THE GAME - The No. 15/16 Arizona State University Sun Devil football program will host its 2015 home opener on Saturday, Sept. 12 against the Cal Poly Mustangs. The game is scheduled for an 8 p.m. PT kickoff and will be broadcast live from Sun Devil Stadium on the Pac-12 Networks. It will be the first game featuring a renovated south end zone area, representing the first phase of the three-year reinvention project taking place at Sun Devil Stadium.
THE MUSTANGS - Cal Poly is coming off a huge upset over currently eighth-ranked Montana of the FCS, a last second field goal boosting the Mustangs to a No. 20 ranking in this week’s FCS Coaches Poll. ASU leads the all-time series, 3-0, but the two teams have not played since 1947. A team that loves to run the football, Cal Poly had two 1,000-yard rushers a year ago and returns one of them this season in quarterback Chris Brown. The Mustangs rushed for 330 yards against Montana, paced by Brown’s 130 yards. Running a triple option attack, The Mustangs will be the first of back-to-back contests against teams that run that offense with ASU taking on New Mexico the following week.
THE BIG SKY - ASU is 36-14-4 all-time against the Big Sky with all 14 losses coming to Northern Arizona prior to 1938. The Devils are 18-0 against the conference since 1947.
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AN ASU VICTORY WOULD...
- Improve ASU’s home opener win streak to 17 consecutive games, a run that is good for the sixth-longest streak in the country.
- Improve ASU to 19-0 over the Big Sky Conference since 1947.
- Improve ASU to 4-0 over Cal Poly in the series history.
- Keep alive ASU’s run of not having back-to-back regular season losses since losing four straight in October/November in 2012.
- Improve ASU to 274-93-3 (.732) all-time in games played at Sun Devil Stadium, the 14th-best record among all programs that have been at their home stadiums for at least 50 years.
- Improve ASU to 17-4 at Sun Devil Stadium under Todd Graham.
#10THINGS (Twitter-Friendly Notes)
1. D.J. Foster has accounted for at least one reception in each of the 41 games he has played at ASU, the longest active streak in FBS.
2. D.J. Foster (@ASTATE_8) is currently second in the nation among active players with 4,026 all-purpose yards in his career.
3. @FootballASU has won 16 consecutive home openers, good for the sixth-longest active streak in the nation.
4. @CoachGrahamASU is just the second coach in ASU history have back-to-back 10-win seasons and has 5 in first 9 seasons as head coach.
5. Under @CoachGrahamASU, ASU has forced 1,048 plays that have not resulted in positive yardage out of 2,941 total plays (35.6 percent).
6. In three years under Todd Graham, ASU has outscored opponents 424-161 in points off takeaways and 142-62 in the 2014 season.
7. The Sun Devils are 16-4 at Sun Devil Stadium under Todd Graham and 274-93-3 all-time at the stadium.
8. @FootballASU is one of just 12 FBS programs in the country to boast 10-win seasons during both the 2013 and 2014 campaigns.
9. With his four-yard touchdown reception against A&M, Kody Kohl now has a touchdown in four of his last five games dating back to last season.
10. Christian Sam and Armand Perry tied for the team lead with 11 tackles against A&M, both setting career highs in the process.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
- Wide reciever D.J. Foster extended his streak of at least one reception to 41 games, the longest active streak in FBS, with a 7-yard catch on the Devils’ third play of the game. He matches Derek Hagan for second on ASU’s all-time list of consecutive games with a reception and trails only John Jefferson’s school record of 44.
- With six receptions, Foster now has 169 in his career, and stands alone in third all-time on ASU’s career list. He trails John Jefferson (188) for second and the school record is 258 by Derek Hagan.
- ASU has won 16 consecutive home openers entering the week, a mark that is tied for the sixth-longest active streak in the nation.
- Eight Sun Devils made their first career appearances for ASU against Texas A&M: freshmen defensive lineman JoJo Wicker and cornerback Kareem Orr, redshirt senior wide receiver Devin Lucien, junior running back De’Chavon Hayes, redshirt freshman defensive back Dasmond Tautalatasi, junior wide receiver Tim White, junior tight end Raymond Epps, and redshirt freshman safety Coltin Gerhart.
- With tight end Kody Kohl’s touchdown reception against A&M, he has a touchdown reception in four of his last five games.
STRIKE FIRST
- Arizona State has scored first in 29 of the 41 games with Todd Graham at the helm and is 23-6 in the Graham era when getting on the scoreboard first.
- ASU accomplished the feat in all but four games in 2014 and was 7-1 when scoring first on the year.
