Last night’s home opener was supposed to be the bounce back game following the loss to Texas A&M, and a contest against an FCS opponent that was going to address the shortcomings that arose from last week. ASU’s 35-21 win over Cal Poly did neither, as apprehensions concerning this team amplify.
Offense
Following ASU’s season opener we talked ad nauseum about how the offense wasn’t even remotely explosive, and the numbers backed it up. Against the Mustangs some of the offensive stats were impressive (248 yards rushing and 283 receiving), yet the struggles of this group very much continue to manifest themselves.
Now it’s one thing to run into issues in the first game of a season facing an SEC opponent with one of the best defensive coordinators in the game. It’s an entirely different story when your foe is a team of the caliber of Cal Poly, and you are hosting them to boot in a venue where you enjoyed an extraordinary home record in the last couple of years.
We knew about the challenges that this Mustang offense was going to present (and we’ll obviously address them later here), but the Cal Poly defense was far from being labeled a juggernaut. Yet, it plenty frustrated the Sun Devils on Saturday night, although some of ASU’s shortcomings were undoubtedly its own doings.
Granted, when you look at ASU’s 35 points scored you know that one attribute that is responsible for a lower than expected output is the fact that you are facing a triple option team that will normally win the time of possession battle ,and sure enough the Mustangs had the ball nearly eight minutes longer than the Sun Devils.
Nonetheless, the ASU offense could easily have been more efficient with its possessions and despite having offensive coordinator Mike Norvell in the coaches’ booth for the first time ever during his ASU tenure didn't help this group show much progress from last week.
Now, following a contest where ASU clearly should have employed more inside running, there should be no complaints in that department as we analyze the game. 16 carries for 77 yards for Demario Richard in the first half alone, as he scores twice in the second quarter and finished the night with 123 yards on 25 carries averaging nearly five yards per carry.
D.J. Foster who had just nine touches total last week, eclipsed that number just with his carries and was outstanding at that with 12 carries for 76 yards and over six yards average per carry. Clearly, the high number of carries was a function of De’Chavon Hayes’ early game hamstring injury which sidelined him the rest of the night. Nonetheless, it had to be comforting to say the least for the ASU coaches to see Foster excel at his not so old position. With the status of Hayes and Ballage up in the air, Foster will probably see even more time in the backfield and perhaps we could be closer to seeing Jason Lewis not redshirt.
On the other hand, the fact that ASU’s seemingly strong running game last night could not generate any points with two possessions in the second half inside the 10-yard line was troubling. A 4th and goal on the 2-yard line ends up in a Mike Bercovici interception and that was series of downs that started on the one-yard line.
Not a bad night for Bercovici connecting on 23 of 35 passes for 283 yards, three touchdowns and more importantly two in the fourth quarter. His interception was part of a weird, for lack of a better term, series where he repeatedly targeted Devin Lucien on the same play with no success. This was by far Lucien’s best game with team leading seven receptions and 79 yards, but that play calling was questionable in my opinion and didn't add to the confidence of either player.
It was a good night for the wide receivers, with five players having two or more catches for 20 yards or more. On the other hand, while you could accept the fact that there were not going to be any explosive passing plays or much separation from defensive backs against a defense such as Texas A&M’s, you definitely didn't expect to see a repeat performance in this facet against Cal Poly.
Now as Tim White gets even healthier he can and will help but others will need to step up as well. Gary Chambers had the longest reception of any receiver, 30 yards, and is probably underrated to some extent as a receiver with big play capabilities.
Speaking of White, he obviously generated the play of the game on offense with a jet sweep that went for 59 yards and was deservingly awarded two plays later with a four-yard touchdown reception. I know you guys may be sick of me saying this, but White’s importance to this ASU offense cannot be overstated. Last night was a pure example of that. At 100 percent strength he can really change the look of this group especially in the big plays department.
Not the best night for the offensive line run blocking despite the big numbers put up, and I for one definitely expected this group to be more dominating of an FCS opponent. With the issues of running outside the tackles you could make the argument that Billie McGhee’s absence did hurt to some degree. Thought Sam Jones did a good job starting off at left tackle and then moving to the right after McGhee’s injury with Evan Goodman sliding into left tackle. Don’t see Sam Jones losing his starting job even if McGhee returns this week.
With the tight ends we obviously saw a sharp contrast with Kody Kohl and Raymond Epps. Let’s start with the later who did notch his first ever reception for 15 yards and on the other hand didn't do well with his blocking and one of his missed assignments led to sack on Bercovici and one that could have ended with a serious injury to the ASU signal caller.
Now Kohl had his own serious mishap, as he fumbled after a first down reception which led to a late first half touchdown and gave the visitors a lot of momentum going into the second half as evident with their early third quarter game tying score. On the other hand, Kohl’s 10-yard touchdown reception wasn’t only the go ahead score but also a tough and sure handed catch as an opportunistic Mustang defender was draped all over him and seemed to be close to intercepting the ball.
