2006 Arkansas State Indians

2006 Arkansas State Indians Season, Game Recaps, Scores and Reviews

Nov. 25
UL Lafayette 28 ... Arkansas State 13
In a brilliant battle of runners with Arkansas State's Reggie Arnold rushing for 156 yards and UL Lafayette's Tyrell Fenroy tearing off 178, the Ragin' Cajuns broke away in the fourth quarter on a 23-yard Jerry Babb run and Fenroy's third short score of the game. ASU got up 10-7 in the second quarter on a 15-yard Levi Dejohnette catch, but could only managed two Josh Arauco field goals the rest of the way.
Player of the game ... UL Lafayette RB Tyrell Fenroy ran 26 times for 178 yards and three touchdowns
Stat Leaders: UL Lafayette - Passing: Jerry Babb, 10-18, 107 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Tyrell Fenroy, 26-178, 3 TD  Receiving: Michael Desormeaux, 4-34
Arkansas State - Passing: Corey Leonard, 13-30, 132 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Reggie Arnold, 18-156  Receiving: Levi Dejohnette, 3-43, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... ASU had things set up nicely to go to a bowl needing a home win over UL Lafayette to get to seven wins and a spot somewhere. With not enough overall defense and struggling production from the passing game, ASU is likely done for the year with a young team that should come back to be one of the favorites for the 2007 title. In Reggie Arnold, the offense has a great back to revolve around. Now QB Corey Leonard has to become an efficient passer.

2006 Schedule 2006 Record: 6-6
9/2	Army W 14-6
9/9	Oklahoma St L 35-7
9/23	at SMU L 55-9
9/30	at FIU W 31-6
10/7	UL Monroe W 10-6
10/14	at Memphis W 26-23
10/21	North Texas W 29-10
10/28	at Florida Atlantic L 29-0
11/4	at Auburn L 27-0
11/11	MTSU L 38-10
11/18	at Troy W 33-26
11/25	at UL Lafayette L 28-13

2005 Schedule CFN Prediction: 4-7 2005 Record: 6-6 Preview 2005 predicted wins
9/3	at Missouri L 44-17
9/10	UT Martin W 56-7
9/17	at Oklahoma St L 20-10
9/24	FIU W 66-24
10/1	at UL Monroe L 31-27
10/15	UL Lafayette W 39-36
10/22	Fla Atlantic W 3-0 OT
11/5	at MTSU L 45-7
11/12	Troy W 9-3
11/19	at Army L 38-10
11/26	at North Texas W 31-24
11/26	New Orleans Bowl Southern Miss L 31-19

Nov. 18
Arkansas State 33 ... Troy 26
Arkansas State scored 13 points in the final 12 minutes winning the game on a one-yard Curtis Wilkerson touchdown run with :17 to play after the defense came up with a safety on a Josh Williams tackle with just under four minutes to play. Corey Leonard threw two touchdown passes in the first half, including a 62-yard play to David Johnson, but Troy stayed even throughout helped by a 53-yard Mykeal Terry touchdown catch and two short Kenny Cattouse scoring runs.
Player of the game ... Arkansas State S Tyrell Johnson made nine tackles
Stat Leaders: Troy - Passing: Omar Haugabook, 19-30, 267 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Kenny Cattouse, 19-107, 2 TD  Receiving: Mykeal Terry, 6-140, 1 TD
Arkansas State - Passing: Corey Leonard, 13-26, 188 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Reggie Arnold, 19-90  Receiving: Kevin Jones, 4-47, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... While Arkansas State might be out of the Sun Belt title hunt, it's bowl eligible after the win over Troy and has a chance to knock some 6-6 team out of a bowl slot by beating UL Lafayette next week. The running game controlled the tempo and the action with the time of possession in its favor. Helped by an efficient day from QB Corey Leonard and no turnovers, while the defense came up with three takeaways, ASU turned its season from good to great with the late win.

