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Kickoff: Saturday, November 11th, 4pm CST
TV: ESPNU / Streaming on ESPN3
Radio: EAB Red Wolves Sports Network (107.9 FM, flagship)
Location: Ladd-Pebbles Stadium, Mobile Al. (33,471)
Series: ASU leads 5-0
Live Stats: AStateStats.com/AStateRedWolves.com
Live Game Notes: twitter.com/AStateGameDay
Vegas Odds: Arkansas State -10.5 O/U 53.5
The 2017 season has come down to a four game playoff for Arkansas State (5-2/4-0 Sun Belt) as they head to Mobile to battle South Alabama(3-6/2-3 Sun Belt) who limps into this game having lost two in a row. The Red Wolves control the Sun Belt race with four to play as the leagues only undefeated team at the moment but are being chased by three teams with a single loss.
Who to watch:
When ASU has the ball- The start and end point right now for all things ASU offense and where the points are flowing through is the junior QB1 Justice Hansen. He is on a march through the ASU record books and happens to be #1 on just about all Sun Belt passing and offensive categories. He has a legit shot to throw 40 TD passes this season and has already broken the single season ASU record (24) with 4 to play. What has made it so interesting to watch with him is that he has distributed the ball so well with 5 receivers having at least 23 catches each and 8 players with a TD reception.
For the Jags on defense find safety Jeremy Reaves and you’ll see where the action is, the senior leads the Jags with 72 tackles and a pair of INT’s on the year.
When USA has the ball- The debate has gone on for years if you can play two QB’s in a system but the Jags have found that they don't have much choice as they try to find the right combination for success. Coach Joey Jones has split starts between Dallas Davis and Cole Garvin and the two combined have thrown for 2,000 yards, 10 INT’s, and 12 TD’s. Davis’ last game against ULL was a forgettable night with going 1 of 7 for 7 yards.
With the lack of good consistent QB play on the USA side of the ball, this seems like a perfect slot for ASU’s Ja’Von Rolland-Jones to add to his sack total of 8 on the season and only 5.5 from becoming the NCAA all time career sacks leader. The Red Wolves senior DE has turned up his game registering all 8 sacks in the last 4 weeks against Sun Belt opposition.
Prediction: ASU has too many offensive weapons for the Jags to stop and are now focused on a clear path to their 6th SBC title in 7 years. The perfect record against USA stays intact.