In the first D1A game of the 2021 Lindenwood University rode a solid second half to beat Arkansas State 31-8 in Jonesboro, Ark.

The game was a Mid-South conference game and was a decent start for the Lions in what promises to be a season full of questions.

Arkansas State has been without a head coach since Blake White left last year. COVID hasn't made it easy to find a replacement and a huge amount of the responsibility for getting the team ready. They looked pretty ready on Saturday, keeping possession for long periods and putting Lindenwood under pressure.

Despite being a bit starved for possession, Lindenwood was able to score first, with Flyhalf Evan Williams putting over a penalty and then getting a converted try to lead with only seven minutes gone. But Arkansas State stormed back, got a penalty from flyhalf Aiden Ridgway, and then put flanker Isaiah Poku down the sideline for a try and a 10-8 Lindenwood lead. But Arkansas State struggled to make all that possession pay off. The Red Wolves had a prime chance to claw back with a bice break and an overlap on the right side. But they didn't move the ball wide and a poorly-thought-out kick ahead scuttled that chance. 

Lindenwood, meanwhile, was able tp pulled away with three more tries to win it.

"Arkansas State has 66% possession in the first half," said Lindenwood Head Coach Josh Macy. "We were lucky to not have been down at half."

Ridgway's penalty and Poku's try constituted the only scoring for Arkansas State. Wing Morgan Purcell scored two tries for Lindenwood while No. 8 Tinashe Muchena and fullback Connor Burns also touched down. Evan Williams added four conversions and a penalty for the 31-8 victory. 

Arkansas State

1. Tim Ohlwein
2. George Sharpe (c)
3. David Ige
4. Asa Carter
5. Dante Bandoni
6. Dale Hartmann
7. Isaiah Poku
8. Evan Roode
9. TJ Van Rensburg
10. Aiden Ridgway
11. James Luecke
12. Joel Penrose
13. Daniel Raath
14. Keelan Watkins
15. Emile Blanc
    
    Reserves
16. Cameron Dowie
17. Will Hernandez
18. Jalen Farmer
19. Craig Snyder
20. Nathan Raath
21. Nick Aummann
22. Elvis Circi
23. Mazvita Nyamarebvu

Lindenwood

1. Liam Smith
2. Kayleb O'Donoghue
3. Sam Buckley
4. Marnus Spangenberg (c)
5. Emmanuel Albert
6. Cian Darling
7. Ayden Hurst
8. Tinashe Muchena
9. Richard Felton
10. Evan Williams
11. Morgan Purcell
12. Cael Hodgson
13. Stephin Alberts 
14. Shiven Dukande 
15. Connor Burns
    
    Reserves
16. Miguel Bermejo-Arcos 
17. Beorn Graham 
18. Chad Tinney 
19. Jonah Dietenberger
20. Ross Brocket
21. Cody Erhardt
22. Evan Conlon
23. Coleson Warner