When asked about the difference in trajectory of his program and South Alabama's earlier this week, Arkansas State Coach Butch Jones provided a brusque response.
"Look at the rosters," he said, "and that'll answer your question."
Go to the 2020 season when the two programs finished with 4-7 records. Arkansas State (2-6, 1-4 Sun Belt) and South Alabama -- who will meet this afternoon at Centennial Bank Stadium in Jonesboro -- were at dramatically different points in their FBS lifespans and took distinct paths forward.
At the same time that Blake Anderson resigned from his post with the Red Wolves, the Jaguars fired Steve Campbell, who they'd hired away from Central Arkansas three years earlier.