12 Dec

Arkansas State Schedules Press Conference To Announce Bryan Harsin Next Head Football Coach

Posted by Illegal Shift in College Football. Tagged: , , .

Arkansas State University sent out a press release this morning announcing a press conference will be held today at 2:00pm in the Convocation Center. During the press conference ASU will announce their next head football coach. As we indicated last night, Bryan Harsin is expected to the belle of the ball.

The press conference is open to the public again this year and you should enter through the lower red entrance of the Convocation Center (same as last year). It’ll be interesting to see how many people show up this year as compared to last year when Gus Malzahn was announced. Last year’s attendance filled up the first room will media and the public completely filled up the 2nd room with only some standing room available.

Press release below:

ARKANSAS STATE TO HOLD 2:00 PM PRESS CONFERENCE TODAY
ANNOUNCING NEW HEAD FOOTBALL COACH

JONESBORO (12/12/12) – The Arkansas State University Department of Athletics will hold a 2:00 p.m. press conference today announcing its new head football coach. The press conference will be held on the ASU campus at the Convocation Center auditorium.
The press conference is open to working media and the public, and it will be streamed live on AStateRedWolves.com. Those attending the afternoon press conference should enter at the Convocation Center’s lower red entrance to gain access to the auditorium.

ASU PRESS CONFERENCE
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 12
2:00 PM
CONVOCATION CENTER
AUDITORIUM

11 Dec

Arkansas State Decides On Bryan Harsin As Next Head Coach?

Posted by Illegal Shift in College Football. Tagged: , .

We’re hearing from a reliable source that Arkansas State will name Bryan Harsin their next head coach. Harsin is the current co-offensive cordinator at Texas and was formerly the offensive coordinator at Boise St.

Information will most likely be steadily coming in tonight and tomorrow. We’ll keep you updated.

Articles and information about Harsin:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bryan_Harsin
http://www.texassports.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/harsin_bryan00.html

3 Oct

The Secret Negotiations of The Gus Malzahn – Arkansas State Contract

Posted by Illegal Shift in College Football. Tagged: , , .

Earlier this week we reported that Gus Malzahn had finally signed his contract with Arkansas State. There are a handful of interesting nuggets of information in the contract, but one stood out to us at Illegal Shift.

Part of Malzahn’s deal is that he is provided a house in Jonesboro. Not a bad deal. Coach our team and live rent free. But it made me laugh to see the following:

The University shall pay all utilities except for internet and television.

Let me make sure I’ve got this right. ASU doesn’t mind making Malzahn the highest paid coach in the Sun Belt and they’ll even let him live rent free in an ASU-owned house.
But they draw a hard line when it comes to paying Suddenlink’s tiered pricing? Oh ASU, you’re so savvy. I can only imagine how those negotiations went…

Gus Malzahn: Hey, did you hear the new season of Mad Men is suppose to be awesome?

Chuck Welch: Yeah. It’s so much better than Game of Thrones.

Gus Malzahn: Word. Back to my contract. The salary and house are really nice, but what about my internet bill?

Chuck Welch: Whoah. Slow down now. ASU can’t be paying all your overage charges, just because you want to torrent the new season of Mad Men.

Gus Malzahn: Come on Chuck.

Chuck Welch: Sorry, Gus. If you had the “all you can eat” internet package that would be one thing, but I gotta draw the line somewhere. Besides if we pay your cable bill, it could be subject to a FOI request. And FOI requests haven’t gone so well for head coaches in this state.

Gus Malzahn: True. Plus I don’t want Roberson finding out about my obsession with the Real Housewives of New Jersey just because of a stupid FOI request.

Chuck Welch: Dude, I love #RHONJ!

1 Oct

Gus Malzahn Arkansas State Contract Details

Posted by Illegal Shift in College Football. Tagged: , , .

After submitting a FOIA request we’ve received Arkansas State head football coach, Gus Malzahn’s contract. Below are some of the details.

