There is a quiet confidence surrounding the Arkansas State University football program as it prepares to embark on the 2024 season.

Coach Butch Jones, quarterback Jaylen Raynor and linebacker Charles Willekes were in New Orleans on Wednesday representing Arkansas State at the 2024 Sun Belt media days and talked about the upcoming season.

“We probably have the most competitive roster we’ve had to date,” Jones said during his news conference on Wednesday. “We’re still not completely balanced at all nine position groups, but we continue to make great improvements in the nine position areas. Our leadership is much more distributed.”

Coming off a 6-6 record in the 2023 season that saw the Red Wolves make their first bowl game appearance (Camellia Bowl) since 2019, the team enters Year 4 of the Butch Jones era with eight returning starters earning preseason All-Sun Belt honors. Fifteen starters overall are expected to return to the lineup, including four of the five members of the offensive line.

Offensive linemen Makilan Thomas and Jacob Bayer were both placed on the first-team, along with defensive lineman Nate Martey. Raynor, Willekes, running back Ja’Quez Cross and wide receivers Corey Rucker and Courtney Jackson were all named to the second-team.

Arkansas State was selected to finish fourth in the Sun Belt West Division in the preseason coaches poll, but the team is confident it can exceed those expectations with the wealth of talent returning, combined with a highly touted recruiting class.

Raynor had a breakout year in 2023 as a true freshman, throwing for 2,543 yards and 17 touchdowns compared to 7 interceptions. Raynor made his debut against Stony Brook in the fourth game last season and became the first true freshman to start at quarterback for Arkansas State since 2001 the next week against Southern Miss.

He went 11 of 21 passing with 3 touchdowns and an interception while rushing for 97 yards and 2 touchdowns on 17 attempts in his first start. The next week at UMass, Raynor tied the program record with six passing touchdowns.

“Looking back on last year, seeing all the things I can fix and how much better I can be, it gets me so excited,” Raynor said. “Just being able to put the ball in play, take what the defense gives me, not always trying to take the top off the defense … just get the playmakers the ball, take the stress off my O-line to give them confidence and really just score some touchdowns.”

While optimism is high, the Red Wolves will be up against a difficult schedule as they try to follow up on and continue their improvement in the 2023 season. Outside of the challenge of Sun Belt Conference play, Arkansas State will travel to take on the defending national champion Michigan Wolverines on Sept. 14.

“You can’t put too much emphasis on any individual game,” said Willekes, who started his career at Michigan State and made his college debut on special teams against Michigan in 2019. “As Coach Jones said, I’m also from Michigan, so that’ll be a cool experience, but you can’t take anything other than just the individual game week-to-week.”

One week later, the team will take on another Power 4 opponent on the road in Iowa State.

“If you look at our entire schedule, it’s a great challenge,” Jones said. “You are a byproduct of your experiences. That’s what makes you who you are. We have to be able to take the three years of what we’ve experienced and (figure out) how can we apply it moving forward into this season and learn from it.”

One of those experiences was the 73-0 loss Arkansas State suffered at Oklahoma in the first contest of the 2023 season. Jones believes the humiliation of that loss was a learning experience and will be motivation for his players to perform better against the stiff competition his Red Wolves will be up against this upcoming season.

“I knew going into the season last year that the University of Oklahoma was going to be an extremely talented football team,” Jones said. “We experienced after the first game that they were a really good football team, and to be honest with you, these (players) will tell you we got embarrassed. As the season progressed, you could see our culture get stronger and stronger.”

Practices begin for Arkansas State on July 31 with several intrasquad scrimmages expected to be included in the lead up to regular season. The Red Wolves open the season on Aug. 31 when they welcome in-state rival Central Arkansas, which is ranked 11th nationally in the Hero Sports FCS Preseason Top 25, to Jonesboro.

“Last year our players were finally able to experience and finally able to really understand and feel what winning football looks like,” Jones said. “We still have 42 newcomers under scholarship so you can’t assume anything.

“For our entire team the message has been this: Even with our youthfulness, we just can’t be a year older, we have to be a year better as we continue to build this program.”

    Charles Willekes