What we learned: Road has not been kind to Herm Edwards, Sun Devils,
The road has not been kind to the Arizona State Sun Devils as coach Herm Edwards’ team lost for the second time in back-to-back weeks away from Tempe, this time to Pac-12 South foe UCLA, 42-32, on Saturday night at the Rose Bowl.
The Sun Devils (5-3, 2-3 in Pac-12 play) were looking to bounce back from last week’s 21-3 loss to South Division leader Utah, but got off to a worse start than they did the previous week. ASU trailed, 28-7, at the half and was down 42-10 before scoring 22 points in the fourth quarter when their fate had already been sealed.
“We’re a 5-3 football team right now, we’ve got to build,” Edwards said. “Going through this, we’re going to find out a lot about the young guys in the locker room and about the seniors too. Who wants to lead, who wants to step up? [Jayden Daniels] was fine, going through all this he never thought about coming out of the game. He wanted to play and finish with his football team and put some points on the board.”
Let’s review:
3 takeaways
1. Penalties are proving costly. Two weeks ago ASU was the least penalized team in the Pac-12, only averaging five miscues a game. In the last two games — both losses — the Sun Devils have been penalized 19 times for 194 yards. The Sun Devils got off to a bad start with false start penalties on their second and third plays of the game, both by freshman tight end Nolan Matthews. In the last two games they have had six penalties that have given their opponent a first down and there have been many of the 15-yard variety, and many of those were for lack of composure issues. It is something the coaching staff is going to have to get a handle on.
“As a team we’ve got to stop the penalties,” sophomore linebacker Darien Butler said. “That’s really what’s hurting us — 15-yard penalties. It never fails. You get a 15-yarder, it’s going to lead to a touchdown every time. We can’t have that, we’ve got to stop it.”
2. There are no easy games left. Based on record and showing this year, that game looked like the most “winnable” one left on the schedule. What else is left? After a bye, ASU is home against a USC team which is tied for first in the South and usually has one of the best complement of athletes in the conference, then its on to Oregon State which is struggling in the win column but has historically been a tough place for ASU to win. Then its Oregon at home, the toughest game left no doubt. And finally Arizona, which has lost three in a row, but it is a rivalry game so anything can happen.
3. The bye is much-needed. ASU has had two pretty rough weeks so this week will be the perfect opportunity to regroup, address their biggest issues and refocus before hitting the homestretch. ASU never really recovered from that physically taxing game at Utah. Daniels went off limping after a quarterback sneak, although he returned a moment later. Many other players are nursing injuries as well.
Offense
The final numbers here are misleading. The Sun Devils had 383 total yards, only 10 fewer than UCLA, but a lot of those yards came in the fourth quarter when the game had already been decided and the deficit made it mandatory they throw. Quarterback Jayden Daniels completed 20 of his 29 throws for 267 yards with three touchdowns. He also ran for a team-high 67 yards on 13 tries while Eno Benjamin, the leading rusher in the conference a year ago, managed just 46 on 13 tries. Junior Frank Darby had six receptions for a season-high 110 yards with scoring catches of 12 and 27 yards. ASU converted six of 12 thirddown tries, which isn’t terrible but they were unable to capitalize in some situations with a third and short, most notably a third-and-1 at the UCLA 33 early in the second quarter. They also failed on two fourth-down tries. Two noteworthy statistics are most indicative of the lopsided nature of the game. UCLA had huge advantages in total plays run (8057) and time of possession (38:30 to 21:30).
“I’m frustrated because we had the best week of practice offensively we’ve had all year,” offensive coordinator Rob Likens said. “They were refocused, they practiced great. Brandon Aiyuk had the best practice he’s had since he’s been here on Wednesday. He was phenomenal. Jayden too. I’m just disappointed how we kind of started out. It seems a whole lot worse than what it is. If we stay on schedule on offense and pick up those third-and-1s, it’s going to be a totally different deal for everybody.”
Grade: C
Defense
The Bruins scored 42 points, the most by any ASU opponent this season.They totaled 393 yards — 217 of that on the ground, something defensive coordinator Danny Gonzales said was unacceptable in the post-game press conference. UCLA converted seven of 14 thirddown tries and all three of its fourthdown attempts. Sophomore linebacker Darien Butler had 10 tackles, a forced fumble and a recovery while Tillman safety Evan Fields managed nine tackles. Junior corner Chase Lucas had eight tackles, forced a fumble and recovered another.
The Sun Devils forced three turnovers, giving them seven in the last two games, about the only bright spot. They converted all three UCLA fumbles into touchdowns but two of those came in the fourth quarter. The other trend that continued over from last week was the Sun Devils being unable to get stops on third down. There were two penalties on third downs that gave the Bruins a first down, most notably a roughing the passer penalty on senior linebacker Khaylan Kearse-Thomas that resulted in a first down instead of a fourth down and punting situation. UCLA had back to-back scoring drives where it drove 81 and 80 yards, taking 7:14 off the clock the first time and a 8:27 the next drive. Then, UCLA went 64 yards in five plays in 38 seconds to score just before the first half ended.
“This is a mean and nasty game and if you don’t get yourself mentally ready, it shows up and it showed up. When you give up 219 yards rushing it means you’re soft. They’re going to hear it from me all week,” Gonzales said.
Grade: D
Special Teams
ASU punter Michael Turk was his usual solid self with three for an average 47 yards, landing one inside the 20. He had a 67-yarder in the third quarter but the Sun Devils failed on the coverage and allowed a 38-yard return by Kyle Phillips. Cristian Zendejas made his only field goal try, from 30 yards, as well the three extra points he attempted. The departure of former kicker Brandon Ruiz has shown up in the kickoff department with none of the kickers ASU has used there managing quite the distance Ruiz did.
Brandon Aiyuk had a good showing with a punt return of 31 yards and two kickoff returns for 51 yards, one of those which he field in the back of the end zone and brought out to the 23. That contribution was in addition to his 82 receiving yards, giving him 164 all-purpose yards on the night. The Sun Devils also faltered covering punts, allowing 71 yards on four returns.
Grade: C+
Personnel
Sophomore linebacker Tyler Johnson (upper body injury) did not make the trip. He is out with an injury unrelated to the shoulder and hamstring injuries that have slowed him this season. Freshman defensive back Cam Phillips (hamstring) returned after missing last week. He was replaced in the starting lineup by true freshman Willie Harts but did play. Starting defensive end George Lea was injured in the game and had his arm in a sling when the game ended. Freshman quarterback Joey Yellen entered a game for the first time when Daniels had to come out after tweaking his ankle on a third down sneak. True freshman defensive lineman Stephon Wright also saw his first playing time.
Up next
The Sun Devils have a much-needed bye next week. Their next game will be Saturday, Nov. 9 at Sun Devil Stadium against USC (5-3, 4-1), which is tied with Utah for first place in the South. ASU is just 13-22 all-time against the Trojans, although it was victorious, 38-35, last year at the Coliseum. That win snapped a three-year-losing streak to USC.