Nov. 11
Middle Tennessee 38 ... Arkansas State 10
A 88-yard Brandon Robinson interception return for a touchdown and short touchdown runs from Desmond Gee and Demarco McNair helped Middle Tennessee pull away in the second half to a 31-3 lead. Arkansas State moved the ball well all game long, but only managed a 14-yard Levi Dejohnette touchdown late in the fourth quarter. McNair scored again on the first play following the unsuccessful onside kick attempt with a 48-yard run.
Player of the game ... Middle Tennessee RB Eugene Gross ran 15 times for 79 yards and a touchdown
Stat Leaders: Middle Tennessee - Passing: Clint Marks, 11-14, 134 yds
Rushing: DeMarco McNair, 9-98, 2 TD. Receiving: Desmond Gee, 2-46
Arkansas State - Passing: Corey Leonard, 14-35, 146 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Reggie Arnold, 20-115  Receiving: Levi Dejohnette, 3-38, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Arkansas State got its running game back on track against a good Middle Tennessee defense with Reggie Arnold coming up with his strongest game in the last few weeks, but Corey Leonard was awful throwing the ball once the game started to get out of hand. The Indians are on a three game losing streak finishing up with two road games, and to have a shot at Troy and UL Lafayette, the ground game has to be even more effective and there has to be a few more big plays from Leonard.

Nov. 4
Auburn 27 ... Arkansas State 0
Courtney Taylor caught a 13-yard touchdown pass and John Vaughn hit two field goals in the first half on the way to a 13-0 lead, and then Carl Stewart pounded in two touchdown runs in the third quarter. ASU only gained 86 yards in the first three quarters before the the Tigers emptied their bench. Auburn rolled up 300 yards, but turned it over four times preventing it from being a bigger blowout.
Player of the game ... Auburn QB Brandon Cox completed 12 of 21 passes for 251 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions.
Stat Leaders: Auburn - Passing: Brandon Cox, 12-21, 251 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Ben Tate, 11-93. Receiving: Courtney Taylor, 4-116, 1 TD
Arkansas State - Passing: Corey Leonard, 9-17, 61 yds
Rushing: Reggie Arnold, 11-37  Receiving: Kevin Jones, 4-34
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Arkansas State was never going to have a shot against Auburn, without nearly enough offense to make it interesting, but the defense did a decent job of keeping things from getting out of hand with four forced turnovers. Now the Indians have to find a way to get the offense going after getting shut out over the last two weeks. The Sun Belt title is still a possibility, but the attack has to find the switch to turn on against Middle Tennessee next week. Can there be some sort of a passing game? Probably not, so Reggie Arnold has to roll after gaining just 72 yards over the last two weeks.

Oct. 28
Florida Atlantic 29 ... Arkansas State 0
Corey Small picked off three passes returning one for a score as part of a Florida Atlantic defense that held Arkansas State to 104 yards of total offense and a mere six rushing yards. The offense took advantage of the good field position with three short scoring drives and capped it off with a 22-yard interception return for a score from Small in the final few minutes. Warley Leroy hit two field goals, B.J. Manley tore off a 35-yard run, and Aaron Sanchez caught a three-yard touchdown pass.
Player of the game ... Florida Atlantic DB Corey Small led the Owls with seven tackles and picked off three passes taking one for a score
Stat Leaders: Florida Atlantic - Passing: Sean Clayton, 9-19, 91 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Charles Pierre, 24-122  Receiving: Avery Holley, 3-46
Arkansas State - Passing: Corey Leonard, 7-16, 55 yds, 3 INT
Rushing: Reggie Arnold, 11-35  Receiving: Levi Dejohnette, 4-73
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... As Florida Atlantic showed, when you take away the Arkansas State running game, you take away Arkansas State. Corey Leonard and Travis Hewitt were awful throwing five interceptions in the stunning blowout loss to the Owls, and now things get worse with Auburn coming up next. If the running game can't get on track after the certain-loss to the Tigers, it'll be an ugly end to the year with a nasty finishing kick. Could it really be possible the defending Sun Belt champs can close out with a five-game losing streak? Yup.

Oct. 21
Arkansas State 29 ... North Texas 10
ASU broke open a close game with three one-yard Reggie Arnold touchdown runs in the second half as part of a 22-point run. North Texas got up in the first half on a 42-yard Denis Hopovac field goal and a 24-yard David Collins touchdown catch, while the Indians got a 31-yard Kevin Jones scoring grab. The Mean Green offense slowed down and the defense couldn't handle the ASU ground game that rumbled for 279 yards.
Player of the game ... Arkansas State RB Reggie Arnold ran 25 times for 121 yards and three touchdowns
Stat Leaders: Arkansas State - Passing: Corey Leonard, 11-19, 187 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Reggie Arnold, 25-121, 3 TD  Receiving: Kevin Jones, 3-84
North Texas - Passing: Daniel Meager, 11-16, 103 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Jamario Thomas, 21-119,  Receiving: Joel Nwigwe, 5-52
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Arkansas State is on a nice roll and looking every bit as strong as it was in last year's Sun Belt title season. Corey Leonard had a nice day throwing the ball and Reggie Arnold was excellent keeping the ground game going, but the real key was the ability to keep the chains moving. The offense converted 11 of 15 third down chances and had the ball for 33:28. Now comes a nasty stretch of four road games in the final five.

