Sun Devil offense lines up against Washington near the end zone during the game against Washington on Oct. 25. ASU defeated Washington 24-10. (Photo by Andrew Ybanez)The offensive line is a thankless unit on any football team, one that rarely gets the credit it deserves for good performance and one that is routinely vilified when it plays poorly.
Given that, it's not surprising that little attention was paid to the the injury of junior left guard Christian Westerman in the third quarter of ASU's win over Washington.
After the game, coach Todd Graham said he didn't know what Westerman's status was and in his weekly press conference Monday, Graham said Westerman was doubtful against Utah.
If Westerman doesn't play, it will mark the first time since mid-2012 that a starter on the offensive line will miss a game.
That consistency on the line is an unappreciated reason for why ASU's offense has been so successful in the past two seasons.
ASU's current starting offensive line features redshirt senior Jamil Douglas at left tackle, Westerman at left guard, junior Nick Kelly at center, redshirt junior Vi Teofilo at right guard and redshirt senior Tyler Sulka at right tackle.
Douglas, who protects redshirt senior quarterback Taylor Kelly's blindside, is graded as the 18th best guard in ESPN's draft rankings, he is the only member of ASU's line ranked by ESPN.
The ASU offensive line has surrendered 18 sacks this season, just over 2.5 per game. Only Colorado, Stanford, Utah and UA have allowed fewer among Pac-12 schools.
In 2014, the unit surrendered the most sacks in the conference with 41.
Those numbers don't exactly leap out at anyone as superbly impressive and the general impression of the unit in the last few years has been average at best, but what ASU's o-line lacks in statistical output, it more than makes up for in toughness and stability.
Consistency along the offensive line can be an offense's best friend, and inconsistency can be its downfall.
Even at the NFL level fans have seen talented offenses like New England and Philadelphia struggle thanks to changes and injuries across the offensive line.
So while ASU's road graders aren't the best around, the fact that they've played together for so long and operated as a unit so consistently gives Kelly and the Sun Devil offense a strong base to build around.
Westerman’s injury may not keep him out of the game against Utah, but if it does, that could be a serious loss for the Sun Devils.
Against a talented team like the Utes, ASU needs every edge it can get, and having to deal with working in a new offensive lineman could be a setback.
Graham is typically tight-lipped regarding injuries unless they carry season-ending implications, so we may not know Westerman's full status until game time, but losing him will make ASU's task even more difficult.
Reach the sports editor at icbeck@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @ICBeck21
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