(Photo: Jack Harris/WCSN)
In past trips to Oregon State’s Reser Stadium, Arizona State suffered from sluggish starts to games.
That was not the case in the first half of Saturday afternoon’s meeting between the Beavers and Sun Devils, where ASU delivered a steady string of blows on both sides of ball to jump out to a 30-7 lead at the break.
ASU wasted little time to score on the game’s opening possession, slicing through the Oregon State defense on a 4-play, 69-yard touchdown drive. Quarterback Manny Wilkins fired two long passes, including a 22-yard post route rocket to sophomore Kyle Williams for a touchdown.
It took ASU just a little more than a minute to find the end zone for the first time. Its offense kept rolling for the next 29 minutes of the half too.
After an Oregon State three-and-out, the Sun Devils easily marched down the field again. Big runs from Demario Richard (18 yards) and Wilkins (32 yards) put ASU in the red zone, setting up a first career touchdown catch for true freshman Curtis Hodges.
The 6-foot-7 Mesa Mountain View product used all of his lengthy frame to haul in a faded toss in the corner of the end zone.
ASU crossed midfield again on its third drive, but stalled at the OSU 40. Facing a 4th-and-6, the Sun Devils left the offense on the field, but Wilkins unleashed a pooch punt from the shotgun that was downed at the Beavers’ 4-yard-line. Two plays later, ASU defensive lineman JoJo Wicker burst into the Beavers’ backfield, wrapping up OSU quarterback Darell Garretson in the end zone and forcing him to flail the ball away for an intentional grounding penalty. Safety. 16-0.
The second quarter was no different. It began with a 17-yard touchdown run from Richard, who again exploited a huge hole and ran untouched into the end zone. Richard would cross the goal line again two drives later, finishing an 11-play, 52-yard with a 1-yard score. 30-0 – ASU’s largest lead at any point this season.
The Beavers finally broke through late in the half, using a 36-yard double reverse run from wide receiver Trevon Bradford to get into the red zone. Running back Ryan Nall completed the 8-play, 79-yard drive with a 1-yard score to cut the Sun Devil lead to 30-7.
Wilkins finished the half 9-for-14 passing with 99 yards and 2 touchdowns, plus another 52 yards on the ground. Richard and Kalen Ballage each got 10 carries in the half, picking up 87 and 73 yards respectively. As a team, ASU gained 318 yards of offense in the opening two quarters, over 200 more than Oregon State’s 105 yards.
