TEMPE -- The No. 13/14 Arizona State University Sun Devil football program will close out the 2014 home slate this weekend on Senior Day against Washington State on Saturday, Nov. 17. The game is scheduled to kickoff at 11 a.m. MT/1 p.m. ET at Sun Devil Stadium and will be broadcast live on the Pac-12 Networks.
ASU enters the weekend looking to bounce back following a tough 35-27 loss on the road at Oregon State. The loss came after having won five straight after defeating Notre Dame for the first time in program history, 55-31, the previous weekend. That followed ASU’s first overtime victory under head coach Todd Graham, a 19-16 thriller over then-No. 18 Utah. That game came on the heels of a hard-fought 24-10 victory over Washington in Seattle following back-to-back wins over ranked foes in Stanford (26-10) and USC (38-34). ASU opened up the Pac-12 schedule with a 38-24 victory on the road over Colorado before suffering a tough 62-27 defeat at the hands on UCLA at home two weekends later. ASU used a strong second half and a career day by D.J. Foster to rout New Mexico, 58-23. The Sun Devils opened the season with an efficient and thorough 45-15 victory over Weber State in Tempe on opening weekend, increasing their season-opening win streak to 12 straight games.
Arizona State is now in its 102nd season of competition in 2014. The Sun Devils are 581-372-24 (.607) all-time and have appeared in 27 bowl games, compiling a 13-13-1 record in such contests. The Sun Devils are coming off an impressive 10-4 campaign in 2013 that saw ASU finish as the Pac-12 South Champions and advance to the National University Holiday Bowl as head coach Todd Graham earned Pac-12 Coach of the Year accolades.
#10THINGS (Twitter-Friendly Notes)
1. D.J. Foster has accounted for at least one reception in each of the 37 games he has played at ASU. T-9th longest active streak in FBS.
2. Foster (@AState_8) is the only active FBS running back with over 1,500 career rushing AND receiving yards (1,866/1,713 respectively)
3. @JaelenStrong became the third Sun Devil wide receiver to be named a @BiletnikoffAward semifinalist (McDonald/Hagan others)
4. @Taylor_Kelly10 became just the third @FootballASU QB to reach 70 passing touchdowns (71) in his career against OSU.
5. @FootballASU has 90 points off turnovers this season, which is the 11th-highest total pointswise in the nation this season.
6. @FootballASU and TCU the only @AP_Top25 teams to play five ranked teams this year. Both have gone 4-1 in those games.
7. @FootballASU now 18-1 when rushing for more yards than opponent. 11-0 when holding opponent under 100 rushing yards.
8. @FootballASU has scored 13 defensive TDs under @CoachGrahamASU (11 INT returns, 2 fumble returns) - leads FBS in last 3 seasons.
9. @Taylor_Kelly10’s needs just two touchdowns to pass Andrew Walter’s school record for career touchdowns responsible for (85).
10. @FootballASU has only allowed seven drives to start in its own territory this season. Second fewest in @Pac-12 behind UA (3).
ON THE AIR Hear the hometown call with broadcaster Tim Healey and color analyst Jeff Van Raaphorst as well as sideline reporter Doug Franz providing all the action for Sun Devil Football this season. The hometown broadcasts are boosted by Bonneville’s powerful sports/talk lineup of 620 AM KTAR, 98.7 KMVP and 92.3 KTAR News FM. Don’t miss a play this upcoming season with the additional worldwide coverage brought to you by the TuneIn App which can be downloaded to your smartphone, tablet or laptop. This week’s game will broadcast on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM. The home town call can also be heard on Sirius Channel 139/XM Channel 197.
LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION Saturday’s contest will mark just the second game this season that ASU has played on the Pac-12 Networks and the first since the opening weekend of action. Kevin Calabro will be on the call alongside analyst Yogi Roth while Lewis Johnson will provide insight from the sidelines. The Pac-12 will again provide access to Armed Forces Network for carriage of Pac-12 football games in 2014 for the benefit of the men and women in the military. The Pac-12 Network has been a good omen for the Devils, who have compiled a 10-1 record in games competed on the network and are winners of eight straight.
ON THE COUGARS ASU holds a 25-13-2 all-time against the Cougars and are winners of nine of the last 10 games in the series - the only loss coming in 2011 at Pullman. The Sun Devils have averaged 42.5 points per game in the last four games against WSU, including a 55-point effort in Pullman last season. ASU is 15-5-2 all-time in the series in games played at Sun Devil Stadium and have not loss a home game to the Cougars since 2001 (five straight wins).
LAST TIME OUT - OREGON STATE
--ASU fell to 26-14-1 all-time against the Beavers, and is now 6-10-1 at Reser Stadium with losses in five straight in Corvallis.
--The loss was ASU’s first under Todd Graham after leading at the half. ASU was 23-0 entering the evening.
--Oregon State running back Storm Woods’ 78-yard touchdown run in the first quarter was the longest rushing touchdown the Devils have given up this season and the longest since Wisconsin’s Melvin Gordon’s 80-yard touchdown run Sept. 14, 2013. It was the second-longest scoring play against the Sun Devil defense behind UCLA’s Eldridge Massington’s 80-yard touchdown reception Sept. 25.
--ASU allowed two 100-plus yard rushers for the first time since USC’s Tre Madden and Justin Davis rushed for 130 and 128 yards, respectively, on Sept. 28, 2013.
--After scoring first in each of the first eight games of the season, ASU has now been scored on first in each of the past two games (vs. Notre Dame, at Oregon State). The 14 points ASU allowed in the opening quarter against OSU was the most the Devils have given up in the first quarter this season.
