Trey Owens Accounts for Four Touchdowns as Arkansas State Holds Off Georgia State 38-32

Homecoming games are supposed to be comfortable. Arkansas State spent most of Saturday night in Jonesboro making this one look easy, and then spent the final two minutes holding its breath.

The Red Wolves built a 17-point lead early in the fourth quarter, watched Georgia State claw back within one score, and finally exhaled when a defender came up with a first career interception with 21 seconds left. Arkansas State held on for a 38-32 win over Georgia State at Centennial Bank Stadium on Oct. 24, and quarterback Trey Owens was the reason the cushion existed in the first place.

Owens threw for 309 yards and two touchdowns and ran for two more. Two Arkansas State receivers, Corey Bonelli and Nana Burris, posted career highs in receiving yards. The win pulled Arkansas State back to .500 at 4-4 overall and 2-2 in the Sun Belt. Georgia State fell to 4-3 and 1-2 in league play.

A quiet start turns loud

Georgia State's first possession went nowhere, with a 6-yard loss on the opening play and a sack that forced a punt. Bonelli then flipped the field with a 22-yard return that set the Red Wolves up at the Georgia State 40.

Arkansas State needed only a few snaps from there. A 24-yard completion and a 4-yard run by Kenyon Clay set up a touchdown pass from Owens at 11:48 of the first quarter, and the homecoming crowd had its early lead.

The Red Wolves' defense did the rest of the first-quarter work. Georgia State did not score in the opening 15 minutes and managed just 37 yards of offense. According to Arkansas State, it was the fifth time this season the defense had kept an opponent off the board in the first quarter.

The Panthers found their footing in the second quarter. Quarterback Cameran Brown hit DJ Riles for a 3-yard touchdown to tie the game at 7-7. Arkansas State answered with a crisp 73-yard drive in seven plays that started with 7:38 left in the half, and Owens finished it on a quarterback sneak. Georgia State answered again, this time with Ayden Pereira throwing a touchdown pass, and the teams went to the locker room tied 14-14.

The third quarter swing

If the first half was a trade, the third quarter was a sprint.

Georgia State took the opening possession of the second half, and Brandon Greil intercepted it. Arkansas State wasted no time cashing in. On the very next play, Owens uncorked a 54-yard touchdown pass, and the Red Wolves led 21-14.

That lead lasted two plays. Georgia State running back Qwantavius Wiggins broke loose for a 77-yard touchdown run, and with 9:14 left in the third quarter the game was tied for a third time.

This is where Owens took over, finding Bonelli for a 35-yard gain to set up the next score before going back to the sneak for a second rushing touchdown for a 28-21 lead. The defense forced a three-and-out, and the offense went to work on a 12-play, 68-yard drive that bled the clock into the fourth quarter. On the first play of the final period, Timothy Carter ran it in from 2 yards out for a 35-21 lead.

Clune Van Andel added a 26-yard field goal at 10:59 of the fourth quarter. Arkansas State led 38-21, and the game looked finished.

Georgia State makes it a game

It was not finished. Georgia State needed just four plays to go 75 yards, with Pereira finding Rodshaun Dorsey for a 27-yard touchdown. The Panthers added the two-point conversion, and suddenly the lead was nine.

The Red Wolves' offense stalled and punted, and Georgia State turned the next possession into points again, with Samer Layous hitting a 33-yard field goal to make it 38-32. One score separated the teams.

Arkansas State tried to run out the clock and nearly did. The Red Wolves ground it down to the two-minute timeout before giving it back. Georgia State took over at its own 13 with 1:55 to play, needing a touchdown to win.

The Panthers moved. They crossed midfield and were in Arkansas State territory with 21 seconds left when Makai Shahid stepped in front of a throw and came down with the ball. It was the first interception of Shahid's career, and it ended the game.

Owens and two big targets

The stat line belongs to Owens: 21 completions, 309 passing yards, two touchdown passes and two short touchdown runs. The quarterback also ran eight times for 36 yards. Owens was named Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week, a fitting reward for a quarterback involved in four of the five Arkansas State touchdowns.

The receivers made the passing game hum. Bonelli caught seven passes for 150 yards and a touchdown, a career high in receiving yards, and added that 22-yard punt return that set up the first score. Burris caught six passes for 114 yards and a touchdown, also a career high in yards.

Clay gave the offense balance, rushing 11 times for 77 yards, and Carter delivered the short touchdown that opened the fourth quarter.

The defense that bent, then delivered

The Arkansas State defense gave up some big plays, none bigger than Wiggins' 77-yard touchdown run. Wiggins finished with 99 yards on just eight carries.

But the Red Wolves made the plays that decided the game. Two interceptions, one to open the second half and one to close it, bookended the stretch where Arkansas State took control and the moment it kept it. It was the fourth time this season the Red Wolves had at least two interceptions in a game.

Joe Drew led the defense with 10 tackles. Shahid and Tre Stevens each had eight, and Shahid added the game-sealing pick.

The stats that matter

Georgia State used two quarterbacks and got production from both. Pereira threw for 163 yards and Brown threw for 65, while Wiggins carried the running game. The Panthers scored 18 points in the second half and 11 in the final 11 minutes, which is a credit to how they kept fighting.

The difference was turnovers and timing. Georgia State gave the ball away twice through the air, and both came at the worst possible moments. The first led directly to a touchdown on the following play. The second came with the Panthers in range to steal the game.

The 12-play, 68-yard march that ended in Carter's touchdown mattered, too, keeping the Georgia State offense on the sideline. The full numbers are in the official box score (opens in a new tab), and the school's game recap (opens in a new tab) has the drive-by-drive detail.

What it means and what's next

For Arkansas State, the win keeps the season pointed in the right direction. In his sixth season in Jonesboro, Butch Jones has his team at 4-4 heading into a bye week, with a chance to rest before a homestretch that will decide bowl eligibility. The series with Georgia State now favors the Red Wolves 8-2, and they have never lost to the Panthers at home, improving to 5-0 in Jonesboro.

After the off week, Arkansas State hosts ULM on Nov. 7 on Ag Day.

For Georgia State, this one will sting. The Panthers erased a 17-point fourth-quarter deficit to nine, then to six, and had the ball in enemy territory in the final half-minute. At 4-3 and 1-2 in the conference, they had a home game against Coastal Carolina next on the schedule for Oct. 31, with plenty to play for.

The last word

The box score will remember Owens, Bonelli and Burris. The crowd in Jonesboro will remember Shahid. With 21 seconds left, a defender who had never intercepted a pass in college picked the perfect moment to start. Georgia State made Arkansas State sweat. Arkansas State made the last play.

Sources: Arkansas State Athletics game recap, box score and weekly honors release, and The Associated Press via KATV. More college football coverage on Undrafted.

Photos: Arkansas State Athletics.