(Photo: Nicholas Badders/WCSN)
All the components were there for ASU’s offense to crumble in the second half of its visit to Texas Tech. Instead, the unit caught fire, scoring four straight touchdowns to erase an 18-point deficit.
Prior to the final 30 minutes in Lubbock, ASU’s offense had shown flashes of brilliance this season under new offensive coordinator Billy Napier. But, the group lacked enough substance to account for shaky defense and special teams.
That changed after halftime at Jones AT&T Stadium. Manny Wilkins threw for 218 yards and 2 touchdowns in the second half, the team’s skill players caught fire, and the Sun Devils turned a 42-24 deficit into a 45-45 tie. Their first half hole was too big to completely overcome in the eventual seven-point loss, but all signs pointed to the group turning a corner in its ability to consistently move the ball and put up points.
“I’m real excited about finding our stride offensively,” ASU coach Todd Graham said.
He should be. The group almost stole his program a win.
Better offense starts with better quarterback play. Wilkins had been decent in this season’s first two games, but elevated his play against TTU to guide ASU back.
On the first offensive snap of the second half, the redshirt junior avoided pressure, escaping the pocket before unleashing a deep pass downfield. The ball was a little under-thrown, but still good enough for receiver Kyle Williams to adjust to, making the 54-yard catch to put the Sun Devils in the red zone. They would score four plays later.
Two drives later, Wilkins floated another ball to Williams, this time a back-shoulder fade in the corner of the end zone to cut the Texas Tech lead to a just one score. On the next drive, Wilkins found N’Keal Harry on a 4th down conversion, before connecting with him again on a 21-yard touchdown toss down the seam to tie the game.
“As a group, we did some really good things,” Wilkins said, before quickly redirecting credit to his teammates.
Two of those teammates lined up next to Wilkins in the backfield all night, picking up hard yards on the ground to keep ASU’s offense on-schedule.
Kalen Ballage was one, continuing his reliable start to the season by picking up 56 more yards and a touchdown. The other was Demario Richard, a senior running back who played his first full game of 2017 after overcoming an opening night knee injury.
“He brings a physical presence to the game. He brings an attitude,” running backs coach John Simon said of Richard. “He is out there to get those tough yards, and we trust that he can get it done.”
At the beginning of the game-tying drive, ASU put their faith in Richard. He took handoffs on the first four plays of the possession, moving the chains once and leaving the group in a 3rd and short on the next set of downs.
“You got to let your running back get in a rhythm, and that’s what they did,” Richard said. “Soon as I got in a rhythm, (we) got a first down and then over the top to N’Keal for a touchdown. I just felt good just being back healthy again on the field.”
Between Richard’s return, Ballage’s production and Wilkins’ improvement, ASU found the foundation of a top-notch offense. It led to breakout games for its top playmakers downfield.
“When guys start to make plays they feed off of each other,” receivers coach Rob Likens said; his wide outs were some of the biggest beneficiaries of Saturday’s offensive explosion.
Williams caught a career-high 111 yards, despite being forced out of his normal slot position to fill in for injured deep threat John Humphrey.
“It’s really cool to see the different tools I have in my toolbox,” Williams said. “Getting open, you see different techniques and coaching in the game plan. They work around our ability and our attributes to help the team.”
Harry meanwhile more than doubled his season total in catches and yards with his 13 grabs and 148 yards against the Red Raiders. He also looked like ASU’s clear No. 1 target for the first time this fall.
On his touchdown catch, Harry said he just “ran as fast I could.” Wilkins commented his receiver had tunnel vision, focusing on exactly what they did in practice. It was just one more example of the Sun Devils work during the week paying off on Saturday.
The Sun Devils had given glimpses into what they could be in Napier’s new system in their first two games. Against TTU, they might have showed what they’ve become.
“We’re at the corner,” Simon said. “We are excited about what we did, the flashes we did show at Texas Tech. Those are good signs to come, but it’s going to be based on what we do this Saturday (against Stanford) that is going to determine if we’ve actually turned that corner.”
Stringing together four straight touchdown drives is about as good of a sign as a team could give. It indicates the group has unlocked a new caliber of play. Even accounting for Texas Tech’s historically poor defense, ASU’s output was exceptionally impressive.
With an improved quarterback and flourishing play-makers, ASU’s offense is setting up to have a big year. Considering its deficiencies on the defensive side of the ball, they might need a colossal campaign if they are to turn performances like last Saturday’s from close losses into much-needed wins.
