Arkansas St Red Wolves 2026 College Football Preview
Posted June 8, 2026
2025 Recap
Record – 7-6
ATS – 9-4
A gutsy comeback season from the Red Wolves. Arkansas St started 1–4 and looked like they were heading straight to TURD TOWN before rattling off four wins in a row to get themselves back into bowl contention. They needed a thrilling one‑point win at Appalachian St in the regular season finale to punch their ticket to the postseason, and then delivered a fine performance in the Xbox Bowl to knock off Missouri St and finish 7–6.
Three consecutive bowl appearances under Butch Jones — that’s a real accomplishment for a program that was a TRASH HEAP just a few years ago. Now the question is whether they can take the next step and win the Sun Belt West.
Arkansas St Red Wolves 2026 Outlook
OFFENSE
2025 By The Numbers (Sun Belt):
- Scoring: 25.2 PPG (#9 Sun Belt)
- Total Offense: 382.7 YPG (#8 Sun Belt)
- Rushing: 123.1 YPG (#13 Sun Belt)
- Passing: 181.2 YPG (#11 Sun Belt)
- Sacks Allowed: 30 (#12 Sun Belt)
Those offensive numbers are mediocre across the board — bottom half of the Sun Belt in every major category and dead last in sacks allowed. Yet somehow, they won seven games. The rushing attack (#13) and passing game (#11) are both concerning for a program with championship aspirations.
ALL-MEGALOCKS TEAM member QB Jaylen Raynor was a big reason why the Red Wolves booked seven wins, but HE GONE. The good news is that new OC Garrett Altman (QB coach, Vandy) brings a creative mind and has installed a new system with a wide-open four-man quarterback competition. Trey Owens (6-5 transfer from Texas) is the most natural pocket passer of the group. Ethan Crawford brings a dangerous running dimension, while Vanderbilt transfers Drew Dickey and Jérémy St-Hilaire add more options and keep the battle genuinely competitive. Whoever wins the job inherits a good supporting cast.
The RB room remains a strength. Devin Spencer and Kenyon Clay combined for well over 1,000 combined rushing yards last season (6 TDs) and should benefit from a much-improved offensive line. At wide receiver, the loss of 1,000-yard man Corey Rucker to the NFL hurts BIGLY, but Chauncy Cobb (5-6!, 73 catches) and Hunter Summers (6-3, 44 receptions) form a dangerous duo. The offensive line is one of the best in the conference — four starters return, and the group got even better with the addition of Manasse Itete (6-5, 300), a transfer from Florida St who brings Power conference size and experience. Fixing that ugly sacks allowed number is the top priority for this group.
DEFENSE
2025 By The Numbers (Sun Belt):
- Scoring Defense: 27.4 PPG (#4 Sun Belt)
- Total Defense: 413.3 YPG (#10 Sun Belt)
- Rush Defense: 168.4 YPG (#7 Sun Belt)
- Pass Defense: 244.9 YPG (#12 Sun Belt)
- Sacks: 39 (#1 Sun Belt)
Those numbers show some fascinating splits — #1 in the Sun Belt in sacks (39) and a solid #4 in scoring defense, but #12 in pass defense and #10 in total defense.
The biggest concern heading into 2026 is the massive turnover in the first two levels of the stop unit. Almost everyone responsible for those 39 sacks is gone. Stud DT Cody Sigler (5 sacks) transferred to Auburn, and #1 tackler LB Aaron Alexander headed to North Texas. The Red Wolves essentially have a brand‑new group of starters at both DL and LB.
The defensive line does have some SPICY transfer additions, including DT Tyeland Coleman (6‑4, 301 from Florida St) and Donquarius Parker from NC Central (5.5 sacks), but how quickly they can produce remains to be seen. Sophomore Ryan Reese has potential inside, but he’s a bit undersized. At LB, Joe Drew (secondary piece LY) and Nigel Nelson (54 tackles as a true freshman) are expected to step into bigger roles. In the secondary, Kennesaw St transfer FIVE Hamilton should help, while the safety trio of AG McGhee (83 tackles), Brandon Greil, and Brandon Barnes provides veteran leadership. Fixing the leaky pass defense while trying to maintain some of last year’s pass‑rush production is the dual challenge for the defensive staff.
SPECIAL TEAMS
YES, GUY.
The Red Wolves are loaded on special teams. PK Clune Van Andel was 21/27 on FG attempts LY, PR Chauncy Cobb had TWO (!) kickoff return TDs, and they managed to pilfer Northern Illinois’ excellent punter Danny Vukovic.
Schedule Analysis
Overall — Two soft non‑conference games are accented by a pair of nasty ones (at Memphis, at TCU), but the list of FUN BELT assignments is manageable. The East draw is sweet (Coastal, Ga St), but they open conference play with a DOOZY, having to travel to face the Cajuns in Lafayette. Finishing the regular season with a home date against Troy is a nice setup, as who knows — that might be for all the division marbles.
Potential ATS Trouble Spot — at TCU (Sept 19)
This road trip to Fort Worth has LAY DOWN AND DIE written all over it — the Red Wolves come off a victory vs something called West Georgia and have a winnable home game (Kennesaw St) after this date with the Horned Frogs. Not an ideal spot to back the road underdog.
Season Win Total
Market consensus – June 8
Over 6.5 +110
Under 6.5 -140
MEGALOCKS says:
No leanage.
This won’t come as a shock, but 6–6 is the most likely record for this squad according to 21 of our 27 models. We’d be interested in going over a flat 6 with reasonable juice, but no play for now.
Note – Our official list of season win total investments will be posted in the blog section of the website.
MEGAmazing Tidbits
Arkansas St was once a Sun Belt JUGGERNAUT — winning FIVE (!) conference championships in a six-year span from 2011 to 2016 under FOUR different head coaches. That’s an extraordinary run of program-wide excellence that transcended any single coach.
Arkansas St’s mascots, HOWL and SCARLET, represent one of the most critically endangered animals on the planet — the American red wolf. With fewer than 20 red wolves remaining in the wild, the species is on the brink of extinction. Arkansas St takes its role seriously: the university’s Arkansas Center for Biodiversity Collections has been designated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as the national specimen bank for red wolf blood and tissue samples. Come here for the Arkansas St football preview, stay for the ENDANGERED SPECIES LORE.
MEGALOCKS Forecast:
The Red Wolves are going for their FOURTH consecutive bowl appearance under Butch Jones, and we like their chances to get there — the skill positions and offensive line look excellent, new OC Altman brings a creative mind to the play‑calling duties, and the special‑teams package is the best in the conference.
The wildcards are the QB situation and a defense that could see a dramatic pass‑rush drop‑off after leading the Sun Belt in sacks LY. Those two factors keep us from projecting a West division title this year, but bowl eligibility looks very achievable, and there’s real upside if Trey Owens or one of the other QBs emerges as a star under center. We’ll call for another bowl appearance and hope the Red Wolves can continue their upward trajectory.
AWOO! Go Red Wolves!