ASU football struggled to add its first tally in the win column, but came out ahead Saturday against Cal Poly. Here's how ASU fared in our week two report card:
Redshirt senior quarterback Mike Bercovici threw for 283 yards and three touchdowns, but the offense struggled with ball security as Bercovici threw an interception and redshirt junior tight end Kody Kohl had a momentum-changing fumble in the second quarter. Sophomore running back Demario Richard benefited from an enhanced role, carrying the ball 25 times for 121 yards and two touchdowns. ASU also saw some promising things from its wide receivers as redshirt senior Devin Lucien hauled in seven passes for 79 yards and redshirt junior Tim White had two catches and ripped off a 59-yard run in the fourth quarter and capped it off with a 4-yard touchdown. That said, the Sun Devils failed to come away with points in the red zone twice.
ASU defense's first look at the triple option this season was uninspiring, to put it bluntly. While some players stood out such as sophomore linebacker Christian Sam (12 total tackles, two sacks), others were injured because of Cal Poly's cut-blocking scheme. Junior defensive lineman Ami Latu left in the second quarter and did not return. Sophomore safety Armand Perry left the field after the game in a walking boot. Naturally, Cal Poly's scheme began eating away on inside runs en route to 284 rushing yards, led by Joe Protheroe (28 carries, 130 yards, one touchdown) and Jared Mohamed (11 carries, 75 yards).
The only thing saving this grade from being a D was De'Chavon "Gump" Hayes' brief flashes in the kickoff return game, including a 57-yarder that could have sparked ASU's offense. That said, ASU's special teams were the weakest link at Sun Devil Stadium Saturday night. Untimely penalties, muffed punts, blown assignments and injuries all plagued the Sun Devils, and junior kicker Zane Gonzalez also missed a 28-yard go-ahead field goal to top it off.
Bercovici said it himself postgame: "A win is a win."
It definitely wasn't pretty, and a 35-21 result is one you'd rather see against a Pac-12 South foe than an FCS opponent in week two, but ASU is still where it wants to be after its season-opening loss to Texas A&M — 1-1.
ASU showed flashes of what made them a dark horse College Football Playoff contender during the preseason, but never could put it together.
There are holes and issues to be fixed, and Saturday proved that, while still fixable, the task may be a lot tougher than initially anticipated.
Reach the reporter at fardaya@asu.edu or follow @fardaya15 on Twitter.
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