All the Power Four bellyaching regarding the College Football Playoffs has me counting my blessings. Over the years, I’ve groused about the Group of Five’s growing irrelevance, frustrated by the corporate greed that has overtaken college football. But I’ve come to see something good and pure in the Arkansas State Red Wolves, a small market team with an charmingly irritable fan base and an heroically small operating budget. Like any fan, the only currency I respect is the first place gold of victory – so six-and-six doesn’t cut it. Yet, there was glitter I ignored while in the midst of my Chrysophilia fever dream.

For example, Arkansas State was 2-0 against the Sun Belt East this season. Furthermore, both of those opponents were expansion programs who at one time overtook the Red Wolves as Sun Belt Sheriffs. Defeating Georgia Southern in Jonesboro was a delight, but upending Appalachian State in the thin air of Boone is especially satisfying. The balance of our universe is restored.

The Red Wolves darkened Troy’s day as well. In the spirit of 2015, Arkansas State sauntered into Alabama and sacked the Trojans. Somehow, Troy still won the Sun Belt West, but Trojan dismay is ambrosia, even when short-lived. Eat it, Troy.

The Red Wolves were the first to welcome Texas State out the door, winning its first of three one-point victories on the year and setting the stage for five consecutive conference losses for the outgoing Bobcats. That was sweet.

There were the small moments, too, like Chauncey Cobb drilling Arkansas for a kick-return touchdown, or Corey Rucker becoming the all-time Sun Belt receiving leader. We witnessed what was possibly the worst defensive unit in college football at the beginning of the season become a pretty damn good defensive unit, with Demarcus Hendricks recognized with a Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week award. We bore witness to some thrilling two-minute drill football led by Jaylen Raynor. We saw the A-State defense collect nine sacks on Troy. We had our moments.

It wasn’t a great football season, but it wasn’t a bad football season. You know who had a bad football season? Arkansas.

At this moment, fans and mercenaries of Notre Dame, Vanderbilt, Texas and BYU are shaking their fists at the heavens and demanding to know why they must be allowed to suffer so. Let’s not act like them, We have reasons to be grateful. Three teams that defeated us – Arkansas, ULM and Iowa State – are sitting at home this bowl season, their fan bases deprived of post-season brotherhood and joviality. We’re going to the first ever XBox Bowl and it’s gonna be kinda cool.

It’s okay to wax poetic about Red Wolves football. We’ve had better, but we’ve had far worse, and I can’t think of a better way to end the year than to see you in Frisco.

PHOTO IS MY OWN