STRIKE FAST
- 170 of ASU’s 232 offensive scoring drives under offensive coordinator Mike Norvell have come in three minutes or less (73.3 percent).
- Of ASU’s three scoring drives in the opener, two of those came under three minutes.
GETTING STARTED ON THE RIGHT FOOT
- The Sun Devils have outscored their opposition 391-207 in the first quarter under Todd Graham.
- The Sun Devils are 18-1 under Graham when holding their opposition scoreless in the first quarter.
- The Sun Devils finished 36th nationally against FBS teams in giving up just 5.1 points per first quarter in 2014 while being 31st with 8.0 points scored per first quarter.
- ASU has posted an impressive 24-1 overall record in three seasons under Graham when leading at halftime.
FOSTER THE PEOPLE
- Foster enow has the seventh-most receptions of all active FBS players with 169 and his 11 career receiving TDs were most among all active FBS running backs prior to his position switch.
- Foster surpassed 4,000 career all-purpose yards on a nine-yard reception in the second quarter against A&M, and now has 4,026 career all-purpose yards (2,088 rushing, 1,922 receiving, 16 return)
- He is currently ranked second among active FBS players in career all-purpose yards (4,026), despite having just 16 career return yards - a category that is the bread and butter among many leaders in the all-purpose category.
- With 62 receptions in 2014, Foster became just the third player in program history to log 60 or more receptions in consecutive seasons with Jaelen Strong and Derek Hagan being the others.
GO D.J., THAT'S MY D.J.
- Foster is the only active FBS players who has accounted for over 2,000 career rushing yards (2,088) AND over 1,500 career receiving yards (1,922).
- With 78 more receiving yards, Foster will become just the fourth player in NCAA history to reach 2,000+ rushing AND receiving yards, joining Stanford Darrin Nelson, Tulane’s Mewelde Moore and Texas Tech’s Taurean Henderson. Should he reach 2,500 yards in both categories, he would be the first Division I player to accomplish the fear.
- Foster has the nation’s longest active streak of games with a reception at 41 and needs just four more games to break John Jefferson’s long-standing school record of 44 set between 1974-77.
DON'T CROSS THAT LINE
- ASU forced 30 plays that resulted in zero positive yardage against Texas A&M (19 incomplete passes, 8 tackles for loss, 3 plays of no gain) of 80 total plays (37.5 percent).
- Under Graham, ASU has forced 1,048 plays that have not resulted in positive yardage out of 2,941 total plays (35.6 percent).
SERIOUSLY, DON'T CROSS IT
- With eight tackles for loss against Texas A&M, ASU posted the 27th highest total among FBS teams during the opening weekend of action.
- ASU’s three sacks in the contest were good for the third highest total in the country as well.
- Entering the season, ASU was second in the Pac-12 and second in the nation (Stanford) with an average of 7.93 TFL per game under Graham and one of four teams in the nation with more than 300 total tackles for loss (Clemson, Stanford, Virginia Tech). They rank third in that time with 3.25 sacks per game (Stanford/Utah).
LIGHT 'EM UP
- ASU has scored 50 or more points 12 times since Todd Graham and Mike Norvell arrived in Tempe.
- To put that in perspective, ASU eclipsed 50 points 10 times total in the previous 10 years before the current coaching regime (2001-11).
- ASU went 86 games without scoring 60 from 2005-2011. Under Coach Graham it has scored 60 or more three times (63 NAU, 62 Navy, 62 USC).
- The Sun Devils finished 10th nationally in 2013 at 39.7 points per game and scored 556 total points, just six points behind the 1972 school record.
- ASU finished 2014 ranked 16th nationally in scoring offense, averaging 36.9 points per game.
- ASU’s 41.9 points per game in non-conference games since 2012 is the 11th-highest average in the FBS in that time.
- Entering the season, ASU ranks second in the Pac-12 and tied for seventh in the nation at 38.38 points per game (Baylor, Oregon, Marshall, Ohio State, Florida State, Texas A&M, tied with Georgia) in the Graham era.
- ASU ranks second in the Pac-12 and 10th in the nation with 1,535 total points (Oregon, Baylor, Ohio State, Florida State, Marshall, Texas A&M, Alabama, Georgia, Northern Illinois) in that time.
MAKE 'EM PAY
- Under Todd Graham, ASU has outscored opponents 424-161 in points off takeaways and holds a 7-3 advantage this season.
- The Sun Devils outscored the opposition 142-62 in points off turnovers in 2014, ranked fourth nationally behind only Louisiana Tech’s 172, Nevada’s 170 and Oregon’s 164.