Length

January 1,2012 to January 31, 2017
One year automatic extension with 7 wins (6 Div I opponents)
Malzahn must be consulted when it comes to scheduling
Contract was signed August 17th, 2012.

Compensation

Guaranteed Base Salary is the line item maximum for each year of the contract authorized by the State of Arkansas. Reimbursed for travel expenses.

Fringe Benefits

  • Group life insurance
  • Annual leave with pay
  • Medical insurance
  • Cell phone
  • Retirement contributions
  • Tuition discounts
  • Moving expenses
  • 30 tickets for home football games
  • 6 tickets in Athletic Director’s end zone suite
  • 4 spaces for football plane trips
University home in Jonesboro, Ar. The University will maintain the house and grounds. The University shall pay all utilities except for internet and television.

Bonus Pay

Able to earn outside income such as speeches, appearances, commercials, etc…

  • $50,000 for conference championship and bowl game
  • $25,000 for bowl game without conf championship
  • $75,000 BCS bowl game
  • $100,000 BCS championship game
  • $125,000 Winning BCS championship game
  • $10,000 Conf Coach of Year
  • $25,000 National Coach of Year
*Highest achievement paid, not cumulative. Bonus pay is disqualified in any year a NCAA violation results in disciplinary action, whether imposed by the NCAA or self-imposed.

Termination Clause(s)

If Malzahn is terminated without cause the University will pay him:

  • Before Feb 1, 2013: $2,450,000
  • Before Feb 1, 2014: $1,960,000
  • Before Feb 1, 2015: $1,470,000
  • Before Feb 1, 2016: $980,000
  • Before Feb 1, 2017: $490,000

If Malzahn leaves he must pay:

  • Before Feb 1, 2013: $700,000
  • Before Feb 1, 2014 – $350,000
  • Before Feb 1, 2015 – $200,000
  • Before Feb 1, 2016 – $100,000
  • Before Feb 1, 2017 – $050,000 (If before final game of 2016 season)

For a comparison, check out Hugh Freeze’s contract from last year: http://www.illegalshift.com/2011/11/08/hugh-freeze-arkansas-state-football-contract/college-football/

 

25 Sep

The Most Polite 56-0 Drubbing You’ll Ever See

Posted by Illegal Shift in College Football. Tagged: , , , , .

This past weekend the Red Wolves put a 56-0 beat down on Alcorn St. It was obvious from the very beginning that this FCS opponent was outmatched athletically and physically. At times it didn’t even feel like a real football game. More like a Varsity vs Jr Varsity scrimmage. It was ugly, but if it wasn’t for Gus Malzahn it could have been a lot worse.

Arkansas State’s quarterbacks finished the game 14-16 passing for 238 yards and 3 touchdowns. If Malzahn wanted to be a jerk he could have easily went Madden style and threw bombs all night for touchdowns. There were 4-5 plays the Red Wolves tried to throw the ball down field and all ended with a touchdown or huge gain. The ASU receivers just ran right past the defense.

Quarterback Ryan Aplin ended the game 12-13 for 198 yards and 3 touchdowns. And only played the first half. He had more touchdowns than incompletions! The Red Wolves only attempted 3 passes in the 2nd half and all of those were in the 3rd quarter.

Not only did Malzahn rarely throw the ball, but he pretty much only threw it when he had to. The Red Wolves attempted 16 total passes. In 13 of those attempts the Red Wolves needed at least 7 yards for a first down. As a team Arkansas State totaled 56 rushing attempts for the game. 23 rushing attempts in the first half and 33 rushing attempts in the second half.

Everyone in the stadium could see this was a lopsided matchup and Alcorn St had no business being on that field. Hopefully everyone in the stadium also noticed Malzahn did everything he could not to embarrass them. If you want to applaud anything from this game, applaud Malzahn for taking care of business, but being respectful at the same time.

 

21 Sep

Arkansas State iPhone5 Wallpapers

Posted by Illegal Shift in College Football. Tagged: , , , .

