Redshirt junior defensive lineman Demetrius Cherry pumps up the crowd against Stanford, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2014 at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe. The Sun Devils beat the Cardinal, 26-10. (Photo by Ben Moffat)Twice, ASU head coach Todd Graham apologized for the way he and his staff prepared his team in both of its losses to Stanford last season.
When they got a chance to meet with a Rose Bowl trip on the line, many skeptics were led to believe that things had changed after the first go-around in Palo Alto, California last September, a 42-28 loss. ASU was a different team, the college football pundits said.
But once again, fans were let down, with the most dreadful moment of ASU's season climaxing in a 38-14 blowout loss in the Pac-12 Championship game in Tempe.
Both times, Stanford torched the ASU defense, grinding out 240 rushing yards each time the two teams faced. Tonight? The Sun Devils held Stanford's backfield to a measly 76 rushing yards.
Graham stuck to his guns, even when it wasn't easy. Though the personnel on both teams changed, the core of the mission was the same: the Cardinal were not going to leave Sun Devil Stadium with a win.
A defense that lost playmakers Will Sutton and Carl Bradford to the draft, didn't stand much of a chance against a bulky Stanford offensive line on paper.
As stubborn as he is in certain aspects of his coaching philosophy, Graham was smart and flexible when he needed to be, starting 360 pound defensive tackle redshirt junior defensive tackle Mo Latu to counter the Cardinal, boasting a an average weight of over 300 pounds, and a median height of 6-foot-5.
The line was able to generate pressure, however, the heroes on the defensive side of the ball Saturday were rather undersized.
After sophomore kicker Zane Gonzalez's first field goal try of the night sailed wide left, ASU's defense had its first big test of the game.
Senior quarterback Kevin Hogan and Co. began their drive with decent field position, starting at their own 32 yard line with 4:20 left in the first quarter. The Sun Devil defense was helped by a Stanford substitution infraction, junior running back Barry Sanders ran for a gain of nine, giving the Cardinal a manageable third down and six.
ASU rushed five, with redshirt junior linebacker Antonio Longino roaming over the middle. Graham was aware that his unit couldn't afford to give up a big play on third down, and so he did what he was able to do best: bring disguised pressure that slips through the cracks of unfortunate offenses not attentive enough to recognize it.
Stanford bunched three wide receivers to Hogan's right. Redshirt senior corner Damarious Randall, had junior wide receiver Michael Rector in single coverage on the weak side. Senior running back Remound Wright lined up to the left of Hogan, in charge of covering his quarterback's blindside.With all three Cardinal receivers in bunch trips running routes, there was no one to block Randall, who snuck through on the edge of the strong side, and with him streaking, Wright found himself out of the play, and Hogan found himself in the fetal position protecting the football that Randall had just stripped from his hands. Opposite Randall on the play was redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Edmond Boateng, who preoccupied Hogan's pass protection enough to give the corner a free shot at his target.
GIF by Benjamin Margiott | Multimedia Reporter
That is our game plan as an attacking-style defense,” Randall said. “That is just what we do. We just like to put pressure up on the quarterback, so we can force turnovers and get (tackles for loss) and sacks.”
Fast forward to 5:45 in the second quarter, this time, Stanford facing the a similar down and distance in a third and five. Flanked by a pair of tailbacks, Hogan took the snap from the shotgun, and with two receivers to his left, and one to his right, everyone in attendance knew that offensive coordinator Mike Bloomgren (who had all but abandoned the running game) dialed up a pass play. The problem, though, was that redshirt junior defensive back Lloyd Carrington was the proverbial bug in Bloomgren's headset.
"We had the luxury of not playing somebody moving fast," Graham said. "There's only certain groupings that we played that way. We went with a bigger, more physical lineup to take some stress off the back end."
Carrington was playing bump-and-run coverage on Rector, but his eyes were like lasers focused in on Hogan's helmet. Redshirt sophomore linebacker Laiu Moeakiola bluffed a blitz on the strong side, and senior fullback Patrick Skov took the bait, leaving Hogan a sitting duck left to surrender a nine-yard loss and on the receiving end of a ferocious hit from Carrington, who burst full speed into the backfield unchecked.
GIF by Benjamin Margiott | Multimedia Reporter
The play sucked the life out of Stanford's sideline, and was an instant boost to the "Maroon Monsoon" crowd eager to disrupt the offensive flow of the team that crushed ASU's Rose Bowl dreams a year ago.
"We want to get the offense different looks on each side," Carrington said. "Based on the different formations they had, Coach (Graham) did a great job making play-calls that put us in the right position."
The improved play of the defense, as well as two forced turnovers on special teams, one that Randall was the catalyst of, set the tone for a statement win against the defending conference champion, finally getting "over the hump."
"It's a privilege to compete against Stanford," Graham said. "They've epitomized character, (and are) smart, disciplined, and tough."
After ASU's effort on defense and special teams tonight, those units can finally be referenced in the same sentence with those values.
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Reach the assistant sports editor at smodrich@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter at @StefanJModrich
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