ASU offense missing as UA game looms
CORVALLIS, Ore. — The offense failed Arizona State in a 24-10 loss to Oregon State on Saturday night at Reser Stadium.
The Sun Devils jumped offsides. They couldn’t complete simple passes. And they couldn’t run it, either.
“We’ve gotta move the ball,” Coach Herm Edwards said. “We just have to move the ball. … We can’t bog down and go two or three possessions without moving the ball.”
The game for ASU (7-4, 5-3 Pac-12) was the end of a series of hopes, dreams and expectations for a season that started with a lot of hype.
The Sun Devils can’t win the Pac-12, and there are no realistic scenarios that can put them in the Rose Bowl or the top 15.
It comes down to a stunning regression of quarterback Jayden Daniels behind an offensive line that’s not doing enough to protect him and receivers who aren’t making plays for him.
And on Saturday night in Corvallis, ASU couldn’t rely on the ground game, either.
“Between the run game and the pass game, we couldn’t get either going,” offensive coordinator Zak Hill said. “Just couldn’t get into a rhythm. That prevented us from scoring points, and then when we could get points down in the red zone, we just didn’t.”
It’s not hard to imagine how Hill feels watching his unit sputter, but he explained it Saturday night just in case there was any doubt.
“Frustrating,” he said.
Daniels didn’t speak with reporters after the loss, but his statistics speak for themselves.
He was 16-for-27 passing for just 166 yards. He was sacked three times. And he threw yet another interception. It wasn’t any better in the run game where Daniels was the leading rusher with just 46 yards on the ground.
His NFL prospects are falling like the temperatures in the Pacific Northwest after the sun goes down.
Daniels looks like a pro, make no mistake.
But he hasn’t seemed to play with his trademark confidence this year, and that was one of the qualities that had scouts and analysts wondering whether he could play his way into the first round of the draft.
Daniels’ backfield companion, running back Rachaad White, who has carried the offense most of the season, didn’t play much more effectively, gaining only 39 yards on 15 carries.
The offensive line was flagged for seven false stats.
And ASU’s receivers had just nine catches on 17 targets.
The Sun Devils have to get something figured out, immediately.
The Territorial Cup game is next week, and after ASU embarrassed Arizona 70-7 last season, the Wildcats will be thinking revenge.
Maybe ASU needs to just figure out a way to get its impact players on the field more? Perhaps putting running back DeaMonte Trayanum in the game more while splitting Rachaad White out at wide receiver to keep defenses guessing?
White had six catches for 86 yards against OSU (7-4, 5-3), and he’s been ASU’s most consistent receiving threat all season.
Maybe it’s about calling short passes early to get the offense playing with some confidence?
Daniels was intercepted on his first attempt after taking a big shot as he threw the ball over the middle.
Maybe it’s just about making plays? “We’ve gotta execute better,” Hill said.
Or maybe it’s just about getting guys like Johnny Wilson and Curtis Hodges back from injury?
Edwards thinks it’s more than that. “We missed some players,” he said. “But we’ve been missing players all season. That’s no excuse. We bogged down too many times offensively.”
That’s one way to put it. In the first half, ASU had five drives; They ended two punts, two missed field goals and an interception.
“No consistency in our offense, and that’s what you need,” Edwards said. “You need some consistency. You can’t stall out and go three or four plays and punt it.”
That means no jumping offsides. Finding ways to complete simple passes. And running for positive yards in key situations.
Otherwise, the offense is going to fail Arizona State against Arizona (1-10, 1-8) an opponent that will be banking its entire season on what happens in the Territorial Cup.