(Photo: Nicholas Badders/WCSN)
The overwhelming theme from the coaching staff of Arizona State Football throughout the week was that the Sun Devils simply needed more snaps and needed to learn how to finish games.
ASU’s new offense stuttered at times during the Sun Devils’ first two games, and drives that could have either tied or won the game for ASU ended both contests.
Friday night against Arizona in the 94th Territorial Cup, both issues weren’t necessarily solved. They simply weren’t a factor.
After the first minute of the game in which the Sun Devils led 14-0, ASU glided to a historic 70-7 win over the Wildcats in Tucson.
“It was a relief,” Edwards said of the win.
The dominating win gave ASU its first of the season and extended the Wildcats’ losing streak to 12 games in a row. The Sun Devils’ final tally of 70 points was the most ever from an ASU team in Territorial Cup history.
“That’s the first time in my life I’ve been a part of a game like that,” co-defensive coordinator Marvin Lewis said.
ASU’s early lead began with the opening kickoff. Freshman running back/defensive back D.J. Taylor – fresh off an impressive game against UCLA returning the ball – caught the ball at the goal-line and took it 100 yards for the opening score to make it 7-0 Sun Devils.
“I’ve watched it like 100 times already,” Taylor said. “I was looking at their sideline and saw how I took all their hope out.”
Offensive coordinator Zak Hill added: “[That was] a big time boost. You’ve got that energy, that momentum. You’re up 7-0 right off the bat. Seeing his speed and him fly through there, that was awesome.”
The return left Lewis speechless, according to Edwards.
“Marvin was up in the box and was like ‘What is he doing?!'” Edwards said. “When [Taylor] went to the right, I said ‘Marvin, he’s about to score a touchdown.'”
Arizona’s chance at redemption on the next drive was stopped quickly, as senior running back Gary Brightwell fumbled on the Wildcats’ second play of the game. The next play, freshman running back Chip Trayanum extended the Sun Devils’ lead to 14-0 just 56 seconds into the game.
ASU did not back down quickly. Arizona’s next five drives all resulted in either a fumble, interception or turnover on downs. ASU converted the stops into points four times, as redshirt junior kicker Cristian Zendejas’ missed field goal with 9:39 left in the first quarter was the lone unsuccessful drive.
The Sun Devils onslaught off turnovers was in large part due to the short field Arizona provided ASU with. The Sun Devils typically had little ground to cover en route to the end zone, and trailed Arizona in total yards at halftime.
“We got great field position to get some momentum and we got the guys some confidence early,” Hill said. “It just kind of snowballed from there.”
A 20-yard rushing touchdown by sophomore quarterback Jayden Daniels extended ASU’s lead to 21-0 with 2:21 left in the first quarter. Arizona showed some offensive fight on its next drive, only for Brightwell to fumble again at the ASU four-yard line. The long field presented no issues for the Sun Devils, as junior running back Rachaad White took the second play of the drive 93 yards to the house to put ASU up 28-0 with 2:16 into the second quarter. White was named Bob Moran MVP of the game after rushing for 133 yards and three touchdowns.
“It’s an award that goes to me, but it’s a team award,” White said. “I predicate my success to all the guys on offense that push me and put me in great situations. It means so much to me but to me it’s a team thing.”
What seemed to be an insurmountable lead for the Sun Devils was only added to. Repeated Arizona mistakes turned into more scores for ASU. A strip-sack from junior defensive end Jermayne Lole led to Daniels finding sophomore wide receiver Ricky Pearsall 31 yards downfield in the end zone, bringing ASU’s lead to 35-0.
“Offensively, we can’t give credit to ourselves without the defense getting us seven turnovers,” Daniels said. “We wouldn’t be in that position to score that many points. Hats off to the defense. They played their ass off.”
The final blow to Arizona was freshman running back Daniyel Ngata’s first career rushing touchdown, which put ASU up 42-0 with 5:25 left in the second quarter. The score resulted in the Wildcats pulling Gunnell from the game and inserting freshman quarterback Will Plummer instead. While the scoreboard said otherwise, Edwards had to make sure his team kept applying the pressure.
“When it got to 42-0, I was talking to Marvin and was saying ‘I don’t know what to do. I’m scared to death,'” Edwards said. “‘I know how these games turn out.’
“This was the hardest I’ve coached on the sideline since I’ve been here when we got that lead.”
Arizona found some life with Plummer, as the Wildcats managed their only scoring drive of the night with their backup under center. Plummer was eventually pulled for redshirt junior QB Rhett Rodriguez in the third quarter.
ASU continued to pour it on the Wildcats in the second half. Daniels found senior tight end Curtis Hodges down the field for a 74-yard score to make it 63-7, and redshirt junior running back Jackson He scored the Sun Devils’ final touchdown of the night. He is believed to be the first Chinese player to score a touchdown in an FBS game.
“It’s unreal,” He said. “It’s unbelievable. The offensive line really did a good job so I could get in.
“I’m just blessed to have this opportunity. I’m the first one, but I’m not the last one. There’s going to be more Chinese that score.”
In a season decimated by COVID-19 issues within the Sun Devils program, there might have been nothing more important than Friday night’s destruction of the rival Wildcats. While ASU enters its next game (opponent still TBD) still needing to ensure it can win games that are closely contested, a 70-7 win over a heated rival is no joking matter or fluke, and represents something a lot more than just football.
“Regardless of what the score turned out to be, I was happy for our coaching staff and our players,” Edwards said. “What they’ve gone through the last year, you have no idea. You can’t even imagine. There’s no playbook for it. I just happy to finally see these guys win a football game.”
