Courtesy: Arkansas StateArkansas State vs. Texas Southern final stats (.pdf)
JONESBORO, AR – Arkansas State scored early and often in its home debut Saturday night, pounding Texas Southern 83-10 in front of a crowd of 21,741 at ASU Stadium.
Freshman tailback Derek Lawson rushed for 209 yards and a touchdown in the game, the 8th most rushing yards in ASU history. Junior tailback Reggie Arnold added 123 yards and two touchdowns and junior quarterback Corey Leonard accounted for 229 yards of total offense and threw for four touchdowns as Arkansas State finished with 670 yards of total offense in the game, the second most in school history.
“I’m proud of a lot of individuals. They all played a great game,” said ASU Head Coach Steve Roberts. “All four of the running backs that carried the ball did a tremendous job. Reggie obviously got out of the game very early, and then Derek Lawson came in and rushed for more than 200 yards. You guys got to see a little bit of Derek Lawson that we get to see every day in scout team. I am also really proud of David Johnson. He had a big night, especially early in the game.”
“Defensively, we went out and did what we needed to do and shut them down,” added Roberts. “We gave up a couple of big plays, but overall did a good job. Our football team has got to get over this win in a hurry because we have a big game next week.”
ASU got on the board with less than two minutes gone in the game with a 53-yard pass from Leonard to Johnson. Two minutes later, Leonard connected with junior tight end Trevor Gillott from 39 yards out for the 14-0 ASU lead.
A 25-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown from sophomore linebacker Javon McKinnon, a 33-yard field goal from junior Josh Arauco, and a two-yard pass from Leonard to freshman fullback Jeff Blake wrapped up a 31-0 first quarter for ASU.
Leonard and Johnson hooked up for their second touchdown pass of the night just 29 seconds into the second quarter, and Arnold scored on touchdown runs of two yards and 56 yards before Texas Southern got on the board with a 34-yard field goal from Robert Hersh to make it 52-3 at the half.
A five-yard touchdown run from Lawson, a 30-yard field goal from Arauco and an eight-yard touchdown run from senior quarterback Travis Hewitt made it 69-3 before the Tigers scored their only touchdown of the night on a 32-yard pass from quarterback Bobby Reid to wide receiver William Osbourne.
Blake added a 15-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter, and freshman linebacker Demario Davis returned a fumble 53-yards for a touchdown to set the final at 83-10 after Arauco’s 11th extra point. Arauco was 11-for-11 on extra points to tie the ASU record, and 2-for-2 on field goal tries on the night.
The Red Wolves’ 83 points were the second most in school history and the most in the history of ASU Stadium. The 73-point margin of victory was the most under head coach Steve Roberts.
Arkansas State continues a three-game home stand next week when they host Southern Miss in a 6 p.m. game at ASU Stadium.
Texas Southern next game is Sept. 13 at the Capital City Classic (Sacramento, California) Hughes Stadium, against CIAA Division II foe, Shaw University (N.C.). Game time is at 2:05 pm PT. The Tigers are currently on a 15 game losing streak.
Attendance: 21,741 (70.2%) at ASU Stadium, Little Rock, AR (Capacity: 30,964).
UK Jeremy Jarmon takes down Spartans running back Takeem Hedgeman.