--Linebacker Antonio Longino’s 36-yard fumble return for a touchdown was ASU’s first since 2012 when Junior Onyeali had one also against Oregon State in Corvallis.
--Kelly became just the fourth player in ASU history to pass for more than 8,000 career yards and now has 8,203 yards after finishing the game with 264 passing yards.
--Kelly became just the third player in ASU history with 70 or more touchdown passes and now has 71 touchdowns after passing for two against Oregon State.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
--In Graham’s three seasons at the helm, the Devils hold a 7-6 record against AP-ranked opponents and a 7-3 record in the past two years. In the previous 14 seasons before hiring Todd Graham the Devils were 5-40 against ranked opponents.
--Arizona State is 21-6 in the past 27 games and 13-2 in the past 15 regular season games against fellow Pac-12 opponents.
--Foster’s touchdown reception near the end of the first quarter against Oregon State marked the 11th of his career, which is the most among all active FBS running backs.
--Foster now has a reception in 37 consecutive games, the ninth-longest active streak in the FBS and every game he has played as a Sun Devil.
--Kelly is responsible for 504 points in his career after accounting for 12 against OSU, and moved into sole possession of second all-time at ASU in career points responsible for (passing Rudy Carpenter at 498). He is just six points from setting the school record.
-Below is a list of ASU’s current pertinent individual and team rankings nationally:
National/Pac-12 Stat Rankings For This Week/Team
3rd Down Conversion Pct. Defense — 33/3, 0.357
4th Down Conversion Pct. Defense — 20/1, 0.333
Blocked Kicks — 27/1, 2
Blocked Punts — 13/1, 1
Blocked Punts Allowed — 1/1, 0
Defensive TDs — 6/2, 4
Fewest Penalties — 21/1, 48
Fewest Penalties Per Game — 21/1, 4.80
Fewest Penalty Yards — 12/1, 371
Fewest Penalty Yards Per Game — 12/1, 37.10
Fumbles Lost — 6/1, 3
Fumbles Recovered — 35/4, 9
Passing Offense — 25/7, 281.7
Passing Yards Per Completion — 33/2, 233.2
Red Zone Defense — 9/2, 0.714
Red Zone Offense — 22/3, 0.894
Scoring Offense — 24/3, 35.7
Team Sacks — 19/4, 2.90
Team Tackles For Loss — 4/2, 8.0
Total Offense — 27/6, 464.8
Turnover Margin — 18/4, 0.70
Turnovers Gained — 39/3, 18
Turnovers Lost — 13/3, 11
Winning Percentage — 11/2, 0.800
National/Pac-12 Stat Rankings For This Week/Individual
All Purpose — D.J. Foster, 23/5, 139.90
Field Goal Percentage — Zane Gonzalez, 23/3, 0.818
Field Goals Per Game — Zane Gonzalez, 4/1, 2.00
Passing Efficiency — Mike Bercovici, 27/5, 145.8
Passing Yards Per Completion — Mike Bercovici, 30/2, 13.09
Receiving TDs — Jaelen Strong, 9/4, 9
Receiving Yards — Jaelen Strong, 14/4, 982
Receiving Yards Per Game — Jaelen Strong, 15/4, 98.2
Receptions Per Game – Jaelen Strong, 12/4, 7.1
Rush Yards Per Carry — D.J. Foster, 31/3, 5.63
Sacks — Marcus Hardison, 14/5, 0.80
Scoring — Zane Gonzalez, 10/1, 10.1
Solo Tackles — Damarious Randall, 4/3, 7.1
Solo Tackles — Jordan Simone, 8/4, 6.8
Yards Per Pass Attempt — Mike Bercovici, 24/5, 8.06
WE ARE THE YOUTH GONE WILD In a complete 180 from the strong veteran presence on the 2013 Sun Devil roster, the 2014 ASU squad will rely heavily on the youngsters to help lead the way as the season progresses. The Sun Devil two-deep depth chart currently features 25 freshmen and sophomores. That total ranks tied for 16th in the nation among Division I programs (Oklahoma State lead with 35 underclassmen on the two-deep). In the opener, true freshmen DJ Calhoun and Tashon Smallwood each got the nod as starters, becoming just the seventh and eighth Sun Devils in program history to start in the season opener as true frosh, joining John Jefferson, Terrell Suggs, Zach Miler, Will Sutton, D.J. Foster and Jaxon Hood on the exclusive list.
SENIOR DISCOUNT With such an abundance of underclassmen making their presence felt this season, it should come as no surprise that there is a bit of a shortage on seniors. In fact, ASU’s senior class this season sits at 11 members - a tally that ranks tied for the second fewest total among all Division I institutions behind only Temple’s eight total seniors. The quality of those seniors is impressive, however, with seven of them appearing on the two-deep depth chart and another participating on special teams. Even with the high percentage of total seniors seeing playing time, ASU’s seven seniors on the two-deep are tied for the third-lowest total in the nation behind only Temple (5) and Tennessee (6).
PUT ME IN, COACH ASU had nine first-time starters in the opener (six on defense, three on offense) and has had 22 total players make their first career Division I starts this season, which is tied for the second-highest total nationally this season.
STRIKE FIRST Arizona State has scored first in 28 of the 37 games with Todd Graham at the helm and is now 22-6 in the Graham era when getting on the scoreboard first. ASU has accomplished the feat in all but two games this season and is 6-1 when scoring first in 2014.
