The first half went about how it was supposed to. Arkansas State answered ULM's 6-point first quarter with a touchdown, added another in the second and went to the locker room up 14-9. ULM was playing without Zach Palmer-Smith, who was listed out on the Sun Belt availability report. In a building that expected a comfortable afternoon, the Red Wolves led by 5 and hadn't put the game away.
The third quarter decided it. ULM scored 7, Arkansas State scored nothing, and the Warhawks went into the fourth up 16-14. Each side kicked a field goal in the final 15 minutes, and Arkansas State never got the touchdown it needed to go back in front. The kickoff weather was 56 degrees, cloudy and a 7 mph wind, so the weather doesn't explain the stall.
The defensive story belongs to ULM. This was the same unit that got shut out 24-0 at home by Louisiana Tech and couldn't stop the run against Southern Miss. It held an Arkansas State team that put 38 on Georgia State and 49 on South Alabama to 17, and to 3 after halftime. For a defense that has given up 52 and 35 this season, that's its best afternoon, and it came on the road like the 21-14 win at Troy.
For Arkansas State, the worry from the preview came true in a different way. The concern was another fourth quarter like the 17 points it gave up to Georgia State. This time the defense held up late and allowed only a field goal. The offense was the problem: 2 straight drive-killing quarters with an extra week to prepare. The Red Wolves are now 4-5 and still need 2 more wins for a bowl, with fewer games left to get them.
ULM moves to 2-7 with both of its wins coming on the road, and both by holding a Sun Belt opponent under 20. Arkansas State has now lost one-score games to Louisiana, South Alabama and a ULM team it beat on paper in every common-opponent comparison. The preview said coasting isn't how this team plays. It didn't coast here. It just didn't score enough in the second half.
