{"id":84047,"date":"2025-12-19T11:07:20","date_gmt":"2025-12-19T16:07:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/?p=84047"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:07:20","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T16:07:20","slug":"arkansas-states-corey-rucker-has-record-game-in-the-xbox-bowl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2025\/12\/19\/arkansas-states-corey-rucker-has-record-game-in-the-xbox-bowl\/","title":{"rendered":"Arkansas State&#8217;s Corey Rucker Has Record Game in the Xbox Bowl"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The first-ever Xbox Bowl took place Thursday evening, December 18, in Frisco, Texas, between Arkansas State and Missouri State. It was created as a replacement for the Bahamas Bowl, which wasn&#8217;t played for the second time in three years. The Red Wolves jumped out to a huge lead and then held on for the win. This was in large part due to a huge game from wide receiver <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/players\/corey-rucker-1.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Corey Rucker. <\/a>Let&#8217;s break it down as Arkansas State wins the Xbox Bowl 34-28.<\/p>\n<h3>Video Game Like Numbers<\/h3>\n<p>In a contest named for the gaming company, both schools put up some big stats. Arkansas State ended up with 396 yards while Missouri State had 359. Most of that came through the air. For Arkansas State, its quarterback, <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/players\/jaylen--raynor-1.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jaylon Raynor<\/a>, put up many of those in the first half. In fact, the Red Wolves scored on their first four possessions. A seven-yard pass from Raynor to <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/players\/jaylen-bonelli-1.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jaylen Bonelli<\/a> put Arkansas State up 7-0. On the next possession, Raynor found Rucker on a 71-yard strike, and it was 14-0.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Jalen Raynor to Corey Rucker in their final CFB game together at Arkansas State. <\/p>\n<p>Rucker is now the 24th player in FBS history with 4,000 receiving yards in a career. <\/p>\n<p>One of the most decorated Sun Belt receivers in history. <br \/> <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/M8oaNWPD8Z\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/M8oaNWPD8Z<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Garrett Armbrust (@4thandsaturday) <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/4thandsaturday\/status\/2001845509636657424?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">December 19, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>With that reception, Rucker set the school record for most receiving touchdowns with 27. Furthermore, he became only the 24th player in college football history to reach 4,000 receiving yards.<\/p>\n<p>Missouri State settled down and got its first score on a 39-yard strike from <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/players\/jacob-clark-3.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jacob Clark <\/a>to\u00a0<a  href=\"https:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/players\/alred-luke-1.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Dash Luke<\/a>, cutting the lead to seven. However, the Red Wolves got a field goal and on Raynor&#8217;s third touchdown pass of the half, this time a four-yard connection to <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/players\/chauncy-cobb-1.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Chauncy Cobb<\/a>. It was 24-7 at the intermission.<\/p>\n<h3>A Big Time Rally<\/h3>\n<p>When <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/players\/chauncy-cobb-1.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Devin Spencer <\/a>took it 25 yards to the house, the lead ballooned to 31-7, and things were looking pretty good for Arkansas State heading into the fourth quarter. But as it happens quite often in college football, things change faster than Lee Corso can say &#8220;not so fast my friends.&#8221; That&#8217;s indeed what happened as the Bears rallied.<\/p>\n<p>Clark found\u00a0<a  href=\"https:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/players\/ramone-green-jr-1.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Ramone Green Jr.<\/a> on a 15-yard strike, and after the two-point conversion, it was 31-15. An Arkansas State field goal pushed the lead out to 19 before the Bears came charging back. Clark&#8217;s second touchdown pass to Luke, this one for 47 yards, cut the lead to 13 after the two-point try was no good. With 1:54 left in the game, Clark threw his fourth touchdown of the game, this time a 16-yard strike <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/players\/jmariyae-robinson-1.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jmariyae Robinson<\/a>, and the lead was six.<\/p>\n<p>The ensuing onside kick was recovered by the Red Wolves, and that was your ball game as Arkansas State wins the Xbox Bowl 34-28.<\/p>\n<h3>Crunching the Numbers<\/h3>\n<p>With six receptions for 166 yards and a touchdown, Rucker was named the game&#8217;s offensive MVP. He finishes his career as the all-time leading receiver in Sun Belt history with 4,111 yards. This goes along with his school touchdown record. Those receiving yards rank him 21st all-time.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Achievement unlocked!<\/p>\n<p>Corey Rucker is your Xbox Bowl Offensive MVP. <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/0KHCEGI5UG\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/0KHCEGI5UG<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Kara Richey (@Kara_Richey) <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Kara_Richey\/status\/2001906639696507003?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">December 19, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>While Rucker won MVP, Raynor put up some very impressive numbers as well. He finished the night with 288 passing yards and three touchdowns. These were two players we said to watch <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2025\/12\/16\/2025-xbox-bowl-preview\/\" target=\"_self\">in our game preview<\/a>, and they certainly put on a show.<\/p>\n<p>In a losing effort, Clark completed 25 of 35 passes for 368 yards and four touchdowns. Luke hauled in seven passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns.<\/p>\n<h3>Looking Ahead<\/h3>\n<p>Under coach Butch Jones, the Red Wolves finished the season with a 7-6 record. They&#8217;ve now appeared in three straight bowl games, winning the last two. In addition, it&#8217;s the first time winning back-to-back bowls since 2013-2014. Overall, they are 6-7 in the post-season since moving to the FBS level back in 1992.<\/p>\n<p>On the other side of the ball, the Bears also end the year at 7-6. Despite the loss, 2o25 has to be looked at as a very successful year. After all, they made it to a bowl game in their first season at the FBS level, which usually doesn&#8217;t happen. They, along with Conference USA mate Delaware, both got to bowls after there weren&#8217;t enough eligible teams.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, step one for the Bears heading into 2026 was finding a coach. Ryan Beard, who led the team all season, left for the head coaching job at Coastal Carolina. It appears they&#8217;ve found their guy in SMU offensive coordinator Casey Woods.<\/p>\n<p>Thanks for checking out our recap as Arkansas State wins the Xbox Bowl 34-28. It appears this first game was a hit. We&#8217;ll see if the game continues next year. A reminder, Last Word On College Football has previews and recaps of every game leading up to the College Football Playoff Championship.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Main Image: Justin Manning; Arkansas State Athletics<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The first-ever Xbox Bowl took place Thursday evening, December 18, in Frisco, Texas, between Arkansas State and Missouri State. It was created as a replacement for the Bahamas Bowl, which wasn&#8217;t played for the second time in three years. The Red Wolves jumped out to a huge lead and then held on for the win. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":877,"featured_media":84056,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[14,7361,10906,10,2],"tags":[188,58,35849,2445,6884,35848,35839],"class_list":["post-84047","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sunbelt","category-bowl-games","category-cfb","category-conferenceusa","category-featured","tag-arkansas-state-red-wolves","tag-butch-jones","tag-casey-woods","tag-lee-corso","tag-missouri-state-bears","tag-ryan-beard","tag-xbox-bowl"],"modified_by":"Maggie Yarnell, Senior Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84047","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/877"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=84047"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84047\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":84057,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84047\/revisions\/84057"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/84056"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=84047"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=84047"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=84047"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}