(Photo: Nicholas Badders/WCSN)
After three quarters, ASU football trailed Colorado 27-17. The Sun Devils were teetering on the edge of a frustrating home loss that would’ve put them under .500. Instead, Demario Richard rumbled his way to a career-high 189 rushing yards and willed ASU to a 41-30 comeback win over the Buffaloes.
ASU head coach Todd Graham said Richard has emerged as the leader of this Sun Devil team, running the ball with a “relentless” effort. The play that epitomized Richard’s relentlessness came late in the fourth quarter with ASU clinging to a four-point lead.
On 2nd and 5, Richard burst through the Colorado defense and ran 63 yards to the Colorado 17. That play set up a game-sealing touchdown run by Manny Wilkins in the final minute.
“I’ve been playing with a busted ankle all week,” Richard said. “If my ankle wasn’t busted, it would’ve been 80 yards to the house.”
Richard’s confidence is matched only by his resilience, which showed throughout a game in which he ran the ball 25 times — a season-high. He was ASU’s workhorse all night, even when the offense wasn’t producing at a particularly high level.
“In that second half, especially in the fourth quarter, we just ran the ball with a different attitude,” Wilkins said. “It was a statement.”
The game itself was a statement for the Sun Devils as they approach the home stretch of their season. Falling to 4-5 would’ve done serious damage to ASU’s bowl chances with two of its final three games on the road.
The Sun Devils got a few key breaks early in the game, though. Colorado quarterback Steven Montez missed a wide-open touchdown throw to Phillip Lindsay on the Buffaloes’ first drive. Later in the first quarter, Shay Fields dropped a surefire touchdown on a seam route.
While the ASU defense allowed 454 total yards to the Buffaloes, it was able to contain Phillip Lindsay and only allowed two big plays through the air. Saturday’s contest was a microcosm of an up-and-down season for Phil Bennett’s unit. There were flashes of quality play, but a lack of consistency plagued a young secondary all night long.
“We just hung in there,” linebacker A.J. Latu said. “We all kept our composure and let the offense do what they did.”
ASU’s offense was able to keep its defense off the field longer than usual, which made up for some of the mistakes. Led by Richard, the Sun Devils put up a season-high 381 yards on the ground, winning the time of possession battle by 6 minutes.
There were stretches where the ASU offense was anemic, but Richard was the constant. He maintained a boxer’s mindset throughout the game, rarely going down on first contact and continually chopping his legs.
“We just worked the cut,” Richard said. “We take everything like it’s boxing. When you see a guy getting jabbed on the side of his eye, eventually it’s going to get a cut.”
The Sun Devils were on the ropes against the Buffaloes. Thanks to their prizefighter in the backfield, they’re 5-4 and live to fight another week. Next up on the card is a road matchup with the UCLA Bruins.
