Week 3: Arkansas State vs. Iowa State

After a promising opening-week home win over Southeastern Missouri, Arkansas State stumbled on the road against Arkansas. The Red Wolves lost to their in-state rival, 56-14.

The competition will not be getting any easier this week, as Arkansas State is set to host #14 Iowa State on Saturday. The Cyclones are 3-0, and have been involved in two one-score games. Last week, they took down their own in-state rival, Iowa. The 16-13 victory kept the Cy-Hawk Trophy in Ames. Their other two wins came against Kansas State in Dublin, and South Dakota State in Ames. This will be Iowa State’s first true road game of the season.

Arkansas State will face the tall task of taking down a top-25 opponent as a heavy home underdog.

If the Red Wolves are to pull off the upset, they will need another strong performance from junior quarterback Jaylen Raynor. He threw two interceptions last week, but was sharp in the season opener. He racked up 345 passing yards, tossed three touchdowns, and completed over 80 percent of his passes.

Arkansas State

The Red Wolves struggled on the road against a strong SEC opponent. They fell into a 14-0 hole early in the game, but struck back quickly. Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Chauncy Cobb returned a kickoff 98 yards to cut the Razorback lead in half. That was as close as Arkansas State would come, as they ended the first quarter in a 28-7 hole.

Raynor connected with junior offensive lineman Cameron Ambrose for an unconventional two-yard touchdown pass to cut the score to 28-14. The Red Wolves did not score again.

Arkansas State will need Raynor to bounce-back if they want to win this weekend. His performance against Arkansas was nothing like his first start of the season. He completed a respectable 64 percent of his passes, but only put up 125 yards.

It was an uncharacteristic night for the North Carolina native. Coming into the game, he was fifth among active FBS quarterbacks in passing yards per game, averaging 227.1. If he puts up less than four yards per attempt again, it could be a long afternoon for the Red Wolf offense.

Last weekend, two costly interceptions played a role in the loss. Turning the ball over against power-four competition is often a death sentence. Taking care of the ball will give Arkansas State the best chance to win.

Iowa State

The Cyclones have had a strong start to their season, and have been rewarded with a #14 ranking in the AP poll.

Last week, they were able to outlast Iowa in a gritty rivalry game. Tied at 13 with under two minutes to go, the Cyclones gave redshirt freshman and Iowa-native kicker, Kyle Konrardy an opportunity to attempt a field goal to take the lead. He knocked the ball through the uprights with 1:52 to play. The Cyclone defense shut down the Hawkeye offense one final time, with a Tamatoa McDonough sack giving Iowa an insurmountable fourth-and-15. Iowa quarterback Mark Gronkowski’s pass fell incomplete, effectively ending the game.

Redshirt junior quarterback Rocco Becht has been a standout for Iowa State. The Florida native has thrown six touchdowns, and has yet to throw an interception across three games. He also added a score on the ground in the team’s opening contest. His standout game came in week two against South Dakota, where he completed 19 of 20 passes while throwing three touchdowns.

The Cyclones will look to Becht for an efficient game, and rely on their defense to continue making timely stops in order to take down Arkansas State.