Check out more photos from Saturday's game against U of A in this slideshow. OR Were you in the student section for the game? See if The State Press caught you cheering on the Sun Devils in this slideshow.
For Gerell Robinson, the last three games couldn’t have gone much better on an individual basis.The senior wide receiver has been the one constant threat in the ASU football team’s inconsistent play during three consecutive, demoralizing losses.
Robinson established new career highs in receiving yards in each of the three games. But he saved his best performance for the Territorial Cup, where the Sun Devils (6-5, 4-4 Pac-12) suffered a 31-27 loss to rival UA on Saturday.
When it was all said and done, Robinson finished with 11 catches for 199 yards to set new career highs in both categories. His 199 receiving yards surpassed Larry Todd’s record for most in a Territorial Cup game.
“Gerell Robinson made plays all over the place,” coach Dennis Erickson said. “You look at what he accomplished today.”
Robinson’s fifth 100-yard receiving game of the season helped him eclipse the 1,000 receiving yards mark for the year. He became ASU’s first 1,000-yard receiver since Derek Hagan tallied 1,210 yards in 2005.
Saturday’s 100-yard showing was also Robinson’s third straight game of 100 or more yards. He recorded 120 yards in ASU’s loss to Oregon on Oct. 15 after notching 101 yards against Utah on Oct. 8.
The Sun Devils jumped out to a slow start in the opening quarter against the Wildcats (3-8, 2-7). Yet Robinson made his presence felt early on by reeling in a 27-yard completion during ASU’s first possession.
Later in the quarter, junior quarterback Brock Osweiler found his leading receiver again for a 17-yard gain. Osweiler stuck with Robinson one play later for six more yards in the air.
After two completions to set up third down, it was Robinson who hauled in a 34-yard reception to the UA 10-yard line. The Sun Devils later punched in a touchdown to cap the 12-play, 74-yard drive.
The ASU offense earned 154 yards of total offense in the first quarter with Robinson accounting for 84 of those yards on his own. Additionally, of Osweiler’s eight completions in the first quarter, half of them were to Robinson.
With the Wildcats leading 14-7 to kick off ASU’s first drive of the second quarter, Osweiler connected with Robinson on an 11-yard touchdown to knot the score at 14-14. That touchdown catch was the senior’s 6th of the season and the 11th of his career.
Robinson had already reached the century mark by halftime with 104 yards on six catches through the game’s first half.
In the fourth quarter, he corralled a 47-yard bomb from Osweiler that preceded a 27-yard Sun Devil field goal from Alex Garoutte.
However, the personal statistics meant little to the senior who witnessed yet another excruciating loss.
“My expectations are to win,” Robinson said. “I’m not worried about what I’ve done. I just want to win, period. Lately the games have come down to the wire and we haven’t focused.”
Robinson’s career night against the Wildcats was just the latest in a string of standout games for the senior wide out.
Just one week earlier, he collected 158 receiving yards on eight catches against Washington State. ASU faced UCLA on Nov. 5 in Pasadena, where he led the Sun Devils with six receptions for 131 yards.
Overall, Robinson leads all ASU receivers with 61 catches and 1,100 receiving yards, which places him sixth on the program’s all-time list for receiving yards in a single season. He’s also combined for 488 yards in his last three games to push his career total to 1,774.
Entering the Duel in the Desert, he ranked fourth among Pac-12 receivers with an average of 90.1 receiving yards per game. After 11 games, he boosted his average to 100 yards.
“We got him in a position where we take advantage of what his skills are,” Erickson said. “He’s big and catches the football and gets open and understands that position. He’s been our best offensive player. If you’re going to give an MVP to the offense it would be him.”
Robinson’s stellar play has taken the backseat to ASU’s struggles against conference foes.
“It’s hard, to be honest, it’s really hard,” Robinson said. “I don’t want to sugarcoat it. I think we have a team that should be in the top 10 in the nation and we’ve lost games we should’ve won. We haven’t been beat, we beat ourselves time and time again.”
Reach the reporter at greg.dillard@asu.edu