- ASU scored 22 times following 27 total takeaways (81.5 percent) and scored touchdowns on 19 of those occasions (70.4).
- In 2013, ASU outscored its opponents 146-42 on points off turnovers while posting a +15 takeaway number, putting 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.
A HAND IN THE COOKIE JAR
- ASU finished with 27 takeaways in 2014 (2.1 per game) after having a streak of 29 consecutive games forcing a turnover come to an end in the season opener. The total was good for 24th nationally and third among Pac-12 schools.
- ASU led the Pac-12 with 33 takeaways in 2013, finishing fifth nationally. The team was seventh nationally with a 1.1 turnover margin that season.
- The Sun Devils have forced 93 turnovers under Todd Graham in the past four seasons, which is tied for the third-highest total in the country in that span (Oregon, Boise State)
- ASU 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 three fumble returns in the span as well for a NCAA-leading total of 14 defensive touchdowns in the last four seasons.
TURNOVER FACTORY
- Entering the season, ASU ranked second in the Pac-12 and second in the nation with a .88 average turnover margin per game (Oregon) since Graham took over the helm and was second in the Pac-12 and second in the nation with a plus-35 total turnover margin (Oregon).
- Also entering year, ASU was first in the Pac-12 and tied for second in the nation with an average of 1.4 interceptions per game (TCU, tied with Boise State) since 2012 and is first in the Pac-12 and tied for second in the nation with 56 total interceptions (TCU, tied with Boise State).
GOLD ZONE
- The Sun Devils scored on all three trips to the red zone against Texas A&M.
- In 2014, ASU scored on 58 of its 64 trips inside the red zone (90.6 percent), ranked 12th in the nation in conversion percentage. In 2013, ASU points on the board 91.3 percent of the time in the red zone against FBS opponents in 2013, finishing sixth nationally in the category.
- 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.
- In 2013 ASU allowed its FBS opponents to score 88.9 percent of the time when entering the red zone (ranked 106th nationally). In 2014, however, ASU held its opponents to 35 scores in 46 red zone appearances (76.1 percent) - good for 23rd nationally.
- The team held Texas A&M to 4-of-5 on red zone conversion attempts in the opener.
WINNING THE BATTLE FOR FIELD POSITION
- Under Todd Graham, ASU has had an average starting yard line of its own 35.5 in 28 victories compared to a starting yard line of the 25.6 for their opponents in such contests.
- ASU allowed just 11 drives to start inside its own territory in 2014, tied with Arizona for the fewest as far Pac-12 teams went.
- Conversely, opponents have an average starting field position of their own 32.2 yard line compared to ASU starting at its own 28.8 in ASU’s 13 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). With a 32.6 average starting spot in 2014, ASU was 13th nationally.
- 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 and was 32nd in 2013 (average opp. starting yardline: 28.2). ASU jumped to 11th nationally in 2014, forcing their opponents to an average field position of their own 26.9 yard line.
SEAL THE DEAL
- ASU has outscored other teams 391-280 in the fourth quarter and overtime under Todd Graham.
- The Sun Devils finished sixth nationally against FBS teams with 10.6 points per fourth quarter in 2014.
- ASU finished 10th in the nation in points per fourth quarter in 2013 against FBS opposition (9.9) after finishing the 2012 season with 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.
ROAD WARRIORS
- The Sun Devils are winners of seven of the last nine true road contests.
- ASU has 11 wins in the past 18 road games, including nine Pac-12 Conference road wins in the past 14.
- Todd 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 9-5 in Pac-12 road games at ASU, notable as the Devils were 5-13 in four seasons prior.
- 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.
T.N.T., WE'RE DYNAMITE
- 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 had 138 explosive plays (77 passing, 61 rushing) in 2014.
- ASU finished 24th nationally with 20 plays over 40 yards in 2014 after having just 16 total in 2013 and eight the year before. ASU was 26th nationally in plays of 20 or more yards with 71.
- ASU finished with 142 such plays in 2013 (82 passing, 60 rushing) and 165 (90 passing, 75 rushing) in 2012.
- The Sun Devils finished 2013 tied for seventh in the nation in plays longer than 20 yards with 86 after having 72 in 2012, which was good for 19th in the country in the category.
BETTER SUITED FOR HANDERCHIEFS
- The Sun Devils averaged just 4.5 penalities for 32.4 yards per game, ranked 16th in fewest penalties per game and fourth in fewest penalty yards per game in D-I in 2014.
- In 2013, the Sun Devils finished eighth in fewest penalties per game (4.00) and seventh in fewest penalty yards per game (31.4).
