Sept. 29, 2007
Final Stats | Notes | Photo Gallery
By Matt Storey, ASU Media Relations
Behind a defensive effort that head coach Dennis Erickson called "dominant," the ASU football team exorcised its California demons with a 41-3 win over Stanford Saturday.
The victory was the Sun Devils' first in the Golden State since 1999 and the first at Stanford Stadium in 10 years.
"It was a good win for us, anytime you can go on the road and win," Erickson said. "To win in California for the first time, obviously I hope it's not the last, but it was a good win for us."
The ASU defense continued its impressive play in the victory, holding Stanford to a net of minus-2 rushing yards, forcing three turnovers and sacking Cardinal quarterback T.C. Ostrander seven times.
The seven sacks were the most by the Sun Devil defense in a game this season. It also nearly doubled their season total of eight from the first four games.
"They were throwing it down the field a little bit more than others have in the past, so you've got to hold it a little bit longer, and our rush was better, there's no question about that," Erickson said of the increased amount of sacks.
Defensive end Dexter Davis led the way with 2.5 sacks, while linebacker Robert James had a team-high 11 tackles.
Cornerback Omar Bolden, making his first start, had his first career interception, which he returned for a touchdown, while defensive end Dane Guthrie and linebacker Mike Nixon each had a fumble recovery.
It was also the first time in five games that the Sun Devils shut out their opponent in the first quarter.
"That's what we talked about all week, coming out of the gate and playing well," Erickson said. "Mentally, we're playing a lot better. We're not making near the mistakes that we made early in the year."
ASU's offense held its own as well, piling up 440 total yards in the game and scoring more than 30 points for the fifth straight time this season.
Wide receiver Rudy Burgess was one of the offensive stars, as he had his biggest game of the season with seven catches for 137 yards and a 62-yard touchdown catch that helped put the Sun Devils in control by halftime.
"I think he brings another dimension to our offense that we really need," quarterback Rudy Carpenter said of Burgess. "He's been there and done it all, but we need him out there on the field. I think he's going to have a big year and continue on from this game."
Despite being sacked six times, Carpenter finished 20-27 for 259 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
ASU's running backs also performed well, with Ryan Torain's 103 yards on 16 carries leading the way. Keegan Herring had eight carries for 83 yards, including a 72-yard touchdown run, while Dimitri Nance had five carries for 22 yards and his first touchdown of the season.
Freshman kicker Thomas Weber made all four of his field goal attempts on the night, making him 10-for-10 so far this season and earning him Pac-10 Special Teams Player of the Week honors.
Weber got the Sun Devils on the scoreboard first with a 41-yard field goal on the team's opening drive.
Then, on Stanford's first possession, Davis sacked Ostrander and forced a fumble that Guthrie recovered to give ASU the ball on the 20. However, the Sun Devils could not get a first down offensively and settled for another Weber field goal, this one from 32 yards out.
The score remained 6-0 until late in the second quarter, when ASU struck quickly with two touchdowns in nine seconds. First, Carpenter connected with Burgess on a 62-yard catch and run for a score, and Keegan Herring fought his way into the end zone for a two-point conversion and a 14-0 lead.
Bolden then intercepted Ostrander on the first play of Stanford's ensuing possession and ran the ball back 29 yards for a touchdown to put ASU in front 21-0.
Stanford did move down the field for a 42-yard Derek Belch field goal as the second quarter ended to make the score 21-3 at the half, but that would be the Cardinal's only scoring drive of the night.
Weber added field goals from 38 and 18 yards in the third quarter, and then Nance's 17-yard touchdown run increased ASU's lead to 34-3. The 18-yard field goal and the touchdown run both came on drives that lasted more than five minutes each to help ASU ice the game in the second half.
Herring's 72-yard touchdown run later in the fourth capped off the scoring and meant the Sun Devils scored on five consecutive offensive possessions going back to Burgess' touchdown reception.
NOTES: ASU has recorded an interception in all five games this season...The Sun Devils have forced 14 turnovers this season while committing just eight...Torain's 103 rushing yards gave him his sixth career 100-yard game and second this season...James has a team-best 50 tackles on the year...ASU's 5-0 start is its best since 2004...The Sun Devils have outscored their opponents 197-65 in their five games so far.