Sept. 11, 2004
By Nate Policar
ASU Sports Information
EVANSTON, Ill. - Meeting for the first time in 26 years, the Arizona State Sun Devils locked horns with the Northwestern Wildcats for their first road contest of the season and came away with a 30-21 victory in Evanston, Ill. Building a strong lead in the third quarter, the Sun Devils used some timely defense to overcome a late surge by the Wildcats and hold on for their second victory of the 2004 campaign.
"It was big to get a road win, especially against a quality Big Ten opponent like Northwestern, and kind of get this rolling a little bit, like a snowball effect," said senior safety Riccardo Stewart. "We had them down and out for a bit, but then we let them back into the game. I was proud of how we came back, stuck with it, fought hard through the adversity and ended up with the win."
A 34-yard punt return by redshirt freshman Rudy Burgess in the first quarter allowed ASU (2-0) to get on the scoreboard early, having started its drive from the Northwestern 26-yard line. Senior quarterback Andrew Walter found junior receiver Derek Hagan on a 13-yard completion to set up Jesse Ainsworth on a 20-yard field goal. At the end of one quarter, the Sun Devils led 3-0.
However, Northwestern (0-2) answered back to begin the second quarter and scored a touchdown to take their only lead of the game. Tailback Noah Herron rushed 62 yards for the Wildcats, including a 22-yard breakaway touchdown run, to put his team on top 7-3.
The Sun Devils responded quickly, as ASU sniffed out a fake punt by the Wildcats at midfield and took over following the turnover on downs on its own 43-yard line. Finding Hagan for an eight-yard pass on the sideline, Walter went for it all, connecting with Hagan again on a 47-yard touchdown reception to reclaim the lead for the Sun Devils at 10-7.
The teams would trade punts again, but a shanked punt by Northwestern's Brian Huffman set the Sun Devils up on another long drive. Finding junior receiver Moey Mutz for a 13-yard gain, Walter again attacked the Wildcats' secondary, as Derek Hagan outran the defense to haul in a 41-yard touchdown reception, collecting over 100 yards receiving before the halftime break. Having scored two touchdowns both on drives lasting less than two minutes in length, the Sun Devils took a 17-7 lead into the half, with momentum squarely on their side.
"They started bringing the heat there for a while. We had the opportunity to make some big plays, and for the most part we were able to make some plays," remarked Walter following the game. "But, I'd rather throw for 210 yards in a win than throw for 400 and a loss any day."
Deep in their own territory, the Sun Devils took to the ground, pounding away at the Northwestern defensive line with the run. Utilizing five carries by sophomore tailback Loren Wade, the Sun Devils pushed the ball 30 yards downfield to the Northwestern 39-yard line, where Walter found sophomore receiver Terry Richardson on two straight completions for a seven yard gain and a 30-yard touchdown pass. With less than 10 minutes to play in the third quarter, the Sun Devils led 24-7.
Northwestern needed to get back in the game in a hurry and utilized a quick attack to put more points on the scoreboard. After rushing several times up the middle, Basanez fired the ball to his receiver Shaun Herbert for a 35-yard gain to set the Wildcats up on the ASU 25-yard line. From there, Terrell Jordan ran 25 yards through the middle of the ASU linebackers for the touchdown, cutting the ASU lead to 10 points after having held the ball for only 1:50.
On the ensuing kickoff, Brian Huffman hit a pooch kick 15 yards down the field, directly into the outstretched arms of Northwestern safety Reggie McPherson, giving the Wildcats another possession on the ASU 44-yard line. Basanez connected on a 14-yard pass before running the ball into the end zone on a 13-yard quarterback keeper, trimming the Sun Devils' lead to only a field goal as the third quarter ticked away.
Starting their ensuing possession in the final seconds of the third quarter, Andrew Walter refocused his team, connecting on four of his next six passes. After finding Hagan on an 11-yard reception and Mutz on a 12-yard reception, Walter connected with Hakim Hill for 14-yards to set up Jesse Ainsworth on the Northwestern 24-yard line. From 41 yards away, Ainsworth split the uprights, extending the ASU lead to 27-21 with 13:35 remaining in the game.
After handcuffing the Wildcat offense on a three-and-out, ASU had a chance to put the game out of reach with 9:32 remaining. After a 47-yard field goal attempt by Ainsworth sailed wide left, the Northwestern Wildcats found themselves in a position to take the lead late in the fourth quarter. Breaking away for a 34-yard gain, Basanez brought Northwestern down to the ASU 36-yard line on the long quarterback keeper. He then connected with receiver Mark Philmore to put the Wildcats on the ASU 26-yard line.
However, a clutch play by ASU defensive captain Riccardo Stewart saved the game for the Sun Devils, as he pried the ball loose from Northwestern running back Terrell Jordan and senior defensive end Ishmael Thrower recovered the ball to give the Sun Devils possession on their own 18-yard line. A 12-yard reception by Terry Richardson moved the Sun Devils out of jeopardy and towards the 50-yard line where Koetter called on sophomore running back Randy Hill. Taking the handoff on eight consecutive plays, Hill rushed the ball 41 yards all the way to the Northwestern goal line, where Jesse Ainsworth provided an 18-yard field goal to seal the victory for the Sun Devils at 30-21.
"We have to play better, but not very many people were picking us to come up here and win against a pretty good Big Ten team. We would have liked to win by three touchdowns, but in the end people only care about the win or the loss, so I'm happy to get the win today," said Koetter. "We still need to get better, but to beat a team like that was a huge win for us on the road.