ASU’s Harry dynamic but still learning
WR had miscue after returning punt for TD
Every player and coach on the Arizona State sideline was yelling “let it go” but junior N’Keal Harry had other ideas.
The Sun Devils were locked in a tight battle with USC Saturday at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and Harry was back to return a punt. He disobeyed the cardinal rule that says don’t field a punt inside the 10 or over your head.
Harry grabbed the ball at the 8, backpedaled a few steps and headed along the goal line then turned upfield and raced down the USC sideline, sprung by four key blocks for a 92-yard scoring play that was the turning point in a 3835 win that keeps the Sun Devils in the hunt for a Pac-12 South Division title.
That play lifted the Sun Devils out of a 28-24 deficit and into a 31-28 lead they did not surrender. So all was forgiven.
But on USC’s next punt, Harry signaled for a fair catch at the 5 on another ball that would have easily sailed into the end zone. He acknowledges he should have let that one go, too.
It’s all part of a learning curve for something that is still relatively new to him. It wasn’t until he got to college that he started returning kicks, and this is the first time he has been asked to do so regularly.
Junior wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk had been used in that capacity for the early part of the season and is still in the mix for return duties moving forward.
“It’s something I felt I could handle so I have to put in the work. I want to be good at it and I know I have to make better decisions,” said Harry, who was named Pac-12 Special Teams Player of the Week on Monday.
The 6-foot-4, 221-pounder has been pegged by many as a potential firstround draft choice with many experts saying he could go in the top 10 picks. He certainly aided his cause with his showing against USC.
Not only was there the spectacular kick return but just a few minutes later he made a one-handed grab of a 28-yard pass from Manny Wilkins while falling backward along the sideline that many are comparing to the catch the New York Giants’ Odell Beckham Jr. made in a game against Dallas four years ago.
It is arguably the best catch of the college football season this far.
Harry said learning the nuances of special teams is more difficult than that of catching passes which is more instinctual.
His other return of note came against Washington when he took one back 42 yards.
“There is a lot more that goes into it,” he said. “You have to know where you are on the field, you’re judging the ball, you have to know where your blockers are. I would say it’s a lot more difficult.”
Harry spent considerable time early in practice Tuesday morning working with special teams coordinator Shawn Slocum. As balls were booted toward him, Harry had to decide which to catch and which to let go, with Slocum offering some words of advice in between tries.
“He has that potential on every play. He sees the game the right way,” Slocum said. “There are a lot of factors that go into the play – the flight of the ball, the angle. It’s a lot to take in.”
Slocum said Aiyuk is still a main return option but Harry was used at that time because he had been having a good game. He finished with four receptions for 95 yards and a receiving score.
“We decided to go with the hot hand on that one,” he said. “We really needed a big play at that time and we know every time he is out there he could give us one.”
Kickoff returns aren’t the same as punt plays. Harry has yet to return a kick and the Sun Devils have used a lot of players there, most notably Aiyuk, junior Paul Lucas and sophomore Isaiah Floyd.
Slocum said the only way for Harry to learn is by putting him out there and he likes Harry’s chances of success as well as the effort he has been putting in. He could see Harry excelling in return duty at the next level, but first things first.
“He is going to be a good player at the next level but we’re getting too far ahead of ourselves to think that way now,” Slocum said. “He is working and getting better and that’s all we’re asking right now.”
Benjamin hauls in another honor
ASU sophomore running back Eno Benjamin has been named to the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Honorable Mention list for week 9 for his showing in the Sun Devils’ 38-35 win over USC Saturday at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Benjamin ran for 185 yards and two touchdowns in the Pac-12 contest which saw the Sun Devils end the Trojans’ 19game home winning streak.
He had five rushes of 11 or more yards, highlighted by a 49-yard touchdown run. His 185 yards were the second-most by an ASU running back against the Trojans behind only J.R. Redmond’s 214 yards in 1998.
The honor was a bit more special for Benjamin because he and Campbell are both Texas natives but the ASU standout isn’t thinking much about individual accolades.
“It’s a nice honor and I’m happy to be included,” he said. “It’s not my focus though. I just want to do my part to help the team win.”
Benjamin has run for 100 or more yards five times this season. Earlier this season he earned Pac-12 Player of the Week, Rose Bowl Game Pac-12 Player of the Week and Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Player of the Week Award honors after he set the single-game school rushing record with 312 yards in a win over Oregon State on Sept. 29.
He is currently sixth in the NCAA with 938 yards rushing and eighth in touchdowns with 11.