Arkansas State quarterback Ryan Aplin ran for four touchdowns and passed for another to lead ASU past FAU, 39-21 on Homecoming night.
It is the Owls 11th loss in a row dating back to the 2010 season and the team is now 0-8 on the season, following a loss to the Red Wolves, who remain atop the Sun Belt Conference.
“We knew that they were leading the conference coming into the game,” said quarterback Graham Wilbert. “We made them look like the best team in the conference early especially with some different miscues.”
The “miscues” for the Owls were a total of four turnovers which included a Wilbert fumble late in the first half, with FAU inside the red zone, and two interceptions by Wilbert in the second half.
Despite a fumble by Alfred Morris, he rushed for a season high 163 yards and two touchdowns. The second score was his 26th career touchdown, an FAU record, but it wasn’t enough for the Owls.
“It feels very bittersweet but rushing [for more than] 100 yards was an objective for our goal to win but we didn’t get it done,” said Morris.
The Owls struggled early and were down 15-0 at the end of the first quarter. The second quarter saw the offense come to life, and Morris’s second touchdown made the score 18-14.
The first lead of the night for the Owls was early in the third quarter with an 18-yard touchdown pass from Wilbert to wide receiver Derek Moise to put the Owls ahead 21-18.
The drive went for 70 yards on eight plays and gave the home team some confidence.
“We had a lot of momentum,” said Morris. “We had them where we wanted them and we let them back in by [making] mistakes.”
The lead was quickly erased when Arkansas State countered back on the next drive with a 7-yard touchdown pass by Aplin to give the Red Wolves a 25-21 advantage midway through the third quarter.
FAU’s offense then went into a shell in the fourth quarter.
After drives by the Red Wolves of 73 and 31 yards, which resulted in touchdowns, the Owls were unable to respond and fell behind 39-21 — which ended up being the final score.
“This game is more disheartening because of how hard they played,” said head coach Howard Schnellenberger. “It was a game, as much as I was shouting out there on the sideline. I was a proud coach during the course of the game.”
The Owls go on the road next week and try to take out their rival, the FIU Golden Panthers, in search of their first victory in the 2011 season.
