Troy wins 35-9 to clinch Sun Belt title

Published 10:16 am Sunday, December 7, 2008

TROY – Levi Brown threw for 181 yards and three touchdowns as Troy beat Arkansas State 35-9 to clinch its first outright Sun Belt championship and earn a berth in the New Orleans Bowl.

Troy (8-4, 6-1 Sun Belt) will play Southern Mississippi in the bowl on Dec. 17. Arkansas State (6-6, 4-3) is bowl eligible, but must wait to see if it will earn a berth.

Troy scored on Brown’s 19-yard touchdown pass to Cornelius Williams in the first quarter.

Xavier Moreland caught a 6-yard pass from Brown to make the score 14-0, and DuJuan Harris, who rushed for 72 yards, scored on a 6-yard run to give Troy a 21-0 halftime lead.

Dominique Williams tackled Brown in the end zone to cut the lead to 21-2 with 13:55 to go in the game.

Brown hit Austin Silvoy with a 24-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to give Troy a 28-2 lead.

Harris added a 12-yard scoring run for a 35-2 lead.

Arkansas State’s Corey Leonard ran for 49 yards and threw for 172, but left with an apparent leg injury. Reggie Arnold ran for 83 yards on 18 carries for Arkansas State.