Arkansas State defeated ULM for the ninth straight time Saturday. The Red Wolves were able to tie for first place in the Sun Belt West division with a 31-17 victory over the Warhawks. The game had a weird flow to it, characterizing the crazy race in the division.

The Red Wolves put the game away after answering a strong drive from ULM. A ten-yard passing touchdown completed the drive for the Red Wolves. It was a cherry on top of a nice day for Justice Hansen and the Red Wolves.

ULM allowed Hansen to complete 21 of his 27 passes while throwing for three touchdowns and 246 yards on the afternoon. The QB also averaged a healthy 12 yards per completion. The ground game was hot as well finishing with 158 yards rushing. Marcel Murray had 94 of those yards on 17 carries. The team’s receivers played well also, making plenty of highlight grabs on third won to extend drives.

ULM’s defense allowed the Wolves to go 9-17 on third downs and 100 percent on three red zone drives. Not all was bad however as David Griffith had a solid day with 12 tackles and four tackles for loss. The team as a whole had 13 tackles for loss and one sack. The lack of turnovers hurt the defense again, as they failed to register one.

Saturday’s game was one of the few times that the offense disappointed. Evans passed now Philadelphia Eagles Head Coach Doug Pederson for fifth in career passing yards (6,380 yards). Evans finished with two touchdowns, 218 yards through the air and another 34 on the ground.

Everything else was rough for the star QB. Evans and the Warhawk offense failed to get things going early in the ball game. Not only did they start slow, but things started to get away form them in the second half. Right away Evans threw a pick-six on the first second half drive. He would throw another two interceptions in the fourth quarter.

While the Red Wolves snapped the four-game winning streak, the team played a tough game that should leave fans with some hope. Penalties played a huge role in the game. On Arkansas State’s scoring drive to end the first half, ULM had three personal foul flags that kept the drive alive. ULM failed to get a consistent run game going as well, something they have had during the winning streak.

The offense still had some explosive play on the day. Marcus Green and Josh Pederson each had five catches for 60 plus yards, while Pederson scored the only passing touchdown of the day. Brandius Batiste, D’Marius Gillespie and Zachari Jackson each had explosive catches of 20 plus yards. This showed that ULM is a different team when able to run the ball consistently. R.J. Turner failing to make the trip due to an ankle injury did not help the Warhawks cause either.

All is not lost for the Warhawks season, even after the hurtful loss. They remain atop the west division now tied with Arkansas State. They are still bowl eligible for the first time since 2012 and one more regular season game left. The game is against major in-state rival, the Lafayette Ragin ‘Cajuns. The game is now very important with a shot at the Sun Belt conference title game hanging in the balance.

The game is the last of ULM’s regular season, closing out at home. The game kicks off at 2 p.m. on Nov. 24.