(Photo: Brady Klain/WCSN)
TEMPE- ASU started the 2018 season with a statement win, routing the UTSA Roadrunners 49-7 in the debut of coach Herm Edwards. The wire to wire victory is all the Sun Devils could have hoped for with a treacherous September schedule ahead.
For the time being, there were lots of positive takeaways, especially for a team clouded with uncertainty throughout the offseason.
“I’m happy for the players and the coaches,” Edwards said. “They did a fantastic job preparing these guys.”
The Sun Devil defense may have had the most impressive performance considering the group had even less experience than last year’s, which ranked among the 25 worst units in the FBS by yards allowed per game.
Sophomore DE Shannon Forman’s pick-six just two minutes in to give ASU a 14-0 lead set the tone for the rest of the night. Even as the offense sputtered through the remainder of the first and well into the second quarter, the defense held true.
UTSA ended up with 220 yards of total offense and only two yards on the ground. ASU forced three turnovers, compiled nine sacks and 15 tackles for loss. The Sun Devils nearly earned their first shutout since 2010 before a garbage time TD with six minutes to play.
“We tackled pretty well, I thought,” Edwards said. “We’re going to build a defense that will tackle people, knock the quarterback down and take the ball away. We were able to do that- they didn’t run the football and that’s a good thing.”
There were too many players to name that made big plays, but the performance that stood out from the crowd was that of sophomore cornerback Chase Lucas. The DB was everywhere, registering five tackles (three for loss), a sack and a pass defended.
“Everything that coach Gonzales and coach Herm was talking about worked,” Lucas said. “You got to give credit to the defensive linemen, it was crazy. The quarterback had no time to throw, make his reads, nothing. Linebackers were dropping back, blitzing when they needed to and making run stops.”
ASU’s offense was equally impressive; topping 500 total yards (8.4 yards/play), scoring six touchdowns from four different players and allowing no sacks or turnovers. Its biggest non-scoring play came with about five minutes left in the first half.
In the midst of a 28-minute scoring drought, the Sun Devils elected to go for a 4th & 3 at the UTSA 27-yard-line. Senior QB Manny Wilkins floated a pass to sophomore receiver Frank Darby down the right sideline that was barely caught in-bounds. The ensuing play was a three-yard TD run by Eno Benjamin- a sequence that appeared to spark the offense for the remainder of the night.
“I can’t tell you how many times a day in practice we have a drill for that (pass),” Wilkins said. “It’s not easy, but because we do it so much we’re comfortable enough to call a play like that on fourth down and just go for it.”
Junior N’Keal Harry finished as the leading receiver putting up 140 yards on six catches, including two highlight worthy TD’s.
Sophomore RB Eno Benjamin shined in his first collegiate start, racking up 146 total yards (131 rushing, 15 receiving) on 18 touches plus two TD’s. He averaged 8.2 yards/carry.
Despite a great all-around performance Edwards was tough on his team in the postgame presser, which one could say is his job as head coach. The main point of emphasis was ASU’s 11 penalties, a number that must be improved to compete with tougher opponents.
“It was sloppy,” Edwards said. “If you’re going to be a good football team you can’t have 11 penalties (per game).
“The team coming in here next week- put your big boy pads on…we got a little confidence, now the key will be how do we handle success?”
That team coming in next week is No. 11 Michigan State, the 2014 Rose Bowl champions. The game is set for a 7:45 kickoff Saturday on ESPN.
