Arkansas State Red Wolves vs Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Match Player Stats On Oct 21, 2014

SportsDirect Inc. staff
Oct 22, 2014

Louisiana-Lafayette 55, Arkansas State 40: Elijah McGuire recorded career highs of 265 yards and four touchdowns while Alonzo Harris also scored four TDs as the host Ragin' Cajuns shredded the top defense in the Sun Belt Conference en route to their third straight victory.

Harris, who rushed for 107 yards, and McGuire each scored twice during a 28-point outburst that gave the Ragin' Cajuns (4-3, 3-0 Sun Belt) a 34-9 lead in the second quarter and have combined to score 18 of Louisiana's 28 touchdowns this season. The Red Wolves, who had not allowed a 100-yard rusher in 2014, were yielding an average of 360.2 yards (114.7 rushing) but permitted 419 of the Ragin' Cajuns' 521 yards on the ground while finishing with 595 total yards in this one.

Dijon Paschal recorded 141 yards and two scores on eight catches while Michael Gordon rushed for 134 yards - his third consecutive 100-yard game - and a touchdown for Arkansas State (4-3, 2-1), which had its three-game winning streak snapped. Fredi Knighten was 26-of-37 for 344 yards and three touchdowns while also rushing for a score but could not prevent the Red Wolves from losing for only the second time in 13 conference road games since 2011.

Louisiana turned a 9-6 deficit into a 34-9 advantage during a 7:31 span overlapping the first and second quarters, highlighted by McGuire's career-best run - a 74-yard touchdown. Arkansas State got back in the game with scores on back-to-back plays from scrimmage totaling 157 yards, with Gordon's 70-yard run - on which he appeared down but was laying on a teammate before running away from an unsuspecting defense - and Paschal's TD reception which made it 34-23.

The Red Wolves were unsuccessful on a fake punt from their own 8-yard line midway through the third quarter and Harris made them pay two plays later with his fourth touchdown, a 4-yarder that gave Louisiana a 41-23 lead. Knighten threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Tres Houston, and a two-point conversion toss made it 48-40 with 1:12 left, but Arkansas State failed to recover the onside kick and McGuire completed his big night with a 54-yard TD run three plays later.