Backup RB gets into swing of ASU’s season with a pass
The loss of Arkansas State University’s starting running back paved the way for one of the signature plays of the Red Wolves’ 47-3 victory over Louisiana-Lafayette on Thursday night.
Junior Warren Wand did not dress because of a sprained ankle he suffered in the team’s 51-17 victory over Coastal Carolina on Saturday.
Coach Blake Anderson said Monday that Wand’s playing chances were “5050,” which he later admitted was optimistic.
“We had pretty much set the game plan expecting him not to play,” Anderson said Thursday night.
Part of that game plan included a wrinkle on ASU’s third offensive play: a throwback pass that used backup running back and former wide receiver Chauncey Mason, a redshirt sophomore.
Redshirt junior quarterback Justice Hansen had just rushed 33 yards to the Louisiana-Lafayette 37, and before the next snap, Mason lined up on Hansen’s right side in a Shotgun formation.
Mason drifted right on the snap, and Hansen laterally lobbed the football to him like it was a screen play, then dashed to the left side of the field.
That’s when Mason knew the play would work.
“Everybody was flowing to me, and I see Justice wide open,” said Mason, who later said he had last thrown an in-game pass in little league. WHEN Oct. 28, 7 p.m.
WHERE Aggie Memorial Stadium, Las Cruces, N.M.
RECORDS Arkansas State 4-2, 3-0 Sun Belt; New Mexico State 3-4, 1-2 INTERNET ESPN3
“In my head, I was like, ‘Just don’t mess it up.’ ”
He didn’t. Mason’s high-arcing pass dropped into Hansen’s hands at the Louisiana-Lafayette 43, and the quarterback nearly scored before he was caught from behind at the 3.
Senior running back Johnston White’s 1-yard touchdown run gave ASU a 14-0 lead, and for just a moment, Mason had more passing yards than the nation’s 12thranked slinger (310.3 yards per game).
“I’m coming for his position,” Mason joked after the game.
It was a career night for Mason, who redshirted last season after playing in five games as a true freshman receiver.
He rushed for 51 yards on five carries, and he scored the game’s final touchdown on a 10-yard run with 3:30 left.
“It felt great getting in that end zone,” Mason said. “It showed me to just trust the process. Also, just being moved around any time my number was called, I knew I just had to step up and show the coaches what I could do. So, whatever position they put me at, I’m glad to be there and do whatever to
make the team better.”
ASU’s 12th-ranked scoring offense (41 points per game) has added its 12th scoring member.
“I think you saw [Mason] gave us a spark,” Anderson said. “There’s things he can do that are really helpful to us.”