Arkansas State football has real shot at Sun Belt title in 2020
Red Wolves return potential high-power offense
Arkansas State has been one of the most productive teams in the Sun Belt for numerous seasons. This is a conference that came a long way to being a punching bag for the Power Five programs like the SEC or ACC to casually beat. The Sun Belt is slowly turning into a conference that is high in productivity on the offensive side of the ball.
Just this past season, the Red Wolves were ranked 26th in the nation (fourth in the Sun Belt) in points per game (33.7) and 33rd (fifth in the Sun Belt) in total yards per game (439.3). This was in the first year of former North Carolina quarterbacks coach Keith Heckendorf as the new offensive coordinator. Heckendorf has coached some great Tar Heel quarterbacks to be their most efficient with his most recognizable being Chicago Bears starting quarterback Mitchell Trubisky.
The Red Wolves’ offense ranked 10th in the nation in passing yards per game (312.1).
Heckendorf has a tough decision to make on which highly-productive quarterback will get the starting job in 2020. Before suffering a season-ending hand injury in the fourth game of the season last year, Logan Bonner threw for 1,052 yards, 10 touchdowns and only one interception on 91 completions (out of 153 passing attempts).
As a redshirt freshman last year, former Alabama quarterback Layne Hatcher threw for 2,946 yards, 27 touchdowns and 10 interceptions on 204 completions (out of 310 passing attempts). Hatcher was named 2019 Sun Belt Freshman of the Year. He is the more diverse playmaker as he can run with the ball while Bonner is the more highly-explosive passer.
Last season, the Red Wolves made minimal impact in the rushing game to converge with their elite passing game. The Red Wolves were ranked 112th (ninth in the Sun Belt) in rushing yards per game (127.2). They will return their top rusher from last season in junior Marcel Murray, who rushed for 820 yards and six touchdowns on 170 carries.
The offense looks to utilize a more traditional but explosive plan and the Red Wolves will look to use their backs more for the upcoming season.
In the receiving corps, the Red Wolves know they have some work to do to develop some starters. They had three receivers account for at least 800 yards this past season but they only return one of them in Johnathan Adams Jr. Last year, he caught 62 passes (third on team) for 851 yards (second on team) and five touchdowns (third on team).
Brandon Bowling looks to make his first full-season start with the Arkansas State after missing half of last year with an injury. Javonis Isaac and junior Reed Tyler return after combining for 12 receptions for 171 yards and one touchdown last season.
The offensive line for the Red Wolves looks to remain intact as one of the most experienced units in the Sun Belt and even the nation. They return four of their starters that played and started in 13 games this past season. This is an offensive line that gave up 40 sacks in 2019 so they will need to be more efficient in 2020.
Center Jacob Still and junior Jarrett Horst were both named to Athlon Sports’ preseason All-Sun Belt second team.