STRIKE FAST The quick-hitting offense has become a staple of the Todd Graham-coached Sun Devils, with 156 of ASU’s 212 offensive scoring drives under offensive coordinator Mike Norvell coming in three minutes or less (73.6 percent). Of ASU’s 57 scoring drives this season, 43 have come in under the three-minute mark - including three scoring drives clocking in at under a minute against USC. ASU’s high-powered offense resonates with the high number of quick scoring drives, scoring in three minutes or less on 62 of the team’s 89 scoring drives in 2013 (70.0 percent).
START STRONG...FINISH STRONG The Sun Devils have now outscored their opposition 374-176 in the first quarter under Todd Graham and have a whopping 96-37 scoring edge in the first quarter in games played this season despite not scoring in the quarter in three games this year. The Sun Devils are 18-1 under Graham when holding their opposition scoreless in the first quarter as they have done against five opponents this season (5-0 in those games). ASU owns an 96-37 scoring advantage in the first quarter this season (+59 points) - a margin that currently ranks as the the 10 largest in the nation as far as first quarter scoring goes. The Sun Devils are ranked 24th nationally against FBS teams in giving up just 4.4 points per first quarter this year while being 20th nationally with 8.8 points scored per first quarter on the season against FBS teams. ASU suffered its first loss under Todd Graham when leading at halftime against OSU, dropping to 23-1 in the category in three seasons under Graham.
TURNING THE TABLES Prior to the the last six games, the second quarter had been the bane of ASU’s season. Entering the USC contest, ASU had been outscored 49-41 in the second quarter of games on the season and was ranked in the bottom five nationally in points given up per second quarter. In the last six games, however, ASU has outscored its opposition 70-23 in the second quarter. After being ranked 120th nationally in second quarter points per game allowed prior to the USC game, ASU has moved up to 64th nationally in the category, allowing just 8.0 points per second quarter while being ranked 17th nationally in the frame at 11.6 points per second quarter per game. Prior to USC, ASU had allowed 62 total points in the first half of games to opponents (four game spann). It has held the last six opponents to 47 points in the first half (17 coming against USC and 14 against OSU). ASU held both Washington and Stanford scoreless in the first half - the first time the Sun Devils had accomplished the feat since 1993 when it held Cal and UCLA scoreless in the first half in consecutive games.
FOSTER THE PEOPLE D.J. Foster is the only returning player in the nation to amass 400+ receiving AND rushing yards last year and his 11 career receving touchdowns are the most among all active running backs. He also had a knack for getting to the first down marker and finished tied for second on the team with 53 first downs on 156 touches last season (34.0 percent). This season, Foster leads the team with 36 rushing first downs of ASU’s 86 total rushing first downs and is second on the team with 24 receiving first downs for a team-leading total of 60 first downs. Of his 202 touches this season (155 rush, 47 receiving), 65 have resulted in ‘money plays’ or plays resulting in a first down or touchdown (32.2 percent). Last season, Foster was second on the team in all-purpose yardage with 1,170 yards in 2013 (501 on the ground. 653 by air and 16 on KR). Foster made his mark in the receiving game in 2013 with 63 grabs for 653 yards (10.4 ypc), ranking second on the team in both categories. The 63 receptions set a new school record for catches by a running back.
GO D.J., THAT’S MY D.J. With 216 rushing yards against UNM, Foster became the first Sun Devil since to rush for over 200 yards in a game since Delvon Flowers rushed for 226 yards against Oregon State in 2001. He became just the third Sun Devil since 1994 to rush for over 200 yards in a game out of the 20 total 200-yard rushers in ASU history and his 216 yards are tied for the ninth-highest total in program history. Foster has racked up six 100+ yard rushing games in his last 13 games and has 10 rushing touchdowns in that span. He had zero 100+ yard rushing games in the 24 games prior with just four rushing touchdowns. Foster is the only active FBS players who has accounted for over 1,500 career rushing yards (1,866) AND over 1,500 career receiving yards (1,713). Additionally, Foster is also the only player in the FBS this season with over 800 rushing yards and over 500 receiving yards to date at 872 and 527, respectively.
RUN, D.J., RUN Foster is currently 23rd in the nation and fifth in the league in averaging 139.90 all-purpose yards per game. Foster has 36 “explosive” plays this season (22 12+ yard rushes, 14 16+ yard receptions) to lead the team. He already has four rushes of over 40 yards this season, notable as no Sun Devil had more than two in the entirety of last season. Only 59 total D-I teams have accounted for four or more rushes of over 40 yards this season. Since at least 2000, only Keegan Herring (2007) had four 40+ yard rushes in a season - a feat it took Foster just three games to tie. Foster also is currently tied for the nation’s ninth-longest active streak of games with a reception at 37 - or every game he has played in his ASU career - and is the only running back on the list.
A STRONG START Jaelen Strong wasted no time picking things up where he left off in the opener, hauling in 10 passes for 146 yards in just a single half of action. As far as openers go, only Mike Jones’ six catches for 162 yards in 2008 vs. NAU and Keith Poole’s nine catches for 162 yards in 1995 against UW were more prolific stat-wise in the past two decades. Last year, the junior college transfer led the team in receptions and yards with 75 grabs for 1,122 yards (5.4 rpg/80.1 ypg) and seven touchdowns in 2013. Strong recorded 10 catches for 202 yards and three touchdowns against USC. It was the ninth game a Sun Devil has collected more than 200 receiving yards and the first since Gerell Robinson had 241 yards on 13 catches in the 2011 Las Vegas Bowl. Strong’s 202 yards are the seventh most in school history. Strong now has 11 100-yard receiving games in his career following the Oregon State contest, trailing only Derek Hagan (18) and Shaun McDonald (12) for the most 100-yard receiving games in program history.
