(Photo: Ashanti Thompson/WCSN)
TEMPE — After the first quarter, it looked as if Arizona State football was in for a long afternoon, with West Virginia’s offense threatening to overwhelm the Sun Devils at every turn. Comparatively, ASU’s offense remained stuck in neutral, grinding through a sluggish start that left fans at Mountain America Stadium restless — the possibility of an upset began to creep in.
With just under 15 minutes left in the second quarter, the Sun Devils stared at third-and-8 on their own 22-yard line. ASU was 0-for-2 on third-down conversions — a third miss would send the defense back onto the field, a heavy ask for a unit that spent most of the first quarter out there. Instead, senior quarterback Jeff Sims connected with a fellow redshirt senior, receiver Malik McClain, on a go route for a 24-yard gain.
The Sun Devils would face another third-and-8 later in the drive — this time, on the Mountaineers’ 31-yard line. Redshirt junior receiver Jalen Moss dropped a dig route in the first quarter, but Sims went back to him on that same route on third down. Moss hauled it in this time, turning the catch into a 25-yard gain to West Virginia’s 6-yard line and setting up ASU’s first touchdown.
Replacing redshirt junior receiver Jordyn Tyson’s production was never realistic. But the Sun Devils’ supporting receivers stepped on Saturday, playing a key role in ASU’s (7-3, 5-2 Big 12) 25-23 win over the Mountaineers (4-7, 2-6 Big 12).
“Jordyn wants to play, but Kenny Dillingham’s not going to let him play until he’s 100%,” head coach Kenny Dillingham said. “Everybody’s getting involved right now.”
Dating back to Tyson’s first missed game against Houston, attention turned to redshirt senior tight end Chamon Metayer, who was thrust from the team’s second option into a featured receiving role. On Saturday, the Sun Devils’ first touchdown was scored by Metayer.
The play design was a run-pass option, with Sims opting to keep the ball after reading the defense. Metayer motioned across the line before breaking into a flat route, and Sims fired a sidearm throw for a six-yard score.
“Chamon’s, I think, a Sunday player. I know scouts are starting to talk about him,” Dillingham said. “He blocks people, catches the ball, he’s physical, one of the smartest kids on the team, works hard, he’s a good person — I don’t know what else we’d want.”
On ASU’s next possession, Metayer was once again featured on a Sun Devil receiving touchdown off an RPO — but not as a receiver. The offense lined up in trips formation, stacking three receivers to one side — Moss on the boundary, Metayer a couple steps inside but at the same depth from the line of scrimmage, and redshirt sophomore Derek Eusebio between them but aligned on the line.
The pass option was a slot receiver screen designed for Eusebio, with two West Virginia defenders on the left side that Moss and Metayer had to account for. Moss’ assignment was to act as a decoy, running down the sideline to pull the boundary corner out of the play. Metayer had a one-on-one blocking matchup with Mountaineer senior safety Kekoura Tarnue, who was lined up as a nickel defender.
Both players executed as well as one could have asked them to — Moss drew the defensive back with his route, while Metayer neutralized Tarnue at the line. With the block sealed, Eusebio ran around Metayer and sprinted into open field, scoring his first touchdown of the season from 19 yards out.
“We work on (perimeter blocking) every single day,” Eusebio said. “I wouldn’t say we hate it, but we all go to practice like, ‘Oh, we got perimeter today.’”
With less than two minutes left to go in the first half, ASU lined up for its fifth third-down conversion attempt of the afternoon. Positioned at West Virginia’s 33-yard line, a sack would have turned an already difficult 51-yard field goal attempt into a likely punt decision. This was likely the Mountaineers rationale for sending senior safety Fred Perry on a blitz up the middle.
However, the Sun Devils incorporated a Texas route with redshirt junior running back Raleek Brown running it. Even with Tyson on the field, Brown has been featured as a receiver out of the backfield this season.
Perry got in the backfield, but not before Sims got the ball out to Brown. Brown exploited the lack of West Virginia defenders in the middle and used his speed to outrun the Mountaineers for a 33‑yard touchdown.
“(Sims) is taking what the defense has given him,” Dillingham said. “He’s distributing the ball.”
After a rough first quarter, ASU erupted for three second‑quarter scores that accounted for 22 of its 25 points on Saturday. Despite drops and miscues throughout the afternoon, Sims’ confidence in the skill position players never wavered, particularly on third down. While no single player can replace what Tyson brings to the offense, the collective effort has been enough to keep the Sun Devils afloat.
“It’s cool to get everybody involved right now in some way, shape or form,” Dillingham said. “Through all the adversity this year, 7-3, still in this thing.”
