Arkansas State won its tenth game of the year, 17-13, taking down a ranked Kent State team in a tightly fought GoDaddy.com Bowl in Mobile, Ala.
2013 GoDaddy.com Bowl final score: Red Wolves win hard-fought 17-13 showdown
The Arkansas State Red Wolves defense held a Kent State squad dealing with an injury to Dri Archer to only 13 points, getting their tenth win of the year in the GoDaddy.com Bowl.
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The Red Wolves won under interim coach John Thompson, while Darrell Hazell couldn't win his final game as head coach of Kent State. It was Arkansas State's first win over a ranked team since 1992. The issue for Arkansas State was going to be stopping all-American Dri Archer. Archer had 77 yards and a touchdown on only nine carries, but got hurt, and wasn't on the field as Kent State needed a touchdown to win the game.
Neither team would find the end zone early: Kent State got all the way down to the one on their first drive of the game, but lost a pair of yards before Spencer Keith threw a pick in the end zone. That interception would be the only turnover by either team all game.
Archer would get the scoring started on the Golden Flashes' first drive of the second quarter, breaking out a 44-yard rush before scampering another 16 yards for a score. But Ryan Aplin answered back for Arkansas State, completing all ten of his passes on two touchdown drives, including five to J.D. McKissic, one of which was a 31-yard score. The Red Wolves took a 14-10 lead into the half after a Kent State two-minute drill ended in a field goal.
Both teams got within the opposing ten-yard line in the third quarter, but traded field goals, leaving the difference at four points entering the final quarter of play. The Golden Flashes’ defense held up, stopping Arkansas State on their first two drives of the fourth, giving them an opportunity to score after getting the ball back with under five minutes. But on offense, they were without Archer, who tried to play through a knee injury but eventually had to leave the game. The team converted their first fourth-and-eight, but Keith was hurt on the play, coming back a few plays later. When Kent State faced fourth-and-eight again, Keith tried scrambling for the first, and couldn’t pick it up, essentially ending the Golden Flashes’ chances of winning.
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