Florida International @ Arkansas St. preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 4, 2012 ) Arkansas State 34, Florida International 20

CAMELLIA BOWL STORYLINES

1. Arkansas State and its star-studded cast meet Florida International in the Camellia Bowl on Dec. 21 in Birmingham, Ala. The Red Wolves feature the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year in senior wide receiver Omar Bayless, while quarterback Layne Hatcher was the Freshman of the Year. Bayless, a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award given to the nation's top receiver, recorded 1,473 yards and 16 touchdowns - both second nationally to LSU's Ja'Marr Chase, and his 84 receptions were ninth-most in the country.

2. The Panthers qualified for a bowl game despite going 3-5 in Conference USA - tied for the third-worst record in the 14-team league. "We’re thrilled for our team to play in the Camellia Bowl - which is a school-record third straight bowl game - and get the chance for our team to cap the season on a high note,” FIU coach Butch Davis told reporters. The Panthers, who are led by senior quarterback James Morgan, are 2-2 in bowl games after a 35-32 victory over Toledo in the 2018 Bahamas Bowl.

3. Arkansas State has battled adversity on and off the field this season as coach Blake Anderson's wife, Wendy, died from breast cancer Aug. 19. Junior quarterback Logan Bonner sustained a season-ending injury to his throwing hand in Week 4 after passing for 1,052 yards and 10 touchdowns. The Red Wolves persevered and finished second in the Sun Belt West Division behind Louisiana, and will try to improve on their 3-7-1 bowl record after a 16-13 overtime loss to Nevada in the 2018 Arizona Bowl.

TV: 5:30 p.m. ET, ESPN. LINE: Arkansas State -3

ABOUT ARKANSAS STATE (7-5): Hatcher went 5-3 after taking over for Bonner, throwing for 2,553 yards and six of his 23 touchdowns and zero of his nine interceptions in the last two games while completing the best pass efficiency rate (173.5) in the Sun Belt. Kirk Merritt shined bright with 64 catches for 763 yards and 11 TDs despite playing in Bayless' shadow while Jonathan Adams Jr. (58 receptions, four scores) provides Hatcher a solid third option. The Red Wolves are led defensively by William Bradley-King (8.5 sacks) and Darreon Jackson (103 tackles).

ABOUT FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL (6-6): Morgan passed for 13 touchdowns against three interceptions with Shemar Thornton and Tony Gaiter IV combining to make 97 catches for 1,189 yards and nine scores. The rushing attack is led by Anthony Jones and Napoleon Maxwell, who accumulated a total of 1,411 yards and 17 TDs. Rishard Dames and linebacker Sage Lewis have three interceptions apiece while Alexy Jean-Baptiste paces the Panthers with 4.5 sacks.



PREDICTION: Arkansas State 35, Florida International 24