THE FORCE IS STRONG Just as impressive as Jaelen Strong’s statistics were, his ability to make catches when they count can’t be overlooked. Of Strong’s 71 receptions this season, 49 have gone for a first down - surpassing his total from last season - and nine have been touchdowns. ASU has 132 first downs by way of passing this season, meaning Strong has accounted for 37.1 percent of those. Last season, a total of 47 of his receptions went for first downs while he also drew 10 pass interference penalties against opposing defenses (six of which resulted in first downs, four were declined as they were all still caught for either a first down, touchdown or two-point conversion), thus playing a role in 53 of ASU’s 340 total first downs last season. Additionally, Strong was second on the team in explosive plays (rushes over 12 yards and receptions over 16 yards) with 29 last season. He has 19 such plays this season. Strong is currently 12th nationally with 7.1 receptions per game and his 98.2 receiving yards per game are 15th in the nation and fourth in the Pac-12. ASU wide receivers have only reached the 10 touchdown reception plateau nine times in history and Strong already has nine in the 2014 campaign and had his streak of five straight games with a TD reception snapped against OSU. It was the first time a Sun Devil had five consecutive games with a touchdown reception since Keith Poole had six straight in 1996. He now has 2,104 career receiving yards - the most of any ASU wide receiver in the first two years of their career - and is about 50 yards away from cracking ASU’s all-time top-eight in the category.
WINNING BY WAY OF TKO (TAYLOR KELLY OFFENSE) Following the Notre Dame contest (17-for-28, 224 yards, three TDs, one INT), Taylor Kelly now has 7,203 career passing yards, good for fourth in school history and closing in on Jake Plummer for third. His two TD passes against OSU also give him 71 for his career and made him just the third SUn Devil in history to eclipse the 70 touchdown mark. In 14 games in 2013, Kelly had 3,635 passing yards and averaged 259.6 yards per game, both ranked in the top five in school history. He is just the second Sun Devil to have multiple seasons with 3,000+ passing yards behind only Andrew Walter (3). Statistically, the team relies heavily on Kelly’s ball protection, as ASU is 9-9 with Kelly as the starter when he throws an interception, compared to a 15-1 record when he doesn’t - the lone loss coming in the Pac-12 Championship game last season against Stanford. Kelly finished last season ranked 13th nationally in points responsible for with 222 (28 passing TDs, nine rushing), breaking the previous school record in the category of 198 previously set by Mike Pagel in 1981. Kelly is responsible for 84 touchdowns in his career (71 passing, 13 rushing) - the second-highest total among all ASU quarterbacks and just one away from Andrew Walter’s school record.
HE’S GOT LEGS, AND HE KNOWS HOW TO USE THEM Taylor Kelly has done plenty to get it done through the air, but its his aptitude in the running game that has made him as potent a quarterback. Kelly has rushed 65 times for 263 yards (4.0 ypc) with three TDs this season. His ability to extend plays has been exceptional from the start, as demonstrated by his 516 net rushing yards on 134 attempts in 2012 - a mark skewed by the fact that sacks count against a quarterback’s rushing totals. If you take out sacks, Kelly would have led the team in yardage and yards per carry with 690 net rushing yards in 2012 on 103 carries (6.7 ypc). If you take sacks out this season, Kelly has 48 rushes for 367 yards (7.6 ypc). Sacks aside in 2013, Kelly had 826 rushing yards on 134 attempts (6.2 ypc) and was on fire in the final nine games with nine rushing touchdowns while rushing for 599 yards (sacks excluded) on 106 carries (5.7 yards per rush). Those nine touchdowns were notable as Kelly had just one rushing touchdown in 18 games prior to the season-ending streak. Kelly has 1,411 rushing yards in his career - breaking the school’s career record by a quarterback, previously owned by Mark Malone (1,390 from 1977-79). Additionally, Kelly has now punted 21 times in his career, with 16 of those being downed inside of the 20-yard line and going six of seven on his attempts this season in the category.
DON’T CROSS THAT LINE ASU prides itself on its aggressive defense under Todd Graham and tackles for loss and no-yardage plays play a big role in that. Against Oregon State, ASU had seven tackles for loss, five stops at the line of scrimmage and forced 14 incomplete passes for a total of 26 plays that did not earn a single yard out of the 70 total plays run by the Ute offense (37.1 percent). In 2013, the ASU defense had 101 tackles for loss and held offenses to 353 plays (out of 942) that did not earn positive yardage (37.4 percent). In 2012, ASU forced 117 tackles for a loss of 497 total yards in 2012 - a 9.00 TFL per game mark that led the nation. In three seasons under Graham, ASU has forced 941 plays that have not resulted in positive yardage out of 2,624 total plays (35.9 percent). ASU is currently fourth nationally and second in the conference at 8.0 tackles for loss per game.
BETTER SUITED FOR HANDKERCHIEFS The Sun Devils don’t give referees much reason to reach for their pockets under Todd Graham. In each of his eight seasons as a head coach, Graham’s teams have been consistently ranked among in the top half of the least penalized teams in the country in both yards and penalties per game. The Sun Devils have just 48 penalties for 371 yards this season, ranked 21st in fewest penalities and 12th in fewest penalty yards in D-I this season. In 2013, the Sun Devils finished eighth in fewest penalties per game (4.00) and seventh in fewest penalty yards per game (31.4).
MORE ON PENALTIES Todd Graham has had a knack for having some of the most disciplined teams in the nation when it comes to penalty yards. Nineteen of ASU’s 22 least penalized games since 2006 have come under Todd Graham. Since Todd Graham arrived at Arizona State, the Sun Devils have had just 159 penalties in 37 games (4.3 penalties per game). The Sun Devils were penalized just twice for nine yards against Stanford.