All in all, a horrendous third quarter (and beginning of the fourth quarter) by the offense was eventually remedied by two touchdowns scored in the last 7:36 minutes of the game which were crucial for the Sun Devils to pull out this victory. We all wanted to see a cleaner game from this group and we didn't, so the concerns persist here. Hayes’ injury can have a domino effect, namely on Foster’s role, that probably doesn’t make matters easier. Needless to say that this week’s game against New Mexico will tell you if the offense is ready for Pac-12 play. So unexpectedly the wait and see period continues here…
Offense
Following ASU’s season opener we talked ad nauseum about how the offense wasn’t even remotely explosive, and the numbers backed it up. Against the Mustangs some of the offensive stats were impressive (248 yards rushing and 283 receiving), yet the struggles of this group very much continue to manifest themselves.
Now it’s one thing to run into issues in the first game of a season facing an SEC opponent with one of the best defensive coordinators in the game. It’s an entirely different story when your foe is a team of the caliber of Cal Poly, and you are hosting them to boot in a venue where you enjoyed an extraordinary home record in the last couple of years.
We knew about the challenges that this Mustang offense was going to present (and we’ll obviously address them later here), but the Cal Poly defense was far from being labeled a juggernaut. Yet, it plenty frustrated the Sun Devils on Saturday night, although some of ASU’s shortcomings were undoubtedly its own doings.
Granted, when you look at ASU’s 35 points scored you know that one attribute that is responsible for a lower than expected output is the fact that you are facing a triple option team that will normally win the time of possession battle ,and sure enough the Mustangs had the ball nearly eight minutes longer than the Sun Devils.
Nonetheless, the ASU offense could easily have been more efficient with its possessions and despite having offensive coordinator Mike Norvell in the coaches’ booth for the first time ever during his ASU tenure didn't help this group show much progress from last week.
Now, following a contest where ASU clearly should have employed more inside running, there should be no complaints in that department as we analyze the game. 16 carries for 77 yards for Demario Richard in the first half alone, as he scores twice in the second quarter and finished the night with 123 yards on 25 carries averaging nearly five yards per carry.
D.J. Foster who had just nine touches total last week, eclipsed that number just with his carries and was outstanding at that with 12 carries for 76 yards and over six yards average per carry. Clearly, the high number of carries was a function of De’Chavon Hayes’ early game hamstring injury which sidelined him the rest of the night. Nonetheless, it had to be comforting to say the least for the ASU coaches to see Foster excel at his not so old position. With the status of Hayes and Ballage up in the air, Foster will probably see even more time in the backfield and perhaps we could be closer to seeing Jason Lewis not redshirt.
On the other hand, the fact that ASU’s seemingly strong running game last night could not generate any points with two possessions in the second half inside the 10-yard line was troubling. A 4th and goal on the 2-yard line ends up in a Mike Bercovici interception and that was series of downs that started on the one-yard line.
Not a bad night for Bercovici connecting on 23 of 35 passes for 283 yards, three touchdowns and more importantly two in the fourth quarter. His interception was part of a weird, for lack of a better term, series where he repeatedly targeted Devin Lucien on the same play with no success. This was by far Lucien’s best game with team leading seven receptions and 79 yards, but that play calling was questionable in my opinion and didn't add to the confidence of either player.
It was a good night for the wide receivers, with five players having two or more catches for 20 yards or more. On the other hand, while you could accept the fact that there were not going to be any explosive passing plays or much separation from defensive backs against a defense such as Texas A&M’s, you definitely didn't expect to see a repeat performance in this facet against Cal Poly.
Now as Tim White gets even healthier he can and will help but others will need to step up as well. Gary Chambers had the longest reception of any receiver, 30 yards, and is probably underrated to some extent as a receiver with big play capabilities.
Speaking of White, he obviously generated the play of the game on offense with a jet sweep that went for 59 yards and was deservingly awarded two plays later with a four-yard touchdown reception. I know you guys may be sick of me saying this, but White’s importance to this ASU offense cannot be overstated. Last night was a pure example of that. At 100 percent strength he can really change the look of this group especially in the big plays department.
Not the best night for the offensive line run blocking despite the big numbers put up, and I for one definitely expected this group to be more dominating of an FCS opponent. With the issues of running outside the tackles you could make the argument that Billie McGhee’s absence did hurt to some degree. Thought Sam Jones did a good job starting off at left tackle and then moving to the right after McGhee’s injury with Evan Goodman sliding into left tackle. Don’t see Sam Jones losing his starting job even if McGhee returns this week.
With the tight ends we obviously saw a sharp contrast with Kody Kohl and Raymond Epps. Let’s start with the later who did notch his first ever reception for 15 yards and on the other hand didn't do well with his blocking and one of his missed assignments led to sack on Bercovici and one that could have ended with a serious injury to the ASU signal caller.
Now Kohl had his own serious mishap, as he fumbled after a first down reception which led to a late first half touchdown and gave the visitors a lot of momentum going into the second half as evident with their early third quarter game tying score. On the other hand, Kohl’s 10-yard touchdown reception wasn’t only the go ahead score but also a tough and sure handed catch as an opportunistic Mustang defender was draped all over him and seemed to be close to intercepting the ball.
All in all, a horrendous third quarter (and beginning of the fourth quarter) by the offense was eventually remedied by two touchdowns scored in the last 7:36 minutes of the game which were crucial for the Sun Devils to pull out this victory. We all wanted to see a cleaner game from this group and we didn't, so the concerns persist here. Hayes’ injury can have a domino effect, namely on Foster’s role, that probably doesn’t make matters easier. Needless to say that this week’s game against New Mexico will tell you if the offense is ready for Pac-12 play. So unexpectedly the wait and see period continues here…
