Oct. 2, 2004
By Nate Policar
ASU Sports Information
EUGENE, Ore. - A date under the lights with the Oregon Ducks in the always raucous confines of Autzen Stadium is always a daunting task, but the Arizona State Sun Devils were up to it, as they stung the Ducks, 28-13, to remain perfect on the season.
The two teams played to a stalemate through the first quarter, combining for five straight punts, 58 penalty yards and no score after 15 minutes. However, the Ducks (1-3, 0-1) got on the board first early in the second quarter. After a long pass set the Ducks up on a first-and-goal from the ASU seven-yard line, the Sun Devil defense forced Oregon's Kellen Clemens to throw the ball away on three straight downs and settle for the field goal. Following a make from 22 yards out, Oregon took a 3-0 lead.
The Sun Devils (5-0, 2-0) answered quickly as they turned to the ground game. Giving the ball to Hill, the Sun Devils moved the ball on a 15-yard run by Hill who had three defenders on his back to help set up senior Andrew Walter's 23-yard touchdown pass to sophomore tight end Jamaal Lewis. With the score at 10:35 remaining in the half, the Sun Devils had their first points of the game and a 7-3 lead.
"Oregon's safeties fly downhill and get involved in the run game, so we tried to play action and get over the top," Walter said. "It didn't happen on about half of the play actions that we had. That was really the first one that it did. This is the first time I've ever been 5-0, so I'm loving life. I want to keep it going as long as possible."
Oregon cut the lead to one with a 34-yard field goal by Jared Siegel to end a 14-play, 74-yard drive. After failing to convert on a third down after a career-long 56-yard kickoff return by junior Josh Golden, redshirt freshman Chris McDonald trapped the Ducks on their own five-yard line with a well-placed 34-yard punt. Unable to get the ball moving, Oregon punted away to the Sun Devils, who began their next drive on the UO 40-yard line. Walter took advantage of the good field position and found sophomore Terry Richardson on a 24-yard play-action pass to the corner of the end zone for the Sun Devils' second touchdown of the night and a 14-6 halftime lead. The Sun Devils began the second half with renewed spirit on offense as Hill opened up a drive with a career-long 56-yard rush into the Oregon red zone. After Walter found freshman tight end Zach Miller for an 11-yard pass to move the ball to the one, Hill carried the ball across the goal line to give Arizona State a 21-6 lead with just over 11 minutes remaining in the third quarter.
"The offensive linemen made a promise that they were going to take care of me tonight, and they did an excellent job of that," said Hill, who had a career-best 134 rushing yards on the day. "They blocked their butts off and got a push on a very, very physical defensive line. That made it a lot easier for me to just follow them downfield."
Oregon moved the ball methodically downfield on a 15-play, 68 yard drive that spanned 8:45. The Ducks scored their first touchdown of the game on a nine-yard shovel pass from Clemens to Terrence Whitehead to cut the lead to 21-13 as the third quarter came to a close.
Walter led the Sun Devils on a long drive to begin the fourth quarter, moving the ball 42 yards and eating five minutes of clock. After converting on a third and 24 with a 26-yard pass to Lewis, the Sun Devils called on sophomore Jesse Ainsworth for a 48-yard field goal, which sailed wide right.
As the fourth quarter wore on, ASU broke up some key pass plays as the Ducks failed to get anything going and were stopped on their own side of the 50-yard line on two straight possessions. Taking over on the ASU 41-yard line following a punt, Walter led ASU on a charge, connecting with Zach Miller on a 27-yard pass gain and then converting on a crucial third down with a 10-yard pass to Richardson to bring the ball into the Oregon red zone again. Grinding it out on the ground, the Sun Devils ran the game clock down to 3:01 before sealing the 28-13 win with a one-yard reception by Rudy Burgess for Walter's third TD pass of the game.
"I don't think anybody thought we could run the ball like we did tonight," Koetter said. "There's never been a question about Hakim's talent. For him to play like he has under the circumstances with his arm [being broken], it says a lot about Hakim and I'm proud of him and what he is doing for our football team right now."