Arkansas State University long knew its open date would present an opportunity to refresh before the Red Wolves head into the second half of their season. Within the first six games, ASU had a run of three consecutive road games -- including a 2,200-plus-mile trip to Seattle -- and a Thursday night matchup against the best team in the Sun Belt Conference.
And while Coach Butch Jones repeatedly called his team "a work in progress" in the weeks before the Red Wolves' season began, he almost certainly didn't anticipate a 1-5 start in which his defense has been battered consistently, with an offense that is just trying to keep up.