Don't think you'd find even one ASU fan that would disagree with this nomination for college football's top assistant coach.
TEMPE - The Frank & Barbara Broyles Foundation has announced the nominees for the 2018 Broyles Award, which honors college football's top assistant coaches, with Sun Devil Football defensive coordinator Danny Gonzales representing one of the 53 nominees.
The nominees in this year's class were selected from approximately 1,500 assistant coaches representing 130 Division One programs across the country. The Broyles Award selection process includes the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), a college football hall-of-fame selection committee and current college head coaches.
Gonzales is in his first season with the Sun Devils and has overseen a sweeping improvement that has seen ASU significantly approve across the board in nearly all major defensive categories.
Under Gonzales guidance and revamped defense, ASU is 53rd overall in total defense this season (379.2 yards allowed per game) after finished 2017 ranked 109th nationally (449.7). ASU was second to last nationally in 2016 in allowing 520.5 yards per game.
The Sun Devils have allowed just 22.4 points per game this season under Gonzales, good for 36th nationally and fourth in the Pac-12. A year ago, ASU was 103rd nationally at 32.8 points per game and had finished 99th or worse in three consecutive seasons prior to the marked improvement this year.
ASU did not allow more than 30 points in the first 7 games of the season, one of just 11 teams in the nation to do so in 2018. ASU has held opponents to 30 or less points in 8 of 9 games this season. This was just the fifth season in the Pac-12 era that ASU has opened the year with seven consecutive games not allowing 30 points, joining the 1982, 1986, 1991 and 1997 campaigns.
ASU is tied for 11th nationally in allowing just 5 plays over 40 yards this season, an area the Devils have struggled in in recent seasons (allowing 20, 16, 30, 21 in the previous four seasons and finishing 103rd, 79th, 128th, 110th, respectively). ASU is also tied for 3rd nationally in allowing just 1 play of over 50 yards on the year. The Devils have given up just 12 plays over 30 yards, tied for 13th-fewest nationally. In the past four years ASU had given up 38, 44, 40, 40 such plays, ranked 116th, 124th, 117th and 119th.
ASU is tied for 8th nationally for fewest passing plays over 40 yards allowed this season, allowing just three. ASU was 90th in the category a year ago with 12 such plays allowed and 127th in 2016 with 22 passing plays over 40 yards allowed.
The Sun Devils are 47th in allowing 5.37 yards per play this year, an improvement of over 60 positions from the team's 111th place finish in the category last year (6.33 yards per play). ASU had finished 109th or worse in the category in three consecutive seasons prior to the current campaign.
ASU is currently 12th nationally and first in the Pac-12 in averaging 7.98 tackles for loss per game this season. ASU was 50th a year ago in the category, averaging just over 6 tackles for loss per game.
The Sun Devils are 29th in the nation and third in the Pac-12 in sacks per game, averaging 2.67 per game thus far. 21 players have logged a tackle for loss this season for ASU, making the Sun Devils one of just one of 14 teams nationally to lay such a claim. 12 different players have scored a sack.
Other Sun Devil defensive superlatives include:
TEMPE - The Frank & Barbara Broyles Foundation has announced the nominees for the 2018 Broyles Award, which honors college football's top assistant coaches, with Sun Devil Football defensive coordinator Danny Gonzales representing one of the 53 nominees.
The nominees in this year's class were selected from approximately 1,500 assistant coaches representing 130 Division One programs across the country. The Broyles Award selection process includes the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), a college football hall-of-fame selection committee and current college head coaches.
Gonzales is in his first season with the Sun Devils and has overseen a sweeping improvement that has seen ASU significantly approve across the board in nearly all major defensive categories.
Under Gonzales guidance and revamped defense, ASU is 53rd overall in total defense this season (379.2 yards allowed per game) after finished 2017 ranked 109th nationally (449.7). ASU was second to last nationally in 2016 in allowing 520.5 yards per game.
The Sun Devils have allowed just 22.4 points per game this season under Gonzales, good for 36th nationally and fourth in the Pac-12. A year ago, ASU was 103rd nationally at 32.8 points per game and had finished 99th or worse in three consecutive seasons prior to the marked improvement this year.
ASU did not allow more than 30 points in the first 7 games of the season, one of just 11 teams in the nation to do so in 2018. ASU has held opponents to 30 or less points in 8 of 9 games this season. This was just the fifth season in the Pac-12 era that ASU has opened the year with seven consecutive games not allowing 30 points, joining the 1982, 1986, 1991 and 1997 campaigns.
