2018 Arkansas State
8–5 (5–3 Sun Belt Conference), coached by Blake Anderson. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest winBeat Coastal Carolina 44–16Nov 10
By 28 points, its widest win.
- Most excitingLost to Nevada 13–16Dec 29
The win probability swung the most, by CollegeFootballData.com’s excitement index.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 1 | vs Southeast Missouri State | W 48–21 | 86% |
| Sep 8 | at 1Alabama | L 7–57 | 15% |
| Sep 15 | at Tulsa | W 29–20 | 51% |
| Sep 22 | vs UNLV | W 27–20 | 70% |
| Sep 29 | at Georgia Southern | L 21–28 | 59% |
| Oct 9 | vs App State | L 9–35 | 46% |
| Oct 18 | vs Georgia State | W 51–35 | 69% |
| Oct 27 | at Louisiana | L 43–47 | 50% |
| Nov 3 | vs South Alabama | W 38–14 | 76% |
| Nov 10 | at Coastal Carolina | W 44–16 | 56% |
| Nov 17 | vs UL Monroe | W 31–17 | 67% |
| Nov 24 | at Texas State | W 33–7 | 76% |
| Dec 29Bowls & playoff | vs NevadaArizona Bowl | L 13–16 | 64% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Lost to Nevada 16–13 in the Arizona Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 4th in the Sun Belt Conference.
In program history: The 6th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 84 on file).
- Record
- 8–5
- Conference
- 5–3 tied for 4th in Sun Belt Conference
- AP final
- Unranked
- Points
- 394–333
- Coach
- Blake Anderson
- Elo
- 1554 +34 this season
- SP+ rating
- 1.2 No. 72 of 130; offense No. 57, defense No. 62, special teams No. 96
- SRS
- −0.8 No. 73 of 130 in FBS
- Returning
- 71% of last season’s EPA, No. 51 of 130
- Recruiting class
- No. 88 roster talent No. 86 in FBS
- Offensive coordinator
- Buster Faulkner
- Defensive coordinator
- Joe Cauthen
- Offense
- Spread
- Defense
- 4–2–5
How good, play by play
| EPA per play | Success | Explosiveness | FBS rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 0.13 | 44% | 1.17 | 48th of 130 |
| Defense | 0.06 | 40% | 1.34 | 47th of 130 |
| Opponent-adjusted | 0.11 off 0.07 def | 42% off 41% def | — | 61st off 47th def |
How these are measured
Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.
Drives and havoc
| Points per trip inside the 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 3.4 | own 29 | 14% allowed |
| Defense | 3.4 | own 27 | 20% caused |
CORE rating 5.2, 34th of 130 (offense -1.0, defense -6.2).
A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.
Leaders
| Passing yards | Justice Hansen QB | 3,447 yds |
| Passing touchdowns | Justice Hansen QB | 27 TD |
| Rushing yards | Marcel Murray RB | 860 yds |
| Rushing touchdowns | Marcel Murray RB | 8 TD |
| Receiving yards | Kirk Merritt WR | 1,005 yds |
| Receiving touchdowns | Kirk Merritt WR | 7 TD |
| Tackles | Darreon Jackson DB | 81 tkl |
| Sacks | Ronheen Bingham DE | 9 sacks |
| Interceptions | Jerry Jacobs DB | 4 INT |
Top recruits in the 2018 class
| Nathan Page ATH | ★★★ | No. 741 |
| Jax Gasaway OT | ★★★ | No. 1292 |
| Jevon Jones CB | ★★★ | No. 1490 |
| Donovan Marshall RB | ★★★ | No. 1580 |
| Terry Hampton DT | ★★★ | No. 1753 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2018 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Running backs | 3 | 2.7 | 0.806 |
| Receivers | 4 | 2.8 | 0.808 |
| Offensive line | 2 | 2.5 | 0.816 |
| Defensive line | 2 | 3.0 | 0.811 |
| Defensive backs | 6 | 2.5 | 0.806 |
| Athletes and specialists | 1 | 3.0 | 0.864 |
| Whole class | 18 | 2.7 | 0.812 |
High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.
Roster 125
The 2018 roster125 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2018 line; 67 have a stat line. See the roster
2018 Sun Belt Conference standings
Conference page| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
| App State | 7–1 | 11–2 | |
 Troy | 7–1 | 10–3 | |
| Georgia Southern | 6–2 | 10–3 | |
 Arkansas State | 5–3 | 8–5 | |
| Louisiana | 5–3 | 7–7 | |
| UL Monroe | 4–4 | 6–6 | |
| Coastal Carolina | 2–6 | 5–7 | |
| South Alabama | 2–6 | 3–9 | |
| Texas State | 1–7 | 3–9 | |
| Georgia State | 1–7 | 2–10 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.