JONESBORO, Ark. – Despite a promising showing by the Missouri State offense that saw the Bears total 341 yards, Arkansas State used a series of big plays to build a 42-point halftime lead en route to a 70-7 victory Saturday evening before an announced crowd of 26,634 at Centennial Bank Stadium.
After tallying just 26 total points in its first two contests of the 2015 season, ASU (1-2) scored 28 points in less than 16 minutes of play Saturday to pave the way to its first victory of the season. The Red Wolves logged five different scoring plays of 26 yards or more in the first half, then tacked on three more touchdowns in the first nine minutes of the second half to seal the outcome.
A-State racked up 624 total yards in the game, including 344 on the ground. Quarterback James Tabary connected with 11 different receivers in completing 21-of-24 passes for 255 yards and three touchdowns in three quarters of play, while four ASU running backs combined for 320 rushing yards and six touchdowns.
The Bears (1-2) generated a significant offensive push of their own, despite finding the end zone on just one occasion. MSU rushed for 179 yards, getting a career-high 77 yards on eight carries from Jason Randall, while quarterback Brodie Lambert finished his night with 162 yards on 16-of-32 passing.
Ryan Heaston, who rushed for 67 yards on eight carries to complement Randall’s performance, broke up the Red Wolves’ shutout bid with a 35-yard scoring run that completed a 75-yard scoring drive for MSU. Heaston carried the ball five times for 55 yards during the drive, including a 13-yard run that set up his burst through the right side that put the Bears on the scoreboard for the first time late in the third period.
Missouri State won the time of possession battle and was flagged just two times on the night, but ASU limited the Bears to 3-of-14 third-down conversions and turned three MSU turnovers into 21 points.
Arkansas State wasted little time in setting the tone for the evening, using a 19-yard scoring pass from Tabary to tight end Darion Griswold on its third play from scrimmage to take an early seven-point lead. The Red Wolves defense forced a three-and-out on the Bears’ opening possession of the game, and Chris Murray returned a Chris Sullens punt 34 yards to the MSU 28, before Tabary connected on three consecutive pass attempts to put ASU on top just two-and-a-half minutes into the contest.
The Missouri State defense held firm on A-State’s second possession of the night to force a punt, and the Bears offense appeared poised for a promising drive after moving the chains with a pair of Heaston rushes for 11 yards and a nine-yard Lambert completion to Eric Christophel. But Khari Lane snatched a deflected pass out of the air and returned the interception 44 yards to pay dirt, stretching the ASU lead to 14-0.
ASU hammered out an 11-play, 65-yard drive late in the opening period to extend the margin further. Tabary completed all four of his pass attempts for 22 yards on the drive, while Michael Gordon accounted for 40 rushing yards — the last 26 of which capped the scoring drive and made it a three-possession game.
Tabary connected with J.D. McKissic (14 yards) and Warren Leapheart (20 yards) on back-to-back plays to set up another Red Wolves touchdown early in the second quarter. Warren Wand completed the drive with another 26-yard scoring scamper to hand ASU a 28-point lead just 58 seconds into the period.
Tabary, who completed 15-of-18 first-half passes for 174 yards, connected with McKissic on a 49-yard touchdown toss later in the second as part of a 92-yard scoring drive. Johnston White scored the first of his three touchdowns with a 56-yard run to complete the first-half scoring for ASU, which rolled up 353 yards of total offense and averaged 9.1 yards per play in the first 30 minutes of action.
MSU kicked its offense into gear in the second quarter as well, racking up 153 yards of offense in the period and 201 for the half. Lambert hooked up with Eric Christophel for a 46-yard completion midway through the second to give the Bears their best scoring opportunity of the half. But the Red Wolves thwarted the threat, forcing a 39-yard Shelby Harris field goal try, which was wide to the left.
Lambert was successful of 13-of-23 attempts for 158 yards, and Erik Furmanek hauled in four receptions to pace the Bears’ attack in the opening half.
Dylan Cole led the Bears in tackles for the third consecutive game, finishing with a game-high 11 stops, including 1.5 for losses. Redshirt freshman safety Tre Betts turned in a career-high nine tackles, six of which were solo stops for the Bears.
Following a break in the schedule next weekend, the Bears return to action Oct. 3, when they open the Missouri Valley Football Conference season with a 2 p.m. game against Indiana State at Robert W. Plaster Stadium.
— MSU Athletics —