Below are some iPhone5 wallpapers we put together. If you’ve got a design you’d like to add to the list email us at illegalshiftblog@gmail.com

Feel free to download/copy/share any of the images. Click on each image to get the correct iPhone5 dimensions.

You can also find the images on our flickr page:

21 Sep

Gus Malzahn Y U NO LIKE LONG PASS

Posted by Illegal Shift in College Football. Tagged: , , , .

Gus Malzahn
Is it just me or does it look like Gus Malzahn won’t throw the ball down field? A few weeks ago I sat back during the Oregon game and watched short pass after short pass after short pass. The next week vs Memphis it didn’t stand out as much and I kinda forgot about it. Then last week during the Nebraska game the thought popped up again. “Have we even thrown the ball down field at all?”

After taking a look at a few stats it looks like my initial thought might be correct. The Red Wolves aren’t really throwing the ball down the field that much. Arkansas State ranks 80th in “long pass plays“. Which basically means passes that end up with a gain of ten or more yards. Through three games the Red Wolves have 23 “long pass plays“. For a quick comparison, the Red Wolves averaged 12.3 “long pass plays” a game last year and were ranked 17th by the end of the season with 148 total “long pass plays“.

Different coaches, different philosophies, different game plans. Yeah, I get it.

A little research shows that I shouldn’t have been surprised. Last year when Malzahn was at Auburn they ranked 96th in “long pass plays“. In 2010, under Malzahn, they ranked 56th (they also had Cam Newton that year). So I must ask, Gus Malzahn, Y U NO LIKE LONG PASS?

Completed Passes vs Oregon

1st Qtr 13, 8, 8, 6, 3, 1, 6, 11, 10, 5
2nd Qtr 7, 7, 9, -1, 8, 72TD
3rd Qtr 0, 14, 0, 26, 8, 7, 8, 8, 6TD
4th Qtr 8, 8, 12, -3, 38TD

Completed Passes vs Memphis

1st Qtr 23, 5, 3, 20
2nd Qtr 8, 8, 10, 5, 13, 8, 5, 42TD, 6, 9, 18
3rd Qtr 9, 8, 14, 7, 19
4th Qtr 13, 26, 30, 7

Completed Passes vs Nebraska

1st Qtr 4, 4, 9, 7
2nd Qtr 13, 12, 22, 9, 8, 4
3rd Qtr 7, 6
4th Qtr 9, 16, 1

20 Sep

10 Reasons Why Arkansas State Is Better Than You Think

Posted by Illegal Shift in College Football. Tagged: , , .

Yesterday, we asked the question “What do we know about Arkansas State“. The stats show a team that isn’t very good defensively, gives up early leads and turns the ball over. Call em excuses, reasons or whatever you want, but we’ve got 10 reasons why ASU is better than those stats indicate.

  • First year head coach
  • Young coaching staff
  • Tough competition
  • Oregon may be the best team in the country
  • Nebraska has the 8th best FBS rushing attack
  • Nobody ever gives up 17 special teams points
  • You never have that many lost fumbles
  • ASU is always playing from behind
  • Lost a lot of defensive starters from last year
  • Somehow it’s Michael Dyer’s fault

18 Sep

Through Week 3 – What Do We Know About Arkansas State?

Posted by Illegal Shift in College Football. Tagged: , , , , , .

This past weekend the Red Wolves fell to 1-2 after losing 42-13 to Nebraska. The offense failed to put the ball in the end zone and the only thing the defense did well was force fumbles. Much like the Oregon game, Nebraska took an early lead and shifted into cruise control. Add to that a less than stellar victory against Memphis and many ASU fans are wondering just how good is this team.

What’s Good? – The Running Game

Arkansas State ranks 24th in the nation in rushing offense averaging 230.33 yards per game. David Oku is averaging 4.9 yards per carry and leads the team with 236 rushing yards. Frankie Jackson and Ryan Aplin are both averating over 4 yards per carry and have combined for 270 yards. Even defensive back (Yes, I said DEFENSIVE back) Rocky Hayes has racked up 115 yards on just 10 carries.

