GAME 1: Arkansas State (0-0) at No. 5 Oregon (0-0)
September 3, 2012 (Autzen Stadium)
Eugene, Ore. (9:30 p.m. CT)
Radio: EAB Sports Radio Network (107.9 FM, flagship)
TV: ESPN
LIVE STATS: AStateRedWolves.com
ON TAP: The defending Sun Belt Conference champion Arkansas State Red Wolves open their 2012 campaign at No. 5 Oregon Saturday at 9:30 p.m. (CT) in an ESPN-televised game. Every A-State game can be heard live on 107.9 FM in the Jonesboro area and the live radio broadcast can be accessed through the Arkansas State athletic Web site (AStateRedWolves.com).
THE PRINCIPALS: A-State is coming off a 10-3 season, a perfect 8-0 record in Sun Belt Conference Play and an apperance in the 2012 GoDaddy.com Bowl in Mobile, Ala. The Red Wolves also won the SBC Championship outright for the first time in school history and became just the third school to go undefeated through league play in SBC history.
HEAD COACH GUS MALZAHN: Gus Malzahn was named the Red Wolves' 28th head football coach at Dec. 14 press conference, bringing him back to his home state after most recently enjoying highly successful stints as a top assistant coach at three NCAA FBS universities that garnered him national acclaim. A name highly recognized throughout Arkansas and the nation, Malzahn comes to Arkansas State after serving as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Auburn for the past three seasons. A native of Fort Smith, Malzahn was named the winner of the 2010 Frank Broyles Award, given annually to the nation's top collegiate assistant coach.
THE ARKANSAS STATE - OREGON SERIES: Saturday's game will mark the first ever meeting between Arkansas State and Oregon. It will also be the first time that an ASU football team has played a game in the state of Oregon.
A-STATE vs. THE PAC-12: This will be Arkansas State's first ever meeting against a Pacific-12 school.
98th SEASON SET TO BEGIN: Arkansas State will kick off its 98th season of football Sept. 1 at Oregon. ASU now holds a 416-454-37 record since the inaugural 1911 season and has played in eight bowl games. A-State did not field a football team from 1942-44 due to World War II. ASU also didn't have a team in 1918 as World War I was ending.
STARTING STRONG: Guz Malzahn will have the opportunity to accomplish something that hasn't been done by an ASU coach since 1979 when the Red Wolves play Oregon, and that's to win his first game. Larry Lacewell was ASU's last coach to win his debut game, leading A-State to a 24-14 victory over east Texas State 33 years ago. ASU's previous six head coaches all suffered setbacks in their first game, including Al Kincaid, Ray Perkins, John Bobo, Joe Hollis, Steve Roberts and Hugh Freeze.
FOR STARTERS: ASU is 44-46-6 all-time in season openers. A-State dropped a 33-15 decision to Illinois last season, but won back-to-back season openers against Mississippi Valley State (2009) and Texas A&M (2008). The Red Wolves will opens the year against Oregon for first time in school history.
CHALLENGING START: Since moving to Division I-A in 1992 the Red Wolves haved kicked off 15 of 20 seaons with an opponent from the SEC, ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 or PAC-12. A-State's lone victory in those 15 games came in 2008 when it knocked off Texas A&M 18-14, but the Red Wolves feel by just eight points (21-13) against Texas in 2007, seven points (38-31, 2OT) to North Carolina State in 2000 and three points (17-14) versus Minnesota in 2008.
SENIOR BOWL WATCHLIST: For the first time in school history ASU has two players on the Senior Bowl Watch list. Senior quarterback Ryan Aplin and senior wide out Josh Jarboe were added to the watch list on August 24.
PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE: Senior quarterback Ryan Aplin was named Sun Belt Conference Preseason Offensive Player of the Year and one of four A-State players named to the all-conference team at the league's Media Day in New Orleans. Aplin, senior wideout Josh Jarboe, senior offensive lineman Zack McNight and senior defensive back Don Jones were all named to the Preseason All-SBC Team.
RED WOLVES TABBED SECOND IN PRESEASON SBC POLL: The Red Wolves were picked second in the preseason coaches poll announced as part of the league's annual Media Day. Arkansas State received 85 points and two first place votes, just behind Florida International, which received five first place votes and 92 points to earn the nod as the preseason favorite in the league race. The Red Wolves won the Sun Belt Conference Championship a year ago after posting a perfect 8-0 record in league play during the 2011 season. Louisiana-Lafayette, Western Kentucky and Troy rounded out the top five in the poll, and FIU defensive lineman Tourek Williams was named the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.
