(Photo: Nicholas Badders/WCSN)
Arizona State football needed a win on Saturday to exorcise the demons of a sluggish 1-2 start. If nothing else, a 37-35 victory over No. 24 Oregon lit the proverbial sage.
“You go after two losses, and your mindset is like, damn, we just need to get one and get this ship rolling,” ASU quarterback Manny Wilkins said. “That’s why I think this one felt really good.”
The Sun Devils were feeling good in the first quarter, forcing a three-and-out on the opening drive and scoring the game’s first touchdown on an 8-yard run by Manny Wilkins. Oregon quickly tied it back up, though, on a 7-yard pass from Justin Herbert to Dillon Mitchell.
ASU couldn’t afford to go score-for-score with a high-powered Duck offense. Thankfully for the Sun Devils, Oregon wasn’t operating at full capacity, especially in the run game. Penalties and myriad miscues stymied the Ducks all night as they managed just 120 yards on the ground.
It was a different story for the ASU offense in the first quarter. Wilkins was in a rhythm behind a visibly improved offensive line, finding a groove with his receivers. N’Keal Harry, who finished with seven receptions for a career-high 170 yards, scored ASU’s second touchdown of the game on a 3-yard toss from Wilkins.
The run game showed flashes as well, but the highlight of the game for ASU was the connection between its signal-caller and star receiver.
“It all comes back to the extra work we do after practice,” Harry said. “For him to have the trust in me, to throw me that ball on third down and however long, it’s my job to go get it.”
The Sun Devil offense wasn’t able to maintain its success in the second quarter, allowing Oregon to claw back in the game despite its own lack of offensive production. A muffed punt by Ryan Newsome set the Ducks up with a red zone trip that resulted in a Royce Freeman touchdown.
ASU led 17-14 at the half with momentum teetering towards Oregon. It needed a quick score in the second half for momentum’s sake, and it got two touchdowns in just over four minutes.
Wilkins, whose deep ball accuracy has been visibly improved this season, found Jalen Harvey for a 62-yard gain that set up a 2-yard quarterback keeper. Just under three minutes later, he tossed a 46-yard bomb to Harry, which set up a 7-yard rushing touchdown for Demario Richard.
These are the flashes of excellence that appeared in the second half against Texas Tech. This is the kind of improvement that can “get this ship rolling,” as Wilkins put it.
“I think we did a really good job of executing our gameplan,” Wilkins said. “Guys made bigtime plays in bigtime situations.”
Improvement was evident on the defensive side as well, especially in defending the run, but a young ASU secondary gave up big pass plays throughout the game — particularly in the third quarter. A pair of passing touchdowns from Herbert made it a three-point game entering the fourth.
ASU clung to a 34-28 lead after a Brandon Ruiz field goal, but the Ducks took their first lead of the game on a rushing touchdown by Herbert with 6:41 left.
Trailing 35-34, the Sun Devil offense needed one more solid drive to get in field goal range and give their big-legged freshman kicker a chance. Wilkins proceeded to march his team down the field and set up Ruiz’s 41-yard game-winning field goal.
Getting back to .500 provides an opportunity for ASU to keep its season afloat. If both sides of the ball continue to make progress, Todd Graham is confident that they will.
“I felt like all along it’s just about us adapting,” Graham said. “Keep adapting, keep learning, keep your head down, ignore the noise.”