LIGHT ‘EM UP ASU racked up 55 points against Notre Dame, marking the 11th time since Todd Graham and Mike Norvell arrived in Tempe that the team accomplished the feat. To put that in perspective, ASU eclipsed 50 points 10 times total in the previous 10 years before the current coaching regime (2001-11). Putting points on the scoreboard won’t typically be a problem with Norvell heading the offense, as ASU eclipsed 50 points six times in games in 2013, breaking the school record held by the 1973 team. ASU went 86 games without scoring 60 from 2005-2011. Under Coach Graham it has scored 60 three times (63 NAU, 62 Navy, 62 USC). The Sun Devils finished 10th nationally last at 39.7 points per game and scored 556 total points, just six points behind the 1972 school record. ASU is currently 24th nationally in scoring offense, averaging 35.7 points per game - a number that has held strong despite playing the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 6th and 7th ranked defenses in the conference (ASU is fifth) in six of the last seven games. ASU’s 44.7 points per game in non-conference games since 2012 is the sixth-highest average in the FBS in that time.
MAKE ‘EM PAY ASU isn’t in the habit of not putting points on the board following takeaways. The Sun Devils took advantage of four takeaways against Notre Dame to the tune of 28 points and have outscored the opposition 90-44 in the category this year. The 90 points currently rank 11th nationally for most points scored off turnovers in the FBS this season. In 2013, ASU outscored its opponents 146-42 on points off turnovers while posting a +15 takeaway number. ASU put points on the board following 75.8 percent of opponent turnovers (25-of-33) compared to just the 33.3 (6-of-18) percent clip ASU opponents scored off of Sun Devil turnovers. ASU had 18 touchdowns in 2013 on 33 opponent turnovers, aided by five interception returns for touchdowns. Out of 18 turnovers forced this season, ASU has turned 13 of those into touchdowns (72.2 percent). In three years under Todd Graham, ASU has outscored opponents 365-144 in points off takeaways.
TURNOVER FACTORY The Sun Devils streak of 29 consecutive games forcing a turnover game to a hault against Weber State, bringing an end to what was the second-longest active streak in the nation. ASU has rebounded with 18 since that game. Last season, ASU led the Pac-12 with 33 takeaways in 2013, finishing fifth nationally. The team was seventh nationally with a 1.1 turnover margin. The squad had forced 81 turnovers under Todd Graham in the last three seasons, which is the fifth-highest total in the country in that span. ASU now has 11 interception returns for touchdowns under Graham, compared to posting just four total in the previous three seasons prior to 2012. The total currently leads the nation in for the most interception returns for touchdown in that span and ASU has added two fumble returns in the span as well for a NCAA leading total of 13 defensive touchdowns in the last three seasons.
GOLD ZONE One area that saw improvement last season for the Sun Devils was red zone offense, with ASU putting points on the board 91.3 percent of the time against FBS opponents in 2013, finishing sixth nationally in the category, as per TeamRankings.com. ASU has picked up where it left off so far this season, scoring on 42 of its 47 trips inside the red zone this season (89.3 percent), ranked 22nd in the nation in conversion percentage and scoring a touchdown 26 times in that streak. In 2012, ASU scored on just 76.1 percent of their drives inside the 20 and ranked a lowly 93rd in the nation against FBS opponents. ASU allowed its FBS opponents to score 88.9 percent of the time in 2013 when entering the red zone (ranked 106th nationally). However, ASU has held its opponents to 25 scores in 35 red zone appearances this season (71.4 percent) - good for 9th nationally - improving dramatically in the rankings thus far this season while allowing just 17 touchdowns on those trips, a 48.6 percent ratio that ranks 16th nationally.
WINNING THE BATTLE FOR FIELD POSITION The Sun Devils are largely exceptional when it comes to starting field position and continue to resonate a point Todd Graham makes about being successful in the field position battle to win games. Under Todd Graham, ASU has had an average starting yard line of its own 35.3 in 26 victories compared to a starting yard line of the 25.4 for their opponents in such contests. ASU has allowed just seven drives to start inside its own territory thus far this season, trailing only Arizona’s three such drives as far as Pac-12 teams go. Conversely, opponents have an average starting field position of their own 32.8 yard line compared to ASU starting at its own 28.5 in ASU’s 11 losses under Graham. in 2012, ASU posted an average starting spot of its own 33-yard line that ranked 10th in the nation, according to the folks at Football Outsiders (www.footballoutsiders.com) and in 2013, the team ranked 13th nationally (average starting yard line: 33.3). The Sun Devils also held their opponents to an average starting line of their own 28-yard-line, a total that ranked 24th nationally in 2012, though the squad dropped a bit to 32nd last season (average opp. starting yardline: 28.2). ASU had 10 scoring drives of 80 yards or longer in 2013, a notable feat as ASU had six such drives in the entirety of the 2012 season. ASU has had five such drives this season, including a school-record matching 99-yard drive against Weber State that was ASU’s longest drive since a 99-yard drive in 2008 against Northern Arizona.
CLOSING THINGS OUT ASU has outscored other teams 344-231 in the fourth quarter and overtime under Todd Graham. ASU finished 10th in the nation in points per fourth quarter in 2013 against FBS opposition (9.9) after finishing the 2012 season wtih 9.3 points per fourth quarter, which was good for eighth nationally. ASU’s 16.8 second-half points per game against FBS squads in 2013 was 24th nationally. The Sun Devils are currently 26th nationally against FBS teams with 9.2 points per fourth quarter this season.