HIGHLY TOUTED RECRUITING CLASS: With a Parade All-Amercian, Under Armour All-American, NJCAA All-American, 23 players that earned either junior college all-conference or high school all-state recognition and 18 players rated at least three stars by one or more of the major recruiting sources, the 2012 ASU signing class could be considered one of the best in the history of the ASU football program. Arkansas State had the top-rated class in the Sun Belt Conference by Rivals.com, Scout.com, ESPN.com and 247Sports.com.
COACHING RECOGNITION: First-year Arkansas State Head Football Coach Gus Malzahn was recognized as one of the top hires in the nation this offseason, named as the No. 4 best hire and No. 2 most intriguing hire in the nation by CBSSports.com. He was also one of two head coaches in the nation to receive a grade of A+ among new hires for the 2012 season by the Sporting News. Bleacher Report's "Over/Under Victories" for every new head coach places A-State at nine victories, one of the tops listed in the report.
RETURNING ALL-CONFERENCE PLAYERS: A-State returns five 2011 All-Sun Belt Conference players this season, inlcuding the league's Player of the Year in senior quarterback Ryan Aplin. Aplin was a first-team selection and was joined by second-team choices Josh Jarboe (Sr., WR) and Nathan Herrold (Sr., LB). Returning as honorable mention choices are senior wideout Taylor Stockemer and senior punter Neely Sullivent.
GODADDY.COM BOWL: Arkansas State accepted an official invitation to the GoDaddy.com Bowl last season following its victory over Middle Tennessee on Nov. 19, placing the Red Wolves in a bowl game for the first time since 2005 when they played Southern Miss in the New Orleans Bowl in Lafayette, La. ASU was bowl eligible for the first time since 2008, but for the fourth time over the last seven seasons. ASU reached bowl eligibility after just eight games, making last year the earliest ASU had ever been bowl eligible as an FBS member (since 1992).
SUN BELT CHAMPIONS: Arkansas State claimed its first ever outright Sun Belt Conference championship last season. Including 2011, Arkansas State has won eight conference championships all-time. ASU won the Southland Conference seven times (1986, 1985, 1978, 1975, 1970, 1969, 1968). ASU also won the 2005 Sun Belt Conference championship, but it was later vacated due to NCAA sanctions.
IN THE POLLS: Arkansas State received as many as 18 votes in the AP Top 25 Poll and 13 votes in the USA Today Top 25 Coaches Poll, while also ranking as high as No. 35 in the BCS and reaching No. 30 in the CBSSports.com 120 rankings during the season.
APLIN ON NUMEROUS WATCH LISTS: An All-America and Heisman candidate, senior quarterback Ryan Aplin has garnered a significant amount of national attention this preseason as he is listed on the Walter Camp Player of the Year Watch List, Davey O'Brien Award Watch List, Johnny Unitas Award Watch List and the Manning Award Watch List. Video, action photos and biographical information for Aplin are all available on a Facebook Page, maintained by the ASU Sports Information Department, called "Ryan Aplin All-America and Heisman Campaign." Fans and media will be able to follow Aplin's 2012 season on the page, where updates will be posted throughout fall camp and the upcoming season.
ATHLON'S PRESEASON HONORS: The Red Wolves had six players named to Athlon's preseason All-Sun Belt Conference Team, including senior quarterback Ryan Aplin (first team), senior wide receiver Josh Jarboe (first team), senior offensive lineman Zack McKnight (first team), senior linebacker Nathan Herrold (first team), junior defensive lineman Ryan Carrethers (second team) and senior safety Don Jones (second team).
PHIL STEELE'S PRESEASON HONORS: Phil Steele's preseason All-Sun Belt team featured 12 A-State players, including first team selections Ryan Aplin (Sr., QB) and Josh Jarboe (Sr., WR). ASU's 12 selections tied the fourth most in the league with Troy. Earning a spot on the second team were Taylor Stockemer (Sr., WR), Zack McKnight (Sr., OL), Nathan Herrold (Sr., LB), Chaz Scales (Sr., DB) and Andrew Tryon (So., DB), who made the team as a kick returner. The Red Wolves' third-team choices were Frankie Jackson (So., RB), Ryan Carrethers (Jr., DL) and Brian Davis (Jr., K), while Ishamail Hayes (Jr., DE) and Qushaun Lee (So., LB) were fourth-team selections.