ASU is tied for 11th nationally in allowing just 5 plays over 40 yards this season, an area the Devils have struggled in in recent seasons (allowing 20, 16, 30, 21 in the previous four seasons and finishing 103rd, 79th, 128th, 110th, respectively). ASU is also tied for 3rd nationally in allowing just 1 play of over 50 yards on the year. The Devils have given up just 12 plays over 30 yards, tied for 13th-fewest nationally. In the past four years ASU had given up 38, 44, 40, 40 such plays, ranked 116th, 124th, 117th and 119th.
ASU is tied for 8th nationally for fewest passing plays over 40 yards allowed this season, allowing just three. ASU was 90th in the category a year ago with 12 such plays allowed and 127th in 2016 with 22 passing plays over 40 yards allowed.
The Sun Devils are 47th in allowing 5.37 yards per play this year, an improvement of over 60 positions from the team's 111th place finish in the category last year (6.33 yards per play). ASU had finished 109th or worse in the category in three consecutive seasons prior to the current campaign.
ASU is currently 12th nationally and first in the Pac-12 in averaging 7.98 tackles for loss per game this season. ASU was 50th a year ago in the category, averaging just over 6 tackles for loss per game.
The Sun Devils are 29th in the nation and third in the Pac-12 in sacks per game, averaging 2.67 per game thus far. 21 players have logged a tackle for loss this season for ASU, making the Sun Devils one of just one of 14 teams nationally to lay such a claim. 12 different players have scored a sack.
Other Sun Devil defensive superlatives include:
- ASU is 29th nationally in average opponent third-down distance (8.0 yards).
- On those passing downs, opponents are averaging a marginal explosive tally of -0.16, according to Bill Connelly's advanced metrics, the 11th-best score nationally. ASU has recorded a sack 14.8 percent of the time on blitzing downs - the 15th-best total nationally.
- A testament to ASU's ability to crack down on the big play, the Sun Devils are 26th nationally with a -0.06 defensive marginal explosiveness rating.
- The defense has been exceptional in limiting scoring, logging in a 1.04 IsoPPP (points per play) score based on Connelly's metrics, the 20th-best total among FBS defenses. A year ago, ASU was 111th (1.17).
- The Sun Devil defense causes havoc (tackles for loss, fumbles forced or passed defended/intercepted) 18.7 percent of the time - good for 26th nationally - and 2.5 points over the nation average. ASU had just a 14.1% havoc rate last season (94th nationally).
- ASU's defense has held opponents to just 2.50 points per possession on "short" field drives (drives that start with 60 or fewer yards to go to the end zone). That's the 13th-lowest total nationally. ASU was 64th a year ago in the category (3.35).
- The Sun Devil defense has surrendered a touchdown on just 23.9 percent of opponent drives, the 46th-best total nationally after being ranked 90th (31.3 percent) a year ago.
- The Sun Devil defense has bent but not broke this year, allowing a opponent touchdown on drives where a first down was allowed only 31.9 percent of the time this season (38th nationally) after sitting 91st (42.4 percent) in the country last season.
- Only three returning Sun Devils (Kobe Williams, Chase Lucas and Dasmond Tautalatasi) played over 400 snaps on defense last season. ASU already has 6 new players reach that milestone for the first times in their careers (Demonte King, Darien Butler, Jalen Bates, Merlin Robertson, Jalen Harvey and Aashari Crosswell) and there are still at least three games remaining in the season.
- ASU's three leading tacklers this season (Jalen Harvey, Merlin Robertson, Darien Butler) had not playing a single down of FBS defense prior to this season .
- Only three Pac-12 TRUE freshmen have played at least 450 defensive snaps this season and all of them play for Arizona State (Merlin Robertson/592, Darien Butler/479, Aashari Crosswell/491).
- Robertson's 592 snaps are 101 more than any other true freshman in the league and the third-most among any Power Five true freshman in the country.
- Robertson was named the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week for his performance against #16 Utah, becoming the first freshman offensive or defensive player to accomplish the task since 2010.
- Among all true or redshirt freshmen playing for Power Five team in the country, none have more defensive stops that Robertson (27), also good for 15th overall in the Pac-12.
- According to Pro Football Focus, there are just 21 3-4 outside linebackers to not miss a tackle on a running play this season that play at least 100 snaps on rushing plays - with Merlin Robertson being one of those.
- Darien Butler is the 35th-highest graded pass rushing linebacker in the country, logging a 68.6 score from Pro Football Focus.
- Sun Devil freshmen (true or redshirt) have accounted for 31 percent of all of ASU's tackles this season (183 of 591) and 43.4 percent of the team's total tackles for loss (30.5 of 70).
