? Bobby Reid was making his first start for Oklahoma State when Arkansas State made the trip to Stillwater, Okla., last year.
The Cowboys? sophomore quarterback is more advanced at this stage, judging by his performance in last weekend?s 52-10 rout of Division I-AA Missouri State.
Reid completed 8 of 17 passes for 165 yards and four touchdowns, two more than he had for all of 2005. ASU head coach Steve Roberts could see a difference in Reid as the Indians (1-0) prepared for tonight?s game against OSU (1-0) at War Memorial Stadium.
?I think he?s better at picking out where he?s supposed to be reading and his timing seems to be better,? Roberts said. ?Receivers aren?t waiting on balls. He?s throwing the football on time, he?s getting rid of the football. I think he?s improved his ability to scramble and make things happen.?
Keeping Reid from making too many things happen is only one of ASU?s concerns in tonight?s game, which kicks off at 6:05 p.m.
OSU?s offense also features sophomore running back Mike Hamilton, a second-team All-Big 12 Conference selection last season who ran for 155 yards in the opener. The Cowboys have a veteran receiver in senior D?Juan Woods, a 2-time second-team All-Big 12 player, and have added 6-4 North Carolina transfer Adarius Bowman at receiver.
The OSU defense limited Missouri State to 68 rushing yards ? Roberts said he counted a blitz of some sort on 48 plays ? and the Cowboys had a number of special teams highlights, including Perrish Cox?s 96-yard return of the opening kickoff.
?We have a tremendously difficult challenge ahead of us this week,? Roberts said. ?They are one of the most talented teams that we have had an opportunity to play since I have been here from a physical standpoint.?
The Indians gave the Cowboys a hard time last season before losing 20-10.
ASU had more yardage, but three turnovers and 16 penalties proved costly. Mike Gundy, then in his first season as OSU?s head coach, apologized to his team?s fans after the game.
This week, Gundy acknowledged that ASU had something to do with his team?s problems in last year?s meeting.
?When they played here last year, we weren?t as far along as we wanted to be,? Gundy said during his media luncheon. ?They played us much tougher than what we thought they would and the reason why is that they were a pretty good team.
?They play good defense and they can really run to the football. They went on to win enough games to get to a bowl. We understand the challenges we have going over to Little Rock. We understand it is a big event when Arkansas State travels to play in Little Rock.?
Gundy expressed respect for ASU?s speed on defense.
The Indians shut down Army in a 14-6 victory at Indian Stadium, allowing only 164 total yards in a performance that impressed Army coach Bobby Ross.
?They?re a pretty good football team. I think they are particularly good on defense,? Ross said during his weekly press conference. ?They can really run. Speed-wise, that?s as good a team as we?ve seen on defense, I can tell you that.?
ASU overcame several offensive miscues for its first season-opening victory since 1995.
The Indians had 222 rushing yards, but they also lost two fumbles inside the Army 20 and had a field goal attempt blocked. Roberts compared those mistakes to the problems the Indians had in Stillwater last year.
?We played well enough offensively over there last year to be in the ballgame,? Roberts said. ?We played well enough out here to have a blowout this past Saturday, but we did not capitalize in the red zone in either of those ballgames, last week against Army or against Oklahoma State. That?s something that has to improve.?
Redshirt freshman Reggie Arnold ran for 140 yards and a touchdown in his ASU debut. The Indians used two quarterbacks, Travis Hewitt and Corey Leonard, and they appear likely to share the position against the Cowboys.
Tonight?s game is ASU?s first in Little Rock since 2003 and marks the Indians? first ?home? game against a Big 12 opponent. ASU has an 0-13 all-time record against Big 12 members.
Roberts was asked to assess the impact a victory would have on his program.
?It would be huge,? Roberts said. ?We?re concentrating on the preparations to do just that, but we also know it will be a very difficult task.?
The Cowboys? sophomore quarterback is more advanced at this stage, judging by his performance in last weekend?s 52-10 rout of Division I-AA Missouri State.
Reid completed 8 of 17 passes for 165 yards and four touchdowns, two more than he had for all of 2005. ASU head coach Steve Roberts could see a difference in Reid as the Indians (1-0) prepared for tonight?s game against OSU (1-0) at War Memorial Stadium.
?I think he?s better at picking out where he?s supposed to be reading and his timing seems to be better,? Roberts said. ?Receivers aren?t waiting on balls. He?s throwing the football on time, he?s getting rid of the football. I think he?s improved his ability to scramble and make things happen.?
Keeping Reid from making too many things happen is only one of ASU?s concerns in tonight?s game, which kicks off at 6:05 p.m.
OSU?s offense also features sophomore running back Mike Hamilton, a second-team All-Big 12 Conference selection last season who ran for 155 yards in the opener. The Cowboys have a veteran receiver in senior D?Juan Woods, a 2-time second-team All-Big 12 player, and have added 6-4 North Carolina transfer Adarius Bowman at receiver.
The OSU defense limited Missouri State to 68 rushing yards ? Roberts said he counted a blitz of some sort on 48 plays ? and the Cowboys had a number of special teams highlights, including Perrish Cox?s 96-yard return of the opening kickoff.
?We have a tremendously difficult challenge ahead of us this week,? Roberts said. ?They are one of the most talented teams that we have had an opportunity to play since I have been here from a physical standpoint.?
The Indians gave the Cowboys a hard time last season before losing 20-10.
ASU had more yardage, but three turnovers and 16 penalties proved costly. Mike Gundy, then in his first season as OSU?s head coach, apologized to his team?s fans after the game.
This week, Gundy acknowledged that ASU had something to do with his team?s problems in last year?s meeting.
?When they played here last year, we weren?t as far along as we wanted to be,? Gundy said during his media luncheon. ?They played us much tougher than what we thought they would and the reason why is that they were a pretty good team.
?They play good defense and they can really run to the football. They went on to win enough games to get to a bowl. We understand the challenges we have going over to Little Rock. We understand it is a big event when Arkansas State travels to play in Little Rock.?
Gundy expressed respect for ASU?s speed on defense.
The Indians shut down Army in a 14-6 victory at Indian Stadium, allowing only 164 total yards in a performance that impressed Army coach Bobby Ross.
?They?re a pretty good football team. I think they are particularly good on defense,? Ross said during his weekly press conference. ?They can really run. Speed-wise, that?s as good a team as we?ve seen on defense, I can tell you that.?
ASU overcame several offensive miscues for its first season-opening victory since 1995.
The Indians had 222 rushing yards, but they also lost two fumbles inside the Army 20 and had a field goal attempt blocked. Roberts compared those mistakes to the problems the Indians had in Stillwater last year.
?We played well enough offensively over there last year to be in the ballgame,? Roberts said. ?We played well enough out here to have a blowout this past Saturday, but we did not capitalize in the red zone in either of those ballgames, last week against Army or against Oklahoma State. That?s something that has to improve.?
Redshirt freshman Reggie Arnold ran for 140 yards and a touchdown in his ASU debut. The Indians used two quarterbacks, Travis Hewitt and Corey Leonard, and they appear likely to share the position against the Cowboys.
Tonight?s game is ASU?s first in Little Rock since 2003 and marks the Indians? first ?home? game against a Big 12 opponent. ASU has an 0-13 all-time record against Big 12 members.
Roberts was asked to assess the impact a victory would have on his program.
?It would be huge,? Roberts said. ?We?re concentrating on the preparations to do just that, but we also know it will be a very difficult task.?