Oct. 14
Arkansas State 26 ... Memphis 23
Patrick Higgins caught a 53-yard jump ball touchdown pass with no time left on the clock to stun Memphis. Higgins also caught a 26-yard scoring strike in the first half, to go along with a 16-yard Brandon Thompkins scoring run and two Josh Arauco field goals. Memphis battled in the see-saw game getting a 37-yard touchdown play from Joe Doss with just 6:40 to play, but couldn't run out the clock giving it to ASU on its own 27 with 1:32 to play. A 15-yard facemask penalty on a sack and a five-yard Curtis Wilson run set up the final, dramatic play.
Player of the game ... Arkansas State WR Patrick Higgins caught just two passes for 79 yards, but both went for touchdowns, including the game-winner on the final play from 53 yards out.  
Stat Leaders: Arkansas State - Passing: Corey Leonard, 12-of-23, 219 yds, 2 TDs, 2 INTs
Rushing: Curtis Wilkerson, 23-116  Receiving: Kevin Jones, 3-73
Memphis - Passing: Martin Hankins, 12-27, 178 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Joseph Doss, 18-69  Receiving: Ryan Scott, 3-28
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Arkansas State didn't just beat Memphis because of a fluky final play; it was able to win by rolling up 435 yards of total offense and getting just enough defense to keep the Tigers from getting any sort of consistency. Corey Leonard was fantastic on third downs, and Curtis Wilkerson came up with a shocking game with Reggie Arnold getting bottled up. This might have been one of the biggest wins in the program's history considering the drama and the bigger name team it bat, and now the momentum has to carry over into Sun Belt play. ASU might be the favorite now.

Oct. 7
Arkansas State 10 ... UL Monroe 6
In a tough, defensive battle, Arkansas State got a ten-yard Corey Leonard touchdown run with two minutes to play. ULM was able to get down to the ASU 29, but stalled after a fourth down pass fell incomplete. The Warhawks got an eight-yard Calvin Dawson touchdown run early in the second quarter, but only finished with 223 yards of total offense. ASU kicked off the scoring with a 24-yard Josh Arauco field goal.
Player of the game ... Arkansas State LB Devrett Wade made 11 tackles, two tackles for loss and broke up a pass
Stat Leaders: Arkansas State - Passing: Corey Leonard, 13-26, 130 yds, 2 INT
Rushing: Corey Leonard, 7-48, 1 TD  Receiving: Cedric Wilkerson, 5-47
UL Monroe - Passing: Kinsmon Lancaster, 9-13, 48 yds, 2 INT
Rushing: Calvin Dawson, 16-71, 1 TD  Receiving: Marty Humphrey, 3-48
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Arkansas State didn't play a perfect game against UL Monroe, but the defense did a great job and the offense came up with the late drive it absolutely needed to have to get the win and go 2-0 in Sun Belt play. The passing game, eventually, has to be more effective and there has to be far more overall pop to the attack to beat teams like Middle Tennessee and Troy, but after the Memphis game, the defense should be able to keep North Texas and Florida Atlantic in check. As long as there aren't a lot of turnovers, a 4-0 Sun Belt start is more than likely.

Sept. 30
Arkansas State 31 ... FIU 6
The Arkansas State defense forced four FIU turnovers and got out to a 21-0 lead before the Golden Panthers finally god into the end zone on a five-yard Amon Ned run. Travis Hewitt ran for two scores for the Indians and Corey Leonard added a seven-yard dash. FIU's Josh Padrick threw three interceptions while the running game was held to nine yards.
Player of the game ... Arkansas State RB Reggie Arnold ran 23 times for 142 yards
Stat Leaders: FIU - Passing: Josh Padrick, 18-35, 177 yds, 3 INT
Rushing: Amod Ned, 12-38, 1 TD. Receiving: Chandler Williams, 7-72
Arkansas State - Passing: Travis Hewitt, 6-17, 68 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Reggie Arnold, 23-142  Receiving: Chris Miller, 2-29
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... The ASU defense came up with a fantastic performance against FIU making all the big plays needed to never let it be a game. With good pressure into the backfield, FIU QB Josh Padrick made several mistakes which the ASU defensive backfield capitalized on. Corey Leonard played better than Travis Hewitt and might get even more time next week against UL Monroe.

