The Arkansas State Redwolves head out west to Logan, Utah to take on the Utah State Aggies in a Friday night throw-down. The game is scheduled to begin on September 16th at 9:00 p.m. ET on the CBS Sports Network. Utah State is a -9.5 point favorite and the over/under is 56.5.
Utah State came out of the gate hot in 2016. They laid 45 points on in-state rival Weber State. My how things can change in a week. The Aggies looked hopeless on defense against a hungry UCS Tojans club. As a result, the contest was over before it even started (45-7).
The Red Wolves ran into a stout Toledo squad in it’s first match-up of the year. The Rocket’s defense was outstanding and ball-hawked their way to an impressive 31-10 victory at Arkansas State.
Things didn’t get any easier for the Red Wolves last week. The rebuilt team traveled into Auburn to take on an over achieving Tigers club. Unfortunately for Redwolves fans, the game was 38-7 by halftime. Auburn didn’t let up and ended the day with fifty plus points on the board.
Arkansas State (0-2):
Arkansas State is depending on some new faces on both sides of the ball in 2016. Quarterback Chad Voytik is one of them. Voytik kind of drew the short straw in his first two games under center. Both Toledo and Auburn have shown the ability to shut-down offenses early on.
Chad Voytik has completed only 26 passes on just 45 attempts for 330 plus yards. Even though the new signal-caller hasn’t recorded a score through the air, he has managed to find pay-dirt with his feet. Under constant pressure from opposing defenses, he has scrambled his way to 50 yards and two touchdowns.
The running game for the Redwolves has been atrocious. While the injury to starting tailback Johnston White isn’t helping matters. Without White participating, Arkansas State is only averaging 104 yards a game. Therefore, they find themselves ranked in at 113th in the country in rushing productivity.
The receiving core hasn’t fared much better. Uncharacteristically, their tight-end is the leading pass catcher heading into Friday nights affair. Blake Mack has reeled in five catches for just over a 130 yards. Arkansas Sate better figure out how to protect their quarterback and move the ball down field or it’s going to be a long season for the Redwolves.
The defensive unit has been down right embarrassing. Obviously, all the transfers aren’t living up to the programs expectations. The Redwolves rank 128th in the country in yards surrendered (661). Teams are finding it easy to move the rock via the ground game and through the air. Arkansas State also sits 127th in the nation against the run.
Utah State (1-1):
Coach Matt Wells’ squad has been a bit of a Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde two games into the long season. The level of competition also has had a lot to do with that analysis. No matter who lines up against the Aggies, quarterback Kent Myers has to improve the production through the air. Against a Division II foe and a PAC-12 juggernaut he has collected only 300 yards with a score and a pick.
Running back Devonte Mays displayed the ability to take over a football game in week one. The seasoned talent carried the ball only 18 times but put up over 200 yards. As a result, the senior back tallied three touchdowns.
Last week, they were manhandled at the line of scrimmage and played from behind the whole game. Mays carried the ball just 7 times for 24 yards. Aggie fans can expect a lot more touches out of the backfield in this game.
The wide receivers output sort of mirror what’s happening in Arkansas State. Their tight end Wyatt Houston is the teams leading receiver. The senior pass catcher has totaled seven catches for just 65 yards and a score. The wide-outs will have a chance to improve against the 115th ranked pass defense of the Redwolves.
Utah State usually fields a smart and gritty defense for their fans in Logan. Last week the Trojans simply had more talent than Utah State. The end result was the Aggies surrendering 422 total yards and 45 points. On the bright side the ball-hawking junior Dallin Leavitt racked a team high 15 tackles.
Match-Up Analysis:
Utah State will be looking to get Devonte Mays going early and often on Friday. All indications point to that ending in success. Also, Arkansas State is without their stud in the backfield. The Redwolves front seven can’t seem to get it together so Mays may punish them for some big gains.
Both of these offenses have struggled through the air. Moving the chains via the pass will be a huge bonus. I would normally give the nod to an Arkansas State team that has been phenomenal through the air over the years. Well that hasn’t been the case in 2016. Neither team has found it’s groove in that department, so I’m calling that proponent a wash.
The upside is that both of the clubs quarterbacks have shown the ability to make plays with their feet when needed. The question is what front seven will put more pressure on the opposing signal-caller. My bet says it will be the Utah Sate Aggies.
The over/under 56.5 scares me a bit because neither offense has proven to be well balanced. The -9.5 also doesn’t sit well with me because it’s hard to imagine that the Redwolves are really this bad.
I also don’t like a favorite to cover that hasn’t proven they can move the ball consistently. This game might have all the excitement of sitting in a bridge tournament with grandma. In conclusion, I’ll choose to play it safe and take the better rushing team early on.
The Hun’s Pick:
The first half line currently sits at Utah State by -6. I’ll take the Aggies to cover that.
