Arkansas State feels unappreciated.
The Red Wolves have heard the whispers and felt the disappointment. It?s been a far from memorable beginning to a highly anticipated season, and it?s not even the halfway point.
They plan to do something about it tonight.
ASU enters this evening?s Homecoming contest against Florida International bearing the weight and disappointment of a 4-game losing streak. It?s been more than a month since Arkansas State last won, and the Red Wolves are growing tired of the questions, tired of the talk, tired of losing.
Kickoff is 6 p.m. at ASU Stadium.
Arkansas State quarterback Corey Leonard said the team is better than its record and will take the field with something to prove to itself and its supporters.
?I guess we have a little bit of a chip on our shoulder,? Leonard said. ?Starting out 1-4, there?s going to be a lot of negative talk. The good thing is, there?s two ways you can handle it. You can feel bad for yourself and get depressed and let all that affect you, or you can just ... use it as motivation. By the way we?ve prepared this week, I don?t think anybody can question that we?re motivated.?
Arkansas State (1-4 overall, 0-2 Sun Belt Conference) is coming off an embarrassing 16-10 loss at Louisiana-Monroe last week. The Red Wolves tied a school record with 16 penalties, turned the ball over three times, and rushed for just 29 yards in an uncharacteristic performance on national television.
The losing streak is the longest for head coach Steve Roberts since he was hired by Arkansas State after the 2001 season. It?s also the longest losing streak in a season since the Red Wolves lost 10 in a row in 2000 under former coach Joe Hollis.
Roberts acknowledged his team is carrying a burden with a losing streak that started Sept. 12 at Nebraska. But he believes the Red Wolves can turn it around as long as they continue to play with the same effort they?ve been giving.
?I don?t think anybody on our football team doesn?t know that we?ve lost four in a row,? Roberts said. ?We?ve tried to continue to be positive, demanding perfection and improvement in all the things that we do normally. We?ve played some really, really good football teams in that stretch and we know that we?re going to bounce out of it. We?re going to find a way to win if we continue to play as hard as we?ve been playing.?
After being projected as one of the contenders for a Sun Belt title, Arkansas State finds itself at the bottom of the league just two games into conference play. The Red Wolves suffered a 30-27 loss to defending champion Troy and are 0-2 in conference play.
With only seven games remaining on the schedule, six of them in Sun Belt play, ASU can still salvage a winning season, still gain bowl eligibility, and still finish near the top of the league. But the Red Wolves have to start winning now.
?This is a must-win situation, no ifs, ands or buts about it,? said ASU linebacker Demario Davis, who leads the team with 39 tackles. ?This is a must-win game and it?s as simple as that.?
Leonard took it a step further, saying the Red Wolves need to win just to keep the team motivated for the second half of the season.
?You can?t even say anymore it?s about winning a conference or getting bowl eligible,? Leonard explained. ?For us, this is about getting back on track. I think one win is all we need. It?s been five weeks since we?ve won and we?ve had some tough losses. They?ve been some of the toughest losses since I?ve been here. This game is critical for us to keep that motivation that we need for the rest of the season, to keep our heads high, and to keep working.?
Florida International (1-5, 1-2) hasn?t had much success either.
The Golden Panthers lost their first four games, beat winless Western Kentucky on the road, then lost to Troy last week, 42-33. FIU?s defense has surrendered 40 points or more on four occasions and has given up more than 500 yards three times.
FIU ranks dead last among 120 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision members, allowing 499.8 yards a game. The Panthers are giving up more than 230 yards a game on the ground, an area Leonard indicated Arkansas State might try to exploit.
?We?ve got to be a mentally and physically tougher football team,? Leonard said. ?We need to be a smashmouth football team. No matter how we do it, no matter who it is, running the football has been our bread and butter since I?ve been here. That?s what we feed off of.?
Arkansas State has won six consecutive Homecoming games. The last time ASU lost on Homecoming was a 13-10 defeat to North Texas in 2002.
Despite the 4-game losing streak, Roberts said the Red Wolves are still a hungry football team. He believes the season could change directions this evening so long as the effort is there.
?We?ve just got to keep playing hard and keep working and eventually good things will happen for this football team,? Roberts said.