Sept. 23
SMU 55 ... Arkansas State 9
Justin Willis and Justin Kennedy hooked up for three touchdown passes in the first half and WR Zack Sledge connected with Bobby Chase for a 75-yard score on the way to a 38-6 lead. Arkansas State answered the first Kennedy score with a  69-yard touchdown pass to Patrick Higgins, but the extra point was blocked and SMU went on a 34-pount run broken up by a Josh Arauco field goal late in the third quarter. SMU outgained ASU 226 yards to 69 on the ground.
Player of the game ... SMU QB Justin Willis completed 15 of 24 passes for 151 yards and four touchdowns with an interception
Stat Leaders: SMU - Passing: Justin Willis, 15-24, 151 yds, 4 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: James Mapps, 14-132, 1 TD. Receiving: Ryan Kennedy, 3-40, 3 TD
Arkansas State - Passing: Corey Leonard, 6-14, 110 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Reggie Arnold, 16-88  Receiving: Gary Vincent, 3-37
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... The offense has yet to do much of anything. Getting stuffed by Oklahoma State is one thing, but to only crank out 262 yards against SMU should send up warning flags going into the Sun Belt season. The ground game isn't close to being at the level it was at last season, while the quarterback combination of Corey Leonard and Travis Hewitt aren't doing nearly enough for the passing attack. It would help if the defense could come up with an early stop or two. The linebacking corps is way too good to be run over for 7.3 yards per carry like SMU got.

Sept. 9
Oklahoma State 35 ... Arkansas State 7
It took Oklahoma State QB Bobby Reid about a quarter to settle down, and then he was outstanding running for a 13-yard touchdown and throwing for two scores on the way to 35 unanswered points. Reid's first touchdown pass of the game went the wrong way as Khyyam Burns returned an interception 51 yards for an ASU touchdown. The Cowboy defense held ASU to 188 yards of total offense.
Player of the game ... Oklahoma State QB Bobby Reid completed 11 of 18 passes for 167 yards and two touchdowns with three interceptions, and he ran seven times for 45 yards and a touchdown
Stat Leaders: Arkansas State - Passing: Travis Hewitt, 4-13, 47 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Reggie Arnold, 18-51. Receiving: Patrick Higgins, 1-15
Oklahoma State - Passing: Bobby Reid, 11-18, 167 yds, 2 TD, 3 INT
Rushing: Mike Hamilton, 17-73, 1 TD. Receiving: Adarius Bowman, 3-78
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Arkansas State needs its running game to win. Reggie Arnold ran well against Army, and ASU won. He was kept under wraps against Oklahoma State, and ASU lost. The Indian passing game isn't close to being anything more than serviceable with no go-to-receiver and shaky play from the quarterbacks. Travis Hewitt couldn't do anything against the Cowboys, but Corey Leonard wasn't much better.

Sept. 2
Arkansas State 14 ... Army 6 
Arkansas State outgained Army 319 yards to 164 limiting the Black Knights to two Austin Miller field goals. The Indians got a 17-yard touchdown run from Reggie Arnold in the second quarter and a ten-yard scoring dash from Travis Hewitt in the third. The score would've been ugly had ASU been able to hang on to the ball getting plagued by three fumbles.
Player of the game ... Arkansas State RB Reggie Arnold ran 25 times for 140 yards and a touchdown.
Stat Leaders: Army - Passing: David Pevoto, 12-23, 95 yds, 2 INT
Rushing: Wesley McMahand, 13-35. Receiving: Jeremy Trimble, 6-60
Arkansas State - Passing: Travis Hewitt, 7-11, 75 yds
Rushing: Reggie Arnold, 25-140, 1 TD. Receiving: Chris Miller, 4-21
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Arkansas State didn't look like a team trying to replace several key players. Army wasn't able to get anything going offensively and wasn't close to stopping the ASU running game. Reggie Arnold is the next great Indian back who should rip through the Sun Belt this year. To hang with Oklahoma State and beat SMU over the next two weeks, there can't be three turnovers and the O has to be better on third downs.