Malzahn has shown he is committed to running the ball. His Red Wolves rank 25th in rushing attempts and is spreading the ball around with 8 different players having at least one rushing attempt.

What’s Mediocre? – Ryan Aplin’s Passing

Last year’s Sun Belt Player of The Year hasn’t been the Ryan Aplin that ASU fans have come to expect. Through three games Aplin has a 58.1% completion percentage. The last time Aplin had a three game completion percentage this low was early in the 2010 season. It’s not all bad for Aplin. He’s had two 300+ passing yard games and is averaging 248 passing yards a game. He’s also got 4 touchdowns to only 1 interception. If Aplin can get his completion percentage above 60% he should be alright and the yardage – td/int ratio will look even better.

What’s Bad?

The 1st Quarter
Arkansas State has been outscored 49-3 in the 1st quarter this year. Oregon was up 28-0 in the first fifteen minutes. During that game ASU’s drives in the 1st quarter ended in Punt, Fumble & Punt. Memphis only held a 7-3 lead with ASU going Field Goal, Punt & Punt on their 1st quarter drives. Nebraska held a 14-0 lead with ASU putting up a Turnover On Downs, Interception & Punt with their 1st quarter drives. It’s hard for anyone to win with starts that bad.

Playing Behind
The Red Wolves have played a total of 180 minutes of football so far this year. They’ve only held a lead for 10 minutes and 27 seconds. That means they’ve only had the lead for 5% of the time this year. Memphis is the only game they actually held a lead.

Turnovers
ASU has lost 4 fumbles this year which ranks them 95th in the nation. To put that in perspective, only 16 teams have lost more fumbles than ASU. Don’t forget the blocked punt returned for a touchdown (one of only 13 teams to have a punt returned/blocked for a touchdown). And throw in 2 interceptions just for good measure.

Just Growing Pains?

Don’t forget this team lost a lot on defense and has a new, young coaching staff. As much as Malzahn has been hyped as an offensive genius, let’s not forget this is first year as a head coach. He’s got a few pieces that need to be put together, but how quickly it can be done is a big unknown. With one more game before conference play starts, Astate fans are hoping it’s real soon.

13 Sep

Arkansas State $22 Million Facility Project Creates Greatest Tailgate Spot Ever

Posted by Illegal Shift in College Football. Tagged: , , .

Arkansas State $22 Million Facility Project

The Greatest Tailgating Spot Known To College Football

Last week Arkansas State announced it’s plans for a $22 million facility project. The plans included a “two-level football operations building and 76,000 square-foot indoor practice facility“. All to be located in the north end zone of the football stadium. That alone sounds impressive, but the school also released photos and a very nice promo video of what the project will look like once completed. Everyone who saw the video was blown away.

There was one thing I thought got lost in the announcement. If you look at the picture above you’ll see a set of parking spaces right next to the new facility. Notice anything special about those (besides being close to the front door)? They have a view of the field and would make an awesome tailgating spot. Having a tailgate with a field view solves almost every hassle/problem you deal with on game day.

Tailgating Never Ends

Everyone knows the routine. At some point you have to decide to pack up your stuff and head into the stadium. Depending on how serious you are, this could take up to an hour. You might spend 30 minutes packing up the food, taking down your tent and putting the television away. Then another 30 minutes of corralling the children, walking to the stadium and getting your entire crew seated. If your tailgate has a field view, that all goes away. Which means you get an extra hour of tailgating and no chance of missing kickoff.

Enjoy Halftime

Ever left at halftime to consume more tailgate food and beverages? You plan on just staying a few minutes and that turns into an hour with you standing next to your truck listening to the game on the radio while eating baked beans and BBQ. You would never have to make that decision again and you wouldn’t have to miss the halftime festivities (or the 2nd half).

Next Level Tailgating

If ASU really wanted to take this thing to the next level they could add to this parking lot and make it an even better tailgating area. Take both corners of the north end zone and make them available for tailgating. Just park your truck next the new building and set up your tailgate. It’s like the drive-in movie theatre of tailgating.

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