The Red Wolves have heard the whispers and felt the disappointment. It?s been a far from memorable beginning to a highly anticipated season, and it?s not even the halfway point.
They plan to do something about it tonight.
ASU enters this evening?s Homecoming contest against Florida International bearing the weight and disappointment of a 4-game losing streak. It?s been more than a month since Arkansas State last won, and the Red Wolves are growing tired of the questions, tired of the talk, tired of losing.
Kickoff is 6 p.m. at ASU Stadium.
Arkansas State quarterback Corey Leonard said the team is better than its record and will take the field with something to prove to itself and its supporters.
?I guess we have a little bit of a chip on our shoulder,? Leonard said. ?Starting out 1-4, there?s going to be a lot of negative talk. The good thing is, there?s two ways you can handle it. You can feel bad for yourself and get depressed and let all that affect you, or you can just ... use it as motivation. By the way we?ve prepared this week, I don?t think anybody can question that we?re motivated.?
Arkansas State (1-4 overall, 0-2 Sun Belt Conference) is coming off an embarrassing 16-10 loss at Louisiana-Monroe last week. The Red Wolves tied a school record with 16 penalties, turned the ball over three times, and rushed for just 29 yards in an uncharacteristic performance on national television.
The losing streak is the longest for head coach Steve Roberts since he was hired by Arkansas State after the 2001 season. It?s also the longest losing streak in a season since the Red Wolves lost 10 in a row in 2000 under former coach Joe Hollis.
Roberts acknowledged his team is carrying a burden with a losing streak that started Sept. 12 at Nebraska. But he believes the Red Wolves can turn it around as long as they continue to play with the same effort they?ve been giving.
?I don?t think anybody on our football team doesn?t know that we?ve lost four in a row,? Roberts said. ?We?ve tried to continue to be positive, demanding perfection and improvement in all the things that we do normally. We?ve played some really, really good football teams in that stretch and we know that we?re going to bounce out of it. We?re going to find a way to win if we continue to play as hard as we?ve been playing.?
After being projected as one of the contenders for a Sun Belt title, Arkansas State finds itself at the bottom of the league just two games into conference play. The Red Wolves suffered a 30-27 loss to defending champion Troy and are 0-2 in conference play.
With only seven games remaining on the schedule, six of them in Sun Belt play, ASU can still salvage a winning season, still gain bowl eligibility, and still finish near the top of the league. But the Red Wolves have to start winning now.
?This is a must-win situation, no ifs, ands or buts about it,? said ASU linebacker Demario Davis, who leads the team with 39 tackles. ?This is a must-win game and it?s as simple as that.?
Leonard took it a step further, saying the Red Wolves need to win just to keep the team motivated for the second half of the season.
?You can?t even say anymore it?s about winning a conference or getting bowl eligible,? Leonard explained. ?For us, this is about getting back on track. I think one win is all we need. It?s been five weeks since we?ve won and we?ve had some tough losses. They?ve been some of the toughest losses since I?ve been here. This game is critical for us to keep that motivation that we need for the rest of the season, to keep our heads high, and to keep working.?
Florida International (1-5, 1-2) hasn?t had much success either.
The Golden Panthers lost their first four games, beat winless Western Kentucky on the road, then lost to Troy last week, 42-33. FIU?s defense has surrendered 40 points or more on four occasions and has given up more than 500 yards three times.
FIU ranks dead last among 120 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision members, allowing 499.8 yards a game. The Panthers are giving up more than 230 yards a game on the ground, an area Leonard indicated Arkansas State might try to exploit.
?We?ve got to be a mentally and physically tougher football team,? Leonard said. ?We need to be a smashmouth football team. No matter how we do it, no matter who it is, running the football has been our bread and butter since I?ve been here. That?s what we feed off of.?
Arkansas State has won six consecutive Homecoming games. The last time ASU lost on Homecoming was a 13-10 defeat to North Texas in 2002.
Despite the 4-game losing streak, Roberts said the Red Wolves are still a hungry football team. He believes the season could change directions this evening so long as the effort is there.
?We?ve just got to keep playing hard and keep working and eventually good things will happen for this football team,? Roberts said.
