MONROE, La. (10/28/23) – A second-half offensive surge on Saturday afternoon carried the Arkansas State football team past ULM, 34-24, at Malone Stadium.
A-State (4-4, 2-2 SBC) earned its 14th consecutive win over the Warhawks (2-6, 0-5) and scored 24 points in the second half. The Red Wolves out-gained ULM 457-448, including 298 passing and 159 rushing, marking their second straight game of 400-plus yards.
Zak Wallace rushed 18 times for 118 yards and two scores, averaging 6.6 yards per carry, while Corey Rucker hauled in six receptions for a season-high 160 yards – his third time recording 100-plus receiving yards against the Warhawks.
Charles Willekes led A-State with a career-high 12 tackles, including a sack, with freshman Javante Mackey matching his season high of 11 stops. Nate Martey posted a career-high eight tackles and added three quarterback hurries.
ULM had a pair of early touchdowns wiped due to penalties, but struck first on a 50-yard field goal by Derek McCormick. A-State answered on the next drive, marching 75 yards in under two minutes to take a 7-3 lead on a 2-yard rushing score by Raynor.
McCormick added a pair of field goals from 30 and 20 yards out to give the hosts a 9-7 lead with 5:32 left in the first half, but Dominic Zvada booted a 49-yard kick through the uprights with just over 2 minutes left in the half to give the Red Wolves a 10-9 lead at the break.
The Warhawks retook a 16-10 lead in the third quarter when Blake Murphy found Nolan Quinlan for a 32-yard touchdown. Murphy completed 25 of his 44 passes for 300 yards and two scores for ULM.
A-State then scored 24 unanswered points to lead 34-16, beginning with a 5-yard touchdown pass from Raynor to Courtney Jackson to cap a 13-play drive that made it 17-16 after three.
Wallace then found the end zone twice early in the fourth quarter, scoring on rushes of 34 yards and 1 yard to push the Red Wolves' lead out to 31-16. Zvada tacked on a 42-yard field goal with 2:08 left to cap A-State's scoring. With 22 seconds remaining, Murphy connected with NyNy Davis for a score, followed by a successful 2-point conversion, but the onside kick was recovered by the Red Wolves to seal the win.
NEXT UP
Arkansas State returns home to Centennial Bank Stadium to host Louisiana on Saturday, Nov. 4. Kickoff against the Ragin' Cajuns is set for 2 p.m. on ESPN+. radio broadcast can be heard on the EAB Red Wolves Sports Network as well as on the A-State Red Wolves mobile app.
