ASU Football: Keys to Victory over Notre Dame
By Mike Slifer
The #9 ASU Football team takes on #10 Notre Dame today. Kickoff is at 1:30 local time and will be televised on ABC. This game has epic consequences for both teams in their pursuit for qualifying to play in the College Football Playoffs.
Some keys to Victory for ASU:
1) Spread the Ball Around in High Tempo Attack
ASU needs to distribute the ball to all of its several offensive weapons. Lately, QB Taylor Kelly has been favoring throwing the ball to WR Jaelon Strong. (at its face, there is nothing wrong with that, as Strong is reliable and one of the top receivers in the nation). The offense will be more effective if Kelly would target other receivers, such as Cameron Smith, DJ Foster lined up in the slot, Ellis Jefferson and Gary Chambers as well as Tight Ends Kody Kohl and De’Mariyea Nelson. This will limit Notre Dame from “ganging up” their coverage on Strong. Thus, ironically, making it easier to throw to Strong later in the game.
ASU would be wise to also have an active rotation at running back. Freshman DeMario Richard is the hot hand lately, having good games last week against Utah and the week before at Washington. Richard has shown good vision and patience in the zone running game, finding the creases and picking up big gains. But having several talented running backs rotating in throughout the game keeps fresh legs putting pressure on the defense. Using Richard, Kalen Ballage, Deantre Lewis and of course, DJ Foster at running back will put stress on the Notre Dame defensive front.
Which brings us to the offensive tempo. Notre Dame isn’t as used to the no-huddle, up-tempo style that ASU employs. Nowadays, it’s used by almost everybody in the PAC-12. But Notre Dame has not played very many hurry-up teams. On a warm day in Tempe in the afternoon, high tempo could be a challenge for the Notre Dame defenders. On top of that, the Notre Dame defense is without their captain, Joe Schmidt. Schmidt was injured last week in the game against Navy. He is the main communicator for all the checks and adjustments for the Notre Dame defense. (much like Laiu Moekiola is for ASU) Without Schmidt, a high tempo attack could cause confusion for Notre Dame and lead to breakdowns.
2) Stay Hungry on Special Teams
The ASU special teams units for all of last season and the first half of this season were a big concern for the Sun Devils. Sub-standard play on the coverage teams especially were causing head coach Todd Graham to pull out his hair. Lately, however, the players on the ASU special teams have accepted the challenge laid down to them and played exceptionally well in the last 3 games. They have actually out-performed some opponents that are known for excellent special teams play. (Stanford, Utah) ASU needs this trend to continue. Part of that requires the “hungry” attitude of players and units who have been challenged to step up their game.
Field position is huge in games like this between two ranked teams vying for legitimacy in the national picture. To win the game, they’ll have to win on special teams.
3) Contain QB Everett Golson
This is the proverbial “no brainer” in the Keys to Victory over Notre Dame. Obviously, using the word “contain” is common in sports analysis. While it is true that the ASU defense must contain Golson in the sense that they cannot let him go wild throwing for 400 yards and rushing for 150 more, Devils in Detail believes that ASU must literally contain Golson. The defensive line has to be disciplined in their rush lanes when Golson drops back to pass. The defensive ends especially must “keep contain” and not let Golson get out of the pocket. They have to keep their outside arm and leg disengaged and stay even with the depth of Golson’s drop. The defensive tackles have to do their part, as well, making sure not to spin out of their pass rush, creating gaps in the pocket for Golson to slip through.
In short, the ASU defense has to force Golson to be strictly a pocket-passer. Golson is a play-maker. If he’s allowed to get loose and extend plays, ASU will suffer.
Prediction
Talent-wise, ASU and Notre Dame are comparable, with Notre Dame having an edge up front and ASU having more skill and speed. Like last year, Devils in Detail believes that ASU has the talent, discipline and game plan to beat Notre Dame. The only thing they don’t have is experience in hyped atmospheres like this. Notre Dame does. They deal with it every week. They get their opponents’ best effort and still win. (the exception being at Florida State).
The X factor in this game is Taylor Kelly. Kelly will be making his third start since coming back from injury. He doesn’t appear to be 100% yet. At the very least, he’s still rusty. If he could get back to the Taylor Kelly of old, the offense could explode. But it’s probably too early to expect that. Because of this, Devils in Detail begrudgingly predicts that Notre Dame will prevail 27-21.