- Entering the season, ASU ranks first in the Pac-12 and third in the nation with an average of 32.85 penalty yards per game (Navy, Air Force) under Graham and ranks first in the Pac-12 and ninth in the nation with an average of 4.23 penalties per game (Navy, Air Force, Army, Boston College, Iowa, Michigan, Ball St., Wisconsin).
MORE ON PENALTIES
- Twenty-two of ASU’s 25 least penalized games since 2006 have come under Todd Graham.
- Since Todd Graham arrived at Arizona State, the Sun Devils have had just 175 penalties in 41 games (4.27 penalties per game).
PROTECT THIS HOUSE
- ASU is now 16-4 at Sun Devil Stadium under Todd Graham.
- In 19 regular season home games under Todd Graham, the Sun Devils have averaged 43.3 points per game.
- 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 last season’s.
- The Sun Devils are 273-99-3 (.732) all-time at Sun Devil Stadium since 1958, the 23rd-highest active winning percentage in a stadium among all FBS schools.
WIRE-TO-WIRE
- The 2014 season marked the first time since 1996, and just 11th overall, ASU was ranked in the preseason AP poll and finished in the final top 25 as well.
- ASU’s No. 12 ranking last season was the program’s highest final AP Poll ranking since 1996 and was the ninth time in school history the Devils had finished the season with a top-12 ranking, and just the fourth time since posting its best-ever finish in 1975.
- ASU, which was ranked No. 19 in the preseason poll, improved its position by seven spots to No. 12 in the final poll. It was only the seventh time in school history the Devils improved their ranking from the preseason to the final poll, and the seven-spot jump is the fourth-best improvement in school history.
ON THE RISE
- ASU is 19-8 in Pac-12 games since 2012, one game ahead of UCLA’s 18-9 mark in that same time span for the best Pac-12 South tally.
- ASU is 14-4 in Pac-12 games in the past two seasons, two games up on UCLA and USC (12-6) for tops in the Pac-12.
- ASU has finished first or second in each of the last three seasons in the final Pac-12 South standings.
USE THEM WISELY
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Since the start of the 2012 season, ASU has used 51 timeouts on defense in third down situations, and have forced a turnover or not allowed a first down on the ensuing play on 35 of those occasions (68.6 percent).
RUNNING THE CLOCK...OR NOT?
- 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 averaged 28:42 minutes of possession per game - ranked 99th nationally and picked up five victories when trailing in time of possession, improving its Todd Graham era record in that category from 9-8 to 14-8. ASU is, however, 14-5 when leading time of possession under Coach Graham.
IN-ZANE IN THE MEMBRANE
- Zane Gonzalez is currently fourth among active FBS players in averaging 9.7 points per game in his career. Florida State’s Roberto Aguayo leads all players at 10.5 points per game.
- Additionally, he is second among all active kickers with an average of 1.78 field goals made in his career, trailing only WVU’s Josh Lambert (2.00)
- Zane Gonzalez averaged 9.8 points per game in 2014, ranked 12th nationally and four among kickers while sitting first overall in the Pac-12.
- His 81.5 percent field goal percentage on 22-of-27 kicking was 22nd nationally.
- As a freshman, Gonzalez led the Pac-12 with 25 field goals and was named one of 20 semifinalists for the Lou Groza Award, given annually to the nation’s top kicker. He was a semifinalist award last season as well and named to the preseason watch list for 2015.
FG-GONZAL-EZ
- Gonzalez finished with 138 points in 2013, 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 in 2013, Gonzalez tied the NCAA freshman record of 25 that was set by UCLA’s Kai Forbath in 2007 (25-30) that was four more field goals than any other player in the FBS in the process.
- Gonzalez finished with 118 points in 2014, good for a tie for fourth all-time on ASU’s single season scoring list.
- Gonzalez was perfect from the field in the team’s season opener, kicking one field goal while adding an extra point.
- With 261 career points, he is currently 7th in ASU history.
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 and a 52.1 percent in 2014. In 2011, ASU rushed just 44.5 percent of the time.
- Over the past nine 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 finished with 2.9 per game in 2013 and 3.0 per game in 2014 to finish 17th and 13th, respectively, in the country.
- In nine seasons, Graham is 29-24 in true road games. ASU was 3-3 in such games in 2012, 3-2 in 2013 and 4-2 in 2014 (10-7 overall). In the previous four seasons prior to Graham’s arrival, ASU was 5-16 in true road contests.
