If TU can scare the heck out of No. 9 Ohio State last week - a team that was playing in the national title game in January - it ought to be able to handle Arkansas State.

That would be logical thinking, but Arkansas State can be pesky. And there are plenty of members of the Golden Hurricane who were on the team in 2018 when Arkansas State defeated Tulsa at H.A. Chapman Stadium.

So there should be no taking this game at 4 p.m. at home Saturday lightly. Especially after losing to FCS UC Davis in the season opener.

"I know they're always a talented team and they're gonna be well-coached. So we've got to come out and really be clicking and making sure we're prepared and our guys are locked in and going and making things happen," Tulsa coach Philip Montgomery said.

Last week's TU team didn't resemble that opening week mess that was missing several key players who were serving out a suspension after the Miss. St. bowl fight debacle. Last week, TU had the ball midway through the fourth quarter in Ohio State territory with a chance to tie the game.

Don't let the final score of 41-20 fool you. Two Ohio State touchdowns in the last three plus minutes, including the final one one on a pick six where Tulsa was taking chances trying to cut into the lead, didn't matter. Tulsa outplayed Ohio State in a lot of areas in that game.

"I think we're a heck of a lot better team than we were in week one," Montgomery said. "Now we've just got to go and finish out and close out a game. We've got to get back in the right column."

Davis Brin is finally living up to some of the hype coming into the season. He just passed for 428 yards, completing 31 of 54 passes against the Buckeyes.

It was even more amazing considering Tulsa was missing several key offensive players due to injury, including two of its top receivers in Keylon Stokes for the whole game and Sam Crawford for most of the game. Tulsa was playing freshmen offensive linemen with little to no experience.

Playing Arkansas State brings back bad memories for TU fans. In 2018, Tulsa was coming off a close 28-21 loss at Texas, but was blindsided by a decent Arkansas State team out of the Sun Belt conference that finished 8-5. Tulsa never recovered from the 29-20 loss, losing seven consecutive games in a 3-9 season. The Luke Skipper era at quarterback lasted one more game after losing to ASU.

There is absolutely no reason Tulsa takes ASU lightly despite the Red Wolves losing 52-3 to Washington last week in Seattle. Although losing that badly to a Washington team that lost 13-7 at home to FCS Montana in the season opener doesn't look good for ASU.

Even though Arkansas State finished 4-7 in 2020, and is a 13-point underdog against TU, the Red Wolves lost 55-50 the previous week at home against potent Memphis.

Tulsa (0-3) can't expect any home game to be easy. The last time Tulsa won a home game that wasn't close was in 2018 when it beat hapless UConn 49-19. The last home game that wasn't close was in 2019 when TU lost 45-17 to Navy.

This is really a must win for Tulsa because starting out 0-4 would be a really deep hole from which to recover. If Tulsa wins, then there will be confidence. Home games against Houston and Memphis in the following weeks would be very winnable, and then Tulsa could be sitting at 3-3.

Arkansas State (1-2) features quarterbacks James Blackman and Layne Hatcher. The duo combined to complete 42 of 66 passes for 582 yards against Memphis. Blackman was 19 of 28 for 306 yards and four touchdowns, while Hatcher was 23 of 38 for 276 yards and a touchdown. They combined for 220 yards, completing 20 of 49 passes against Washington.

With an ASU running game that has produced little, Tulsa's pass defense will be tested to the max against the Red Wolves. If Tulsa's defense is up to the task, then the Golden Hurricane should be able to handle Arkansas State.

As for the ASU defense, the Huskies' Dylan Morris torched Arkansas State last week, completing 23 of 39 for 367 yards and three touchdowns, but was intercepted twice.

With that in mind, Brin should be able to have a big game against ASU. Montgomery believes Brin is on the right track.

"That dude, he stepped up and did a nice job. I thought he was seeing the field really well," Montgomery said of Brin against Ohio State. "Davis is growing from a confidence standpoint and he's getting through progressions a little faster and he's taking what they're giving him."

If Brin continues the upswing he has shown the previous two weeks, then Tulsa will get its first win of the 2021 season.