ASU Football: Keys to Victory over the Cougars
By Mike Slifer
The ASU Football team takes on the Washington State Cougars today at 11 am. For the Sun Devils, the PAC-12 South Championship is still up for grabs. For them to win it, they’ll have to win this game today as well as the game next week at UA in Tucson. On top of that, they’ll have to get some help. They need UCLA to lose a game to either USC or Stanford.
Some Keys to Victory for ASU:
1) Taylor Kelly Needs to Return
First and foremost, ASU quarterback Taylor Kelly needs to be the quarterback he once was. This may be partially unfair to ask, but this ASU football team really needs the high-octane offense to return–and it needs it to be directed by Taylor Kelly. Since his return, the Sun Devils are 3-1 with Kelly at the helm. But he has struggled. The offense has struggled, in general. It’s unfair to point any fingers at Kelly, as he is still trying to play through a serious injury. However, in the end, this team needs efficiency at the quarterback position. If it’s Kelly, fine. If its Bercovici, well–that’s fine, too. But Washington State doesn’t care about any of that. They’re trying to play the role of spoiler and win this game. ASU is playing for a shot at the PAC-12 South Championship. Kelly needs