USE THEM WISELY Todd Graham doesn’t hesitate to use his alotted three timeouts per half when his squad is on defense, a coaching technique that has plenty of detractors. A closer look at the result of the play following those timeouts might quiet some, however. Since the start of the 2012 season, ASU has used 46 timeouts on defense in third down situations, forcing fourth down or a turnover on the ensuing play on 32 of those occassions (69.6 percent).
GOLD RUSH The Sun Devils rushing offense has been off to a solid start this season, averaging 183.1 yards per game thus far - the 51st-highest total in the nation. ASU put up 423 yards on the ground against UNM for its first 400+ yard rushing game since logging 405 against Oregon in 1997. The Sun Devils already have seven rushing plays over 40 yards this season and are 16th nationally in the category, notable as the squad had just five total 40+ yard rushes in the entirety of last season. ASU finished the 2012 season averaging 205.5 yards per game on the ground, which was the second-best mark in the past 25 seasons (since 1988). Only the 234.1 yards per game put up by the 1996 Sun Devils were better. in 2013, the team found its running legs by the end, averaging 191.4 yards per game and ranked 40th nationally. Even after ASU’s slow start to the season in the category, the squad still posted the fourth-highest single season rushing mark of the last 25 seasons.
ROAD WARRIORS Winning away from home in college football is difficult, especially in conference games. Under Coach Todd Graham, ASU is beginning to assemble a pretty good resume of road victories. The Sun Devils are winners of seven of the last eight road contests. ASU has 11 road wins in the past 17 road games, including nine Pac-12 Conference road wins in the past 13 Pac-12 road games. Graham has nine Pac-12 road victories under his belt already, tied for the second-most among all ASU coaches since 1980 behind only Bruce Snyder’s 18 from 1992-2000. Graham is 9-4 in Pac-12 road games at ASU, notable as the Devils were 5-13 in four seasons prior on the road in the conference. Prior to the UNM game this year, ASU had not won a non-conference road-game since defeating a then non-conference Colorado team in Boulder, 21-3, in 2006. ASU also had not won its first road game of the season since 2007 - a 41-3 rout over Stanford in Palo Alto. In four seasons prior to Todd Graham, ASU was 5-13 in conference road games while Graham has led the squad to a 7-3 record in such games in his three seasons at the helm. Additionally, in three seasons at the helm, Graham has won three regular season games in the state of California - as many as it had won in the state in the previous decade. All three were also conference wins, as many as ASU had won in California in the past 13 seasons.
EXPLOSIVE You’d be hard-pressed to listen to a Todd Graham press conference that didn’t involve the word “explosive” at some point as the head coach makes no attempt to hide the fact that that’s what he wants his team to be. The Sun Devils have a classification of “explosive plays” that equal a run of 12 or more yards or a passing play of 16 or more yards. ASU has 116 explosive plays (64 passing, 52 rushing) this season. ASU finished with 142 such plays in 2013 (82 passing, 60 rushing) and 165 (90 passing, 75 rushing) in 2012. The Sun Devils finished the season tied for seventh in the nation in plays longer than 20 yards in 2013 with 86 after having 72 in 2012, which was good for 19th in the country in the category. ASU is currently 21st nationally with 15 plays over 40 yards this season and 17th nationally in plays of 20 or more yards with 58. There’s always two sides to every tale, however, and the Sun Devil defense has also been prone to the big play this season, giving up 16 plays of over 40 yards this season - ranked 109th nationally in that regard.
PROTECT THIS HOUSE Following the victory over Notre Dame, ASU is now 15-4 at Sun Devil Stadium under Todd Graham. With the loss to Stanford in the Pac-12 Championship, ASU finished last season with a 7-1 record at Sun Devil Stadium. The 2013 season marked just the second time ASU has gone undefeated at home in the regular season in the past 16 seasons (since 1997), also going 6-0 in 2004. ASU also had a perfect record at home in ‘59, ‘64, ‘68, ‘70, ‘71, ‘73, ‘75, ‘81 and ‘96. In 18 regular season home games under Todd Graham, the Sun Devils have averaged 42.8 points per game at home. The Utah game showed ASU could win ugly at home as well since prior to the 19-16 victory, the lowest score the Devils had recorded in a regular season home game under Graham was 21 against Oregon in 2012 and ASU had scored 20 or more in 24 consecutive regular season home games, dating back to 2010, prior to the Utah game. ASU’s 49.1 points per game at home in 2013 were sixth in the nation, just shy of the school record for scoring offense at home, which was 49.2 points set by the 1972 team. The Sun Devils are 272-99-3 (.731) all-time at Sun Devil Stadium since 1958, the 22nd-highest active winning percentage in a stadium among all FBS schools.
RUN THE CLOCK One of the biggest areas of improvement for the Sun Devils in 2013 was the clock management side of things. In 2012, ASU ranked seventh in the Pac-12 and 80th nationally in time of possession, holding the ball an average of 29:15 per game. In 2013, ASU averaged 30:21 minutes of possession time per game - a total that ranked fourth in the conference and 51st nationally. The team had 13 scoring drives over four minutes in 2013, compared to just three in 2012. In 2014, ASU is currently averaging 28:49 minutes of possession per game. “So, ASU’s offense scores fast and thus time of possession is irrelevent,” you say? Not so fast, my friend. ASU is 14-3 when leading in time of possession under Todd Graham compared to a 12-8 record when trailing in the time of possession category, though three of those victories have come this season.
