Six yards became 37, and a tie ball game turned to heartbreak. That was the scenario when then-Auburn tailback Michael Dyer — who now plays for the Arkansas State Red Wolves — took a handoff from his own 40-yard line with just over two minutes left in the 2011 BCS National Championship Game. Dyer was seemingly corralled by Oregon safety Eddie Pleasant, but his knee never hit the ground, and he ended at the Oregon 23-yard line to set up Auburn’s title-winning field goal with no time remaining.
Dyer was released by Auburn due to team violations and joined Arkansas State — setting himself up for a potential rematch with the Ducks. But, after a debacle with NCAA transfer rules, he was caught speeding in addition to being found with a bag of marijuana and a gun in his car, and he was booted off his second college team, canceling the second go-round.
But not all Auburn/Oregon rematchs were nixed, as former Auburn offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, the man who called the play on which Dyer dashed Oregon’s dreams, is now the head coach at Arkansas State. Malzahn’s first game as head coach will be against Oregon, but this time the odds are stacked against him.@@how?@@
However, Malzahn has a few things going for him. He is hailed as an offensive genius and has a squad of players that has a 20-4 record in the past two seasons  in the Sun Belt Conference. His real boon is back-to-back Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year and fifth-year senior Ryan Aplin, a dual threat who threw for nearly 3,600 yards last season, while gaining almost 600 yards on the ground with 29 total touchdowns. Aplin can be careless with the ball, however, tossing 16 picks in 13 games  — including three in the Red Wolves’ season-ending loss to Northern Illinois in the GoDaddy.com Bowl.

Plus: Why Arkansas State will beat Oregon →