HOLD ON TO YOUR SEATS
- In eight of the past nine years, Graham’s teams have ranked 39th or better nationally in fewest penalty yards per game. The Sun Devils averaged 34.92 penalty yards per game in 2012 (eighth nationally), 31.36 per game in 2013 (seventh nationally) and 32.38 per game in 2014 (fourth nationally).
- 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 was 3-1 in 2014 in games decided by less than a touchdown following the team’s 36-31 Sun Bowl victory over Duke.
- ASU has now gone 7-2 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 up until that Tucson game.
HOLD ON THE THAT BALL, ALSO
- In 2014, the Sun Devils had six games where they did not turn the ball over and went 6-0 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 10-1 under Todd Graham in games where it does not have a turnover.
TODD'S WINNING WAYS
- Graham has won 28 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 28-13, ranking behind only Urban Meyer (38-3), Jim Mora (30-11) and Kevin Sumlin (29-11) in the last three seasons.
NOT WASTING TIME
- In just three seasons, Todd Graham already finds him self with an average of 9.33 wins per year at ASU, which would rank him tops all-time in ASU lore.
- His 28 wins are already the sixth-most among coaches in program history while his .700 win percentage sits fourth all-time.
- Graham became the third-quickest coach to reach 28 wins, doing so in 40 games.
- As far as Bowl Games go, Graham has wasted no time establishing himself in the record books as his three appearances with the Sun Devils are already tied for third among all ASU coaches and his two wins are tied for second.
ELITE COMPANY
- Head Coach Todd Graham now has a school-record 28 wins in his first three seasons as head coach at ASU, one more than College Football Hall of Fame Coach Dan Devine (1955-57).
- Coach Graham has now recorded 10 wins in five of his nine seasons as a head coach (Tulsa 2007, 2008, 2010; ASU 2013, 2014.) Since 2007, Coach Graham currently sits tied for No. 4 nationally in most 10-win seasons with five at FBS institutions, ranking behind only Nick Saban, Bob Stoops and Chris Peterson.
DOUBLE THE DIGITS, DOUBLE THE FUN
- In 2014, ASU secured back-to-back 10-win seasons for the first time since Frank Kush notched double-digit victories from 1970-73. That was drought of 31 years since it last happened, providing further evidence of how difficult an achievement back-to-back 10-win seasons are to come by.
- Back-to-back 10-win seasons hadn’t happened at Arizona State since 1970-73. But a quick look around the nation shows that only 12 schools have posted back-to-back 10 win-seasons the past two years. Here are the double-digit dozen.
BERC-ING FOR THE WEEKEND
- In Mike Bercovici’s first two career starts last season, he passed for 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 but the 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.
LIKE MIKE
- In Bercovici’s 186 pass attempts in 2014, only 24 times did he target the same receiver on back-to-back plays. At one point in the UCLA contest, he targeted eight different receivers over the course of 11 pass attempts. Only once did he target a receiver on three straight attempts.
- Out of all the players on last year’s team with a reception that weren’t named Jaelen Strong or D.J. Foster, there were 137 total receptions made on the season. Bercovici, in his limited action, was responsible for 61 of those passes (44.5 percent).
TAKING DOWN THE TOP
- ASU was 3-2 in 2013 against team’s ranked in the AP Top-25 Poll and the 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.
SLAYING DRAGONS
- The Sun Devils have gone 7-4 in the last 11 games against ranked teams.
- In three seasons at the helm, Todd Graham is 7-7 against AP-ranked opponents and the team was 4-2 in such teams in 2014.
- Graham 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 last season for the first time since 1999 and defeating USC in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1996-97. ASU also ended a four-game losing streak to Stanford.
SEC RARE TERRITORY FOR ASU
- The Sun Devils will open the season against Texas A&M in Houston in what will be just the seventh game against an SEC program in school history.
- It will be the first-ever matchup against the Aggies and will be the only pairing of a Pac-12 and SEC school in the regular season this year.
- In fact, Pac-12/SEC showdowns are quite rare in the regular season with the conferences meeting for just sixth time since 2011. ASU played one of those other five games when it traveled to Missouri in 2012.
- Arizona State holds an 0-6 all-time mark against SEC schools (0-2 against Georgia, 0-2 against Arkansas, 0-1 against Missouri and 0-1 against LSU).
GOLD RUSH
- Since the Coach Kush era, ASU has scored 20 or more rushing touchdowns in three or more consecutive seasons just one other time (1985-87) outside the current streak (23 in ‘11, 27 in ‘12, 36 in ‘13 and 20 in ‘14).
- The current streak of four straight years with 20+ rushing touchdowns is the second longest streak in ASU history since 1960 behind only the seven straight Kush-led teams from 1967-73.
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