Jonesboro, AR – (Contributed)– Aug. 30, 2025 – Arkansas State football (1-0, 0-0 SBC) opened the 2025 season strong, riding a crisp passing attack to a 42-24 win over Southeast Missouri (0-1, 0-0 OVC/Big South) on Saturday night at Centennial Bank Stadium.
Junior quarterback Jaylen Raynor led the effort, completing 81 percent of his passes (26-32) for 345 yards and three touchdowns. The Red Wolves totaled 492 yards of total offense against SEMO, which accumulated 364 yards of offense, with 272 of those yards coming through the air.
Raynor’s performance moved him to sixth on A-State’s career passing yards list. Along with his three scoring passes—caught by Corey Rucker (2 catches, 59 yards), Jaylen Bonelli (4 catches, 45 yards), and Ja’Quez Cross (5 catches, 33 yards)—three A-State rushers reached the end zone. Leading rusher Devin Spencer gained 42 yards on three carries and scored, while Kenyon Clay (15 rushes, 41 yards) and Cross (8 rushes, 36 yards) also scored touchdowns. Chauncey Cobb set career highs with both five catches and 85 receiving yards, both team bests.
Defensively, true-freshman Nigel Nelson recorded a team-high 10 tackles (4 solo), while newcomer Cody Sigler had 1.5 sacks. Drew Collins also sacked SEMO quarterback Jax Leatherwood once, and Ethan Hassler contributed 0.5 sacks along with two hurries.
The Scarlet and Black scored first in the opening drive, ending a seven-play, 75-yard series with Cross’s 7-yard run. SEMO responded on the next drive when Brandon Epton Jr. scored from 8 yards out, tying the game at 7, a score that remained through the end of the first quarter.
SEMO took a brief 10-7 lead, its lone advantage of the night, on a 40-yard field goal by Justin Keller that concluded a methodical 19-play, 60-yard drive that chewed up over 8 minutes of game clock.
A-State finished the first half strong, scoring 21 unanswered points to take a 28-10 lead at halftime. Raynor and Cross connected on a 4-yard touchdown, followed by Spencer’s 43-yard run – his first of his career — and Clay’s 2-yard touchdown run to close out the half.
The Red Wolves extended their lead early in the second half when Raynor connected with Rucker on a 9-yard touchdown pass to make it 35-10, and then Bonelli scored on a 10-yard pass from Raynor to end A-State’s scoring.
SEMO scored its final two touchdowns on passes from Leatherwood to Donnie Cheers (60 yards) and Cam Pedro (31 yards).
NEXT UP
A-State returns to action next Saturday, heading to Little Rock for its first-ever meeting against in-state foe Arkansas. Kickoff from War Memorial Stadium against the Razorbacks (1-0, 0-0 SEC) is scheduled for 4 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on SEC Network+ and ESPN+.
Tickets are available, and fans can purchase by clicking here.