2006 Arkansas State Preview

Arkansas State Preview | Offense | Defense | Depth Chart | Further Analysis

After years of being the team on the verge of big things and never getting over the hump, Arkansas State finally put it all together last year getting the big wins it had to have and got to the New Orleans Bowl as the Sun Belt champions.

It wasn't a perfect season with losses to UL Monroe and MTSU taking the title fates out of its own hands, but ASU played well at home and was more than competitive against teams like Missouri and Oklahoma State.

Even with all that was accomplished in last year's breakout campaign, there was still a sense that more could've been done. There could've been a better performance in the blowout loss to Army, and the offense could've been way more consistent after an awful midseason stretch scoring 29 points in four games.

This year will see some growing pains in the backfield, but there are more than enough good things to count on to keep ASU in the Sun Belt title hunt all season long. As far as Sun Belt star power goes, ASU has it with center Tanner Jenkins, fullback Oren O'Neal, safety Tyrell Johnson and linebacker Josh Williams, who returns after being suspended all of last year, all good enough to be considered among the best in the nation at their respective positions.

Now for the problems. The great backfield has to be replaced losing effective running backs Antonio Warren and Shermar Bracey along with veteran starting quarterback Nick Noce. The corners and defensive ends are suspect, and the kicking game is starting from scratch looking for a steady field goal kicker. Even so, there's enough time before the first Sun Belt game for everyone to get their feet wet, and there's not a brutal game leading up the to the road trip to FIU playing Army, Oklahoma State and at SMU that should impede the team's overall development.

So now Arkansas State has to try to become the new North Texas and be a yearly participant in the New Orleans Bowl. Head coach Steve Roberts has the program on the right track and he has the talent to be the best team in the league with a little bit of luck. ASU got a taste of success last year with its first non-losing season since 1995, and that could be just the beginning. 

The Schedule: There aren't any brutal, sure thing 55-0 blowout games until late against Auburn, but it's not a good schedule for hopes of repeating as Sun Belt champions with four road trips in the final five weeks closing out at Troy and at UL Lafayette. There are only four true home games with the Oklahoma State battle played in Little Rock, and ASU has to take advantage of every one of them. Fortunately UL Monroe, North Texas and MTSU have to come to Jonesboro.

Best Offensive Player: Senior FB Oren O'Neal. Center Tanner Jenkins is also in the mix and running back Chris Easley should put up the numbers to be one of the team's offensive stars, but O'Neal is the unsung cog that makes the machine go. He's an NFL-caliber blocker with good hands and decent power running skills when he gets the chance.

Best Defensive Player: Junior LB Josh Williams. Tackling machine safety Tyrell Johnson is also worthy of mention, but the 255-pound Williams is a big-time talent and tone setter for a run defense that desperately missed him last year when he was suspended for conduct detrimental to the team.

Key player to a successful season: Sophomore QB Travis Hewitt and redshirt freshman Corey Leonard. Nick Noce might not have been the best quarterback around, but he was effective and he often came through last year when he absolutely had to. Hewitt has a little bit of experience, but Leonard has more talent. One has to shine from the get go.

The season will be a success if ... Arkansas State wins the Sun Belt title again. It'll be hard with the killer league road slate late, but there's no turning down the expectations after last year. This team should be able to beat anyone in the conference, but it needs everything to come together early on to make it happen and there can't be any home losses.

Key game: November 18th at Troy. Assuming ASU can be perfect at home, it has to beat Troy on the road to make the regular season finale at UL Lafayette meaningful. An unbeaten Sun Belt record is possible going into this showdown.

2005 Fun Stats: 
- Second quarter scoring: Opponents 128 - Arkansas State 51
- Penalties: Arkansas State 121 for 911 yards - Opponents 93 for 733 yards
- Time of possession: Opponents 32:04 - Arkansas State 27:57

The Last Time Arkansas State…
…played in a bowl game…2005 (New Orleans Bowl vs. Southern Miss)
…missed a bowl game…2004
…pitched a shutout…2005 (Florida Atlantic)
…was shutout…2003 (Utah State)
…scored 50 points…2005 (Florida International)
…went undefeated…1975
…won a conference title…2005 (Sun Belt)
…had a 3,000-yard passer…never
…had a 1,000-yard rusher…2005 (Antonio Warren)
…had a 1,000-yard receiver…2000 (Robert Kilow)
…had a first-round draft choice…never