Trailing 31 to 3 late in the game, the Arkansas State Athletic Department selected one of the way-too-many media time outs to unveil a new contest. Jonesboro radio personality Brandon Baxter invited a young woman onto the field and challenged her to name as many NBA teams as she could in 15 seconds. The young woman was clearly excited by the moment, and in those fifteen seconds, she dropped at least three F-bombs, flustering Baxter and momentarily amusing a Red Wolves crowd that had, until that point, nothing to be amused about.
After all, the entire game was a F-bomb to the fans. If you weren’t in the stadium Saturday evening, it’s difficult to comprehend just how miserable the Arkansas State offense played against the Memphis Tigers. The game opened with two fine stops by the Red Wolves’ defense, only to be rewarded for it with a quick three-and-out and and even quicker one-and-out, courtesy of the first of two JT Shrout interceptions. A promising drive – sparked by the only interesting offensive play of the evening; a lateral flea flicker that put A-State deep into Memphis territory – concluded abruptly with a Brian Snead* fumble on a two yard run. When joy threatened, the Red Wolves offense squashed it. Again. And again. And again.
Pigskin bounced off receivers’ hands. Passes were thrown into double coverage. Separation was rarely made. Every pass play seemed to be either a dice-roll shot down to sideline or a low yield lateral. Every run appeared telegraphed to the Memphis defense. Shrout was picked-off twice attempting to force a ball to Corey Rucker, the second resulting in a crowd-killing Pick Six. The Tigers retained possession a full 11 minutes longer than Arkansas State, brutalizing a Red Wolves defense that did its best to provide offensive opportunities.
At least Arkansas State scored. With four seconds left on the clock, Dominic Zvada drilled a 34-yard field goal to record not just the first A-State points of the game, but of the season. The program felt this milestone was one to celebrate.
Were there bright spots? I guess. Defense played well enough, recording a pair of sacks and eight TFL. The offensive line seemed to give both Shrout and later Dailey enough time to cook. Ja’Quez Cross was an effective running back, averaging better than 6-yards per carry. (For some reason, the hotness of his hand remained largely unfelt by the A-State coaching staff, who seemed determined to pound the ball for minimal yardage with Wallace.)
Notably, Shrout was lifted from the game after inexplicably retreating from the pass rush for a 17 yard loss that nearly resulted in a safety for Memphis. The lefty Jaxon Dailey took Shrout’s place behind center, providing some lift with his moxie, but the results more or less remained the same – missed throws, missed catches, low-yeied runs, three-and-outs.
How do you move forward from this? This is a team that cannot score points. It’s a team that cannot reward defensive efforts. It’s a team that is still without an offensive playmaker. This is a team that could not muster the extra effort to compete against an ancient rival. This is a team that could quite conceivably lose to Stoney Brook next week.
The game ended perfectly. With one last chance to score the program’s first touchdown of the season, Zak Wallace** coughed up fumble, setting up Memphis ‘ final touchdown as the clock expired. It was an embarrassing thing to allow in your own stadium – the small contingent of Memphis fans cheerly wildly for the back up QB to run seven yards for the score to conclude one of the worst efforts ever seen on a gridiron. But there it was. And the woman listing NBA teams wasn’t the only one in the stadium dripping F-bombs.
Photo Credit: Mine
CORRECTIONS
* An earlier version of this story attributed the fumble to Zak Wallace
** An earlier version of this story attributed two fumbles to Mr. Wallace
Howlraiser 