order of the Pack (9/8/11): Arkansas State held its 15th annual Order of the Pack pep rally at ASU Stadium to recognize its student-athletes for their commitment to ASU and to induct a new class of students into the Red Wolves family.
· Let 'Em Here You How Friday's (9/7/11): Fans are encouraged to take part in “Let 'Em Hear You Howl Friday's” by wearing red to school or work each Friday before a Red Wolves home game to show support for the ASU football team.
· Red Wolf Walk (9/7/11): The football team will held its first official “Red Wolf Walk” under head coach Hugh Freeze prior to the Memphis and UCA games. Fans had the opportunity to join members of the ASU band, cheerleading squad, A-Team and Howl to cheer on the Red Wolves as they make their way to the locker room prior to their home opener against Memphis.
· Scott Signs Pro Contract (8/31/11): Former women's basketball player Shay Scott signed with the Holon team of the FIBA National Federation and will continue her playing career in Israel.
· Cross Country Ranked (8/30/11): The women's cross country team opened the season ranked No. 11 in the South Central Region by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.
· Welcome Back (8/29/11): The Athletics Department hosted its annual Student-Athlete Welcome Back event at the Fowler Center and the Convocation Center, as members of all 16 sports gathered for an evening of dinner and entertainment.
· Baska Earns Weekly Honor (8/29/11): The Sun Belt Conference announced that sophomore libero Megan Baska earned SBC Defensive Players of the Week honors after setting a new career-high in digs at the Samford/UAB Invitational.