IN-ZANE IN THE MEMBRANE Zane Gonzalez is averaging 10.1 points per game thus far this season, ranked 10th nationally overall and second among kickers and first in the Pac-12. His 81.8 percent field goal percentage on 18-of-22 kicking is currently 23rd nationally. Gonzalez finished the 2013 season hitting 25 of 30 field goals (83.3 percent) and booted 63 of 65 extra points. Gonzalez finished No. 10 in the nation in scoring at 9.9 points per game and led the Pac-12 kick scoring category by a large margin. The next kicker on the list was Stanford’s Jordan Williamson at 8.8. His 138 points by kick scoring were No. 1 in the Pac-12, far ahead of No. 2 Travis Coons of Colorado (107 points). Gonzalez was No. 1 in the Pac-12 in field goals at 1.7 per game. Gonzalez led the Pac-12 with 25 field goals, seven ahead of Williamson’s 18 field goals this season. Gonzalez was named one of 20 semifinalists for the Lou Groza Award, given annually to the nation’s top kicker.
FG-ONZAL-EZ Gonzalez finished with 138 points last season, breaking the long-standing school record in the category that was previous held by Wilford White’s 136 in 1950. Gonzalez’s 138 points demolished the previous scoring record by an ASU kicker that was 118, set by Thomas Weber (2007) and Mike Barth (2002). With 25 field goals last season, Gonzalez tied the NCAA freshman record of 25 that was set by UCLA’s Kai Forbath in 2007 (25-30) and made more field goals than any other player in the FBS in the process and four more than any other freshman in the nation. Gonzalez is currently the NCAA active D-I leader list in field goals made per game for his career at 1.87 and is third on the active career leader list at 10.0 points per game. He matched a career high with four field goals against Stanford and earned the Lou Groza Place Kicker Star of the Week honor for the performance. He kicked his first game-winning field goal against Utah.
HAACK THIS WAY ASU punter Matt Haack (pronounced ‘hawk’) is having perhaps the single most impressive turnaround on the team from one season to the next this year. The sophomore punter averaged just 38.2 yards per punt last year on an ASU squad that ranked near the bottom of the FBS in the category. Haack has bumped that average to 42.1 this season with 13 of his 42 punts downed inside the 20 and a new career long of 64 with a monster game against Colorado that saw him average 48.1 yards on seven punts - the third highest single game average for an ASU punter under Todd Graham and the highest since 2012. Haack’s 42.1 yard average is currently ranked 45th nationally and fifth in the Pac-12.
MAKE SURE THE SAFETY IS ON ASU’s starting safeties Jordan Simone and Damarious Randall have been doing their part as the last line of defense for the Sun Devils. The duo leads the team in tackles with 85 and 84 tackles, respectively. Their combined 169 tackles this season are 24.5 percent of the total tackles made by the Sun Devils this season. Randall has done much of the work on his own, accounting for 69 solo tackles on his 84 total tackles - a 7.1 solo tackle per game average that currently is fourth in the country while Simone isn’t far behind in eighth with 6.8 solo tackles per game. Simone’s 8.5 tackles per game are 67th nationally while the two have combined for 12.0 tackles for loss this season - showing that not all their tackles are necessarily coming as that last line of defense for the Sun Devils. Randall lit up the stat sheet against Stanford, logging seven tackles, a sack, a fumble forced, a fumble recovered and a pass breakup to earn Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week honors.
SIMONE SAYS Safety Jordan Simone had the game of a lifetime against USC, logging a team-leading 20 tackles. It was the most tackles for a Sun Devil player in a game since Mark Tingstad also had 20 against Arizona in 1988. Simone is currently leading the team with 85 tackles this season and has reached double digit tackles four times. Against Colorado, he had his first career interception and fumble forced and also had a key fourth down goalline stop in the game to essentially count for three Buffalo turnovers.
TODD-BITS OF INFO Over his four seasons prior to coming to ASU -- one at Pittsburgh and three at Tulsa -- Todd Graham’s teams rushed the ball on at least 53.4 percent of their total plays. The 2012 Sun Devils rushed the ball on 59.1 percent of their total plays followed by a 55.2 percent tally in 2013. In 2011, ASU rushed just 44.5 percent of the time. Over the past eight seasons at Pitt, Tulsa, Rice and now ASU, only one Graham-coached team has ranked outside the top 50 nationally in sacks. The Sun Devils averaged 4.0 sacks per game in 2012, the second-best mark in the nation, and then 2.9 in 2013 to finish 17th nationally in the category. In eight seasons, Graham is 25-22 in true road games. ASU was 3-3 in such games in 2012 and 3-2 in road games in 2013. In the previous four seasons prior to Graham’s arrival, ASU was 5-16. In seven of the past eight years, Graham’s teams have ranked 39th or better nationally in fewest penalty yards per game. The Sun Devils averaged only 34.92 penalty yards per game in 2012, which was good for eighth in the nation, and bettered that in 2013 at just 31.36 penalty yards per game (seventh nationally).
HANG ON TO YOUR SEATS ASU played in four games in 2013 decided by seven points or less, going 3-1 in those contests. The total is notable as ASU was just 4-13 in the previous four seasons in games decided by less than a touchdown. ASU is 2-0 this season in games decides by less than a touchdown following the 19-16 victory over Utah. ASU has now gone 6-1 in games decided by a touchdown or less since the 2012 Arizona comeback in Tucson. To put that in perspective, ASU had gone 6-16 in such games since the 2007 season.
PLAYING IT CLOSE TO THE CHEST Todd Graham stresses ball security perhaps more than any other factor when it comes to the keys to winning any game. In 2014, the Sun Devils have already had four games where it has not turned the ball over and have gone 4-0 in those contests. That number is notable because in the previous two seasons, ASU had just five combined games where it did not turn the ball over. ASU is now 8-1 under Todd Graham in games where it does not have a turnover.
