ASU football falls to Utah in loss of historic proportions
SALT LAKE CITY — It was a blowout of historic proportions, and not in a good way for the Arizona State Sun Devils.
The injury-riddled Sun Devils (2-7, 1-5) fell to defending Pac-12 champion Utah 55-3 Saturday afternoon at Rice-Eccles Stadium. It was the worst conference loss in history for ASU, whose worst loss before that came 50-0 to then No. 2 USC in 1988.
The 83 yards total offense was the second-worst in school history behind a 1946 game against rival Arizona in which they managed 12 yards.
"Guy are frustrated, pissed off. That's a good thing," ASU coach Kenny Dillingham said. "I don't think our guys quit. But not really being able to throw it, run it, or do anything offensively. You know it's tough. It's hard to continue to get up and go when you can't block'em. The simplest piece, so I think the guys are going to continue to fight like they did tonight and it doesn't mean the result was there but I don't think they quit."
What went right
Badger excels as kick returner: Junior Elijhah Badger came into the contest ranked eighth nationally in kick return (26.8 ypr). He just doesn't have a lot of opportunities. He had a return of 78 yards in the first half that took the ball down to the 11 but all the Sun Devils managed out of that was a field goal. He had two returns for 96 yards in the contest.
The weather was perfect: ASU's previous two trips were night games and they have come later in the season so it was cold and raining. The last trip in 2021 also featured a light snow after the game was over. When this one started at noon in Utah, the temperature was in the mid 60's with the sun shining brightly. But not much went right after the opening kickoff.
What went wrong
Oh where to start . . .
: ASU was down 14 players, including seven offensive linemen. Three more players went down in the game, including two defensive linemen. No one player is a big difference in the scheme of things but having that many out at the same time really complicates matters particularly in a position such as the offensive line, you can't run block or pass protect. And then to have a fourth-string quarterback in the game on top of that. ASU played three walk-ons out of necessity.
allowed: Of course the injuries played into this issue with Utah getting four sacks for a loss of 26 yards. This was after ASU made some strides there recently, not giving one up against Washington or Washington State. Of course the caliber of the opponent is a factor too. Utah traditionally boasts one of the top defensive lines in the conference. ASU quarterbacks have now been sacked 26 times.
Failure to convert: ASU was just 1-for-15 on third down and 1-for-4 on fourth down. They managed just seven first downs in the contest. When ASU has been successful, it has been when it sustained drives and made plays on crucial downs.
Defense was on field too much and didn't have its usual game: Even when the Sun Devils have struggled offensively, they have been bailed out by the defense but this time the offense struggled even more so than usual which put the defense in an unwinnable position. Time of possession favored the home team 36:33 to 23:27 with Utah running 77 plays to ASU's 58. ASU gave up 513 yards, which far exceeded what it has been allowing on average.
Punting game was poor: ASU is down to a walk-on punter in Ian Hershey. This was a tough one and a lot was asked of him with the offense stagnant. There were eight punts of an average of 38 yards with no touchbacks and none downed inside the 20.
No takeaways: For the sixth time in eight games the Sun Devils did not manage a takeaway. They have just five on the season, one against USC and four in the game at Washington. With the offensive struggling mightily, it needs all the extra possessions it can get.
What to watch this week
How does the team bounce back: Yes there have been a lot of losses but none as humiliating as this one. The team has some good-character leaders and they're going to be called on to hold the team together with three games left, all against formidable foes.
The injury situation: QB Trenton Bourguet and DL Prince Dorbah and Michael Matus left the game with injuries, and that was on top of the myriad of injuries they had going into the game. Bourguet and Matus were both on crutches with Bouguet in walking boot too.
Personnel
Injuries continue to be an issue with seven offensive linemen unavailable due to injuries, leaving just six scholarship players at the position. Left tackle Isaiah Glass played last week after missing five games but then did not make this trip. Among the total of 14 players unable to play was RB DeCarlos Brooks who missed four games but had played the last two weeks, only to go down this week with an unrelated hamstring injury. ASU now has 104 games missed to injury by 26 players. Ten players have missed five or more games. WR Andre Johnson returned this week although he did not have a catch. WR Jordyn Tyson, a transfer from Colorado, saw action for the first time after missing the first eight games with an injury sustained before he got to ASU.
Grades
Offense (F): Injuries or not, 83 yards on 58 plays is unacceptable, as is the 1-for-15 on third down. Jacob Conover was 5-for-22 for 41 yards in relief of Trenton Bourguet. ASU's big play targets in Elijhah Badger and Jalin Conyers were a non-factor. The normally reliable Cameron Skattebo managed just 31 yards on 12 carries as the rushing game managed only 43 yards.
Defense (D-): The Sun Devils gave up 513 yards, the second-worst showing this season next to the 535 given up to USC in the conference opener. Utah was 10-for-17 on third down and 1-for-2 on fourth down. Utah ran for a season-high 352 yards on 49 tries. Travion Brown had a team-high 11 tackles while Shamari Simmons had 10.
Special teams(D+): The returns by Badger and a 33-yard FG by Dario Longhetto were the bright spots. But averaging 38 yards on eight punts is sub-par. Also drawing the grade down here was a penalty on John Butler that negated a 79-yard return of a punt for a touchdown by Melquan Stovall.
ASU travels to Los Angeles for its last matchup against UCLA (6-2, 3-2) at the Rose Bowl next Saturday. The Bruins were playing Arizona Saturday night.