COLLEGE SPORTS MADNESS PRESEASON HONORS: CollegeSportsMadness.com has announced its preseason All-Sun Belt Conference Team, which includes Offensive Player of the Year Ryan Aplin (Sr., QB). Along with Aplin, Zack McKnight (Sr., OL) was named a first team choice. Second team selections inlcuded Josh Jarboe (Sr., WR), Brian Davis (Jr., K) and Nathan Herrold (Sr., LB). A-State's third team picks included Taylor Stockemer (Sr., WR), Andrew Tryon (So., DB) as a kick returner and Chaz Scales (Sr., DB).
BLUE RIBBON PRESEASON HONORS: The Blue Ribbon Preseason All-Sun Belt Conference Team included Arkansas State players Josh Jarboe (Sr., WR), Ryan Aplin (Sr., QB) and Nathan Herrold (Sr., LB).
MOST WINS AS AN FBS MEMBER: Arkansas State recorded its most victories ever as an FBS member with 10 last season, topping the previous best of six wins in 1995, 2002, 2005, 2006 and 2008. The last time the Red Wolves won 10 games at any level was 1986 when it posted a 12-2-1 record and finished as the NCAA I-AA runner-up. A-State's 10 victories ties the fourth most in school history. ASU had 10 victories in 1951, 11 in 1970 and 1975 and 12 in 1986.
ON A ROLL: The 2011 campaign saw ASU win nine consecutive games for the first time since 1975 when it posted and 11-0 record. The Red Wolves' nine-game winning streak was the second longest in the nation entering the GoDaddy.com Bowl, behind only LSU (14) at the time. ASU's nine-game winning streak was the third longest in school history behind 16 from 1969-71 and 15 from 1974-76.
UNDEFEATED IN CONFERENCE: Lasy year, Arkansas State became just the third school in Sun Belt Conference history to ever go undefeated in league play. The only other schools to accomplish the feat were Troy in 2009 (8-0) and North Texas in 2004 (7-0), 2003 (7-0) and 2002 (6-0). While 2011 marked the first time ASU ever went undefeated in Sun Belt play, it also went undefeated against Southland Conference competition six times, including 1964 (2-0-2), 1968 (3-0-1), 1969 (4-0), 1970 (4-0), 1975 (5-0) and 1986 (5-0).
CONFERENCE WINNING STREAK: Arkansas State's eight-game conference winning streak is its longest since the 1985-86 seasons when it won 10 in a row as a member of the Southland Conference. The Red Wolves' conference winning streak is also currently tied for the third longest in the nation with Northern Illinois. TCU has a 24-game conference winning streak and LSU has won nine straight league games.
REGULAR-SEASON WINNING STREAK: The Red Wolves ended the regular season on a nine-game winning streak, one of the longest in the nation. Along with Northern Illinois, ASU's opponent in the 2012 GoDaddy.com Bowl, the Red Wolves regular-season winning streak is the third longest in the nation behind only LSU (13) and Georgia (10). Following ASU and NIU, Louisiana tech, TCU and Virginia Tech all have a seven-game win streak to their credit heading into the 2012 season.
TOP TURNAROUNDS: Arkansas State tied for the nation's second highest turnaround in games improved last season, posting 10 in 2011 after finishing 2010 with four. The Red Wolves had a 5.5 game improvement, while Houston led the nation in games improved (7). Also with 5.5 games improved last season were Cincinnati and ULL.
FINISHING IN THE FOURTH: Arkansas State has outscored its opponents 118-41 in the fourth quarter last season. The Red Wolves were outscored just twice in the fourth quarter all season, and that came by a one-point margin in the North Texas game. ASU did not allowed a fourth-quarter score in seven games, including five of the last seven.
GRABBING AN EARLY LEAD: Arkansas State has opened up a double-figure lead in the first quarter its last six games in a row, outscoring its opponents 77-9 over that span. During its nine-game winning streak, ASU scored first seven times.
DOUBLE DIGITS: Arkansas State won seven games by a double-figure margin last season, which was its most since 1986. ASU won five of its last seven games by at least 18 points.
TOP 50: Arkansas State is ranked among the top 50 teams in the nation in 12 statistical categories, including total offense (24) and total defense (24).
HOME SWEET HOME: With a 6-0 home record last season, Arkansas State secured its seventh consecutive winning record at ASU Stadium dating back to 2005. ASU is now 31-7 at ASU Stadium since the 2005 season. The Red Wolves actual on-field record all-time at ASU Stadium is 123-70-1 since it opened in 1974. ASU's six home wins this season are its most since 1985, and the last time the Red Wolves went undefeated at home was 2005 (5-0).
CROWD SUPPORT: Arkansas State's first two home games this season were played in front of the largest back-to-back crowds in ASU Stadium history. The 29,872 in attendance for the Memphis game made it the second largest crowd in ASU Stadium history and the 27,918 announced for the UCA game was the fourth largest. The Red Wolves average home attendance of 21,257 was a school record, topping the old record of 21,105 set in 2008. ASU's average attendance of 21,257 was the second highest in the Sun Belt Conference.
PILING UP THE YARDS: The 2011 Arkansas State offense recorded over 300 yards of total offense in all but one game, over 400 yards in seven games, over 500 in four games and over 600 in two. ASU averaged 447.8 yards per game and went over 5,000 total yards for the first time in school history.
LIGHTING UP THE SCOREBOARD: A-State recorded at least 30 points in eight games last season, including six of the last seven, and its 422 points were the third most in school history. The last time ASU scored 30-plus points in eight games was 1951 (10 times).
300-PLUS: Dating back to the 2010 season, Arkansas State has posted at least 300 yards of total offense 24 of its last 25 games. ASU's school-record 14 consecutive games with over 300 yards of total offense came to an end against Virginia Tech last season, but it has now reached the total in 10 straight games.
MR. 3,000: Junior QB Ryan Aplin is one of just two players in Sun Belt Conference history to record 3,000 yards total offense in two different seasons. Aplin posted 4,176 yards of total offense last season, and he recorded 3,416 in 2010 as a sophomore. The only other player that has accomplished the feat is FAU's Rusty Smith in 2007 and 2008.
AMONG THE BEST PASSERS IN SCHOOL HISTORY: Junior quarterback Ryan Aplin, who holds the school record for passing yards in a game (438 at UL Lafayette in 2010), is one of just three players in ASU history to record over 7,000 passing yards (7,416) and also one of just two to post over 8,000 yards of total offense (8,734). He is also ranked first all-time in completions (633) and third in TD passes (43). He has completed at least one TD pass in 10 consecutive games.
ECLIPSING 200/300: Junior quarterback Ryan Aplin has passed for at least 200 yards 22 times during his career, and all 22 games have come over his last 27 played. Aplin has recorded over 300 yards of total offense 13 times during his career, including the Illinois, UCA, WKU, FIU, North Texas, Middle Tennessee, Troy and Northern Illinois games last season.
1,500 YARD CLUB: Senior wide receiver Taylor Stockemer is one of just seven players in school history to record over 1,500 career receiving yards. His 1,663 career yards ranks sixth all-time at ASU.
SCORING DEFENSE: The Arkansas State defense held six opponents under 20 points last season, including five of the last eight. Last year marked the first time since 1987 ASU held three consecutive opponents under 20 points. The last time A-State held six opponents to less than 20 points over the course of an entire season was 2002.
STINGY DEFENSE: The ASU defense has held five opponents under 300 yards total offense, including four of the last seven, and eight under 350 yards. The last time ASU held eight teams under 350 yards of total offense was 2008. ASU ranked No. 24 in the nation in total defense.
HOLDING THEIR GROUND: The ASU defense has allowed just 4.7 yards per play last season, which tied the fifth lowest average in Sun Belt history. The Red Wolves also allowed just 32 touchdowns, which tied the fourth fewest in league history. Additionally, its 20.8 points surrendered per game was the fifth lowest average in Sun Belt history.
STOPPING THE RUN: The ASU defense allowed just 3.0 yards per rush and 103.5 rushing yards per game, which ranked tied for the third lowest and second lowest averages, respectively, in Sun Belt history.
YOUNG STEPPING UP: Since joining the starting lineup in the FIU game, redshirt freshman safety Sterling Young averaged 6.1 tackles per game and recorded a team-best 43 total tackles. He posted a career-high 10 tackles against FAU to lead the ASU defense.