TODD’S WINNING WAYS At one point ranked 11th in the AP Poll, Todd Graham achieved his highest ranking as a head coach in his career in 2013. The team also peaked at 11th in the BCS standings, also a new high for Graham. Graham has won 26 games in his first three seasons at Arizona State. He has become the only ASU head coach to reach bowl eligibility in each of his first three seasons at the school outside of John Cooper. He has has led ASU to three consecutive eight win seasons for the first time since 1971-73. It took Frank Kush until the third game of his third season to reach the 20-win plateau whereas it took Graham until the second game of his third season. Of all the coaching hires made prior to the 2012 season, Graham has posted the fourth-best record at 26-11, ranking behind only Urban Meyer (33-3), Kevin Sumlin (27-10) and Jim Mora (27-10) in the last three seasons.
WORK THAT, BERC THAT When it was announced that starting quarterback Taylor Kelly would miss time to injury, ASU fans everywhere wondered if Mike Bercovici would be able to appropriately run the offense. All he did in his first two career starts to settle that qualm is pass for 998 yards with eight touchdowns and two interceptions. The 998 yards were a Pac-12 record for most yards in consecutive games for about an hour before WSU’s Connor Halliday broke the mark and preliminary research has shown that that tally ranks as the most passing yards in the first two starts of a players career in Division I history. Bercovici threw for five touchdowns against USC, a milestone that no player in history has ever accomplished against the Trojans. Bercovici’s passing totals of 510 and 488 yards in his two starts are the 11th and 13th-highest single game totals in Division I this season. Bercovici also led the Sun Devils to their first victory over Stanford since 2008 and is currently 32nd nationally and sixth in the Pac-12 with a quarterback efficiency rating of 147.9 on the season. After throwing an interception to end the first half against UCLA, Bercovici has thrown 118 consecutive passes without an interception. The ASU school record in 146 by Rudy Carpenter in 2005.
FEELS LIKE THE FIRST TIME Or maybe it didn’t for ASU quarterback Mike Bercovici, who made his first career start against UCLA. While the redshirt junior didn’t come away from the win, he did set school records for completions and attempts in going 42-for-68 with 488 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. The 488 passing yards were the fifth most by a Sun Devil in program history and easily the most by a Sun Devil making his first career start, topping Rudy Carpenter’s previous mark of 401 yards in 2005. It was also the most yards by a Sun Devil quarterback since Andrew Walter tossed for 559 against No. 6 Oregon in 2002. Since Ryan Kealy’s first start in 1997, the 15 quarterbacks making their first career starts in the post-Plummer era are now 9-6, though only four of those victories came against power conference teams.
TAKING DOWN THE TOP ASU was 3-2 last season against team’s ranked in the AP Top-25 Poll. ASU defeated No. 20 Wisconsin, No. 20 Washington and No. 14 UCLA in 2013 while losing to Stanford twice. ASU’s three victories were the most since 1997 when the team went 3-1 against teams ranked in the AP poll. ASU’s 2014 schedule put the team on a collision course with three consecutive AP Top-25 teams (UCLA, USC, Stanford), a streak that ASU had faced only twice in program history. The last that happened was 2001, where ASU went 0-3 against No. 13 Washington, No. 8 Oregon and No. 11 Washington State. In 1994, ASU defeated No. 20 BYU in between losses to No. 23 Washington State and No. 21 Oregon. ASU came out of the gauntlet with a 2-1 record with back-to-back victories over No. 16 USC and No. 23 Stanford. It was the first time ASU has won back-to-back games over ranked opponents since 1997, when it took down No. 25 Stanford on Oct. 18 before defeating No. 10 Washington State on Nov. 1 following a bye week. The Sun Devils have gone 7-3 in the last 10 games against ranked teams.
SLAYING DRAGONS In three seasons at the helm, Todd Graham is 7-6 against AP-ranked opponents and the team is 4-1 in such teams in 2014. He has more than doubled Dennis Erickson (3) and Dirk Koetter (2) during their tenures. In the previous 14 seasons, ASU was 5-40 in games against teams ranked in the AP poll. Other notable victories include the come-from-behind victory over Arizona in 2012, winning a game in the Coliseum this season for the first time since 1999 and defeating USC in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1996-97 and ending a four-game losing streak to Stanford.
THEY SEE ME ROLLIN’ While the score may not have reflected things, the UCLA game showed that the Sun Devil offense is still rolling on all cylinders even without signal-caller Taylor Kelly. ASU racked up 626 yards of total offense while setting school records for plays run (105) and first downs (38). The previous record for plays was 101, accomplished against Wyoming in 1977 and Utah in 1972 while the previous first down mark was 37 against Cal in 1981. After putting up a 500-spot on USC, the Sun Devils are currently averaging 464.8 yards of total offense per game, a total good for 27th nationally and sixth in the Pac-12.
SCHOLAR-BALLERS The Sun Devils have had a recent history of putting numerous student-athletes on the field that have already earned their degrees and the 2014 roster is no different. ASU will feature eight players this season that have earned their undergraduate degrees and will be pursuing graduate coursework. That total ranks in a tie for 13th nationally and is tops amoung Pac-12 institutions. Additionally. ASU has 40 student-athletes on its roster that are members of Sun Devil Athletics’ Scholar-Baller Program, which honors athletes who maintain over a 3.00 GPA in the classroom. The Sun Devils are also the only team in the nation to have two players tabbed as Senior CLASS Award candidates in Taylor Kelly and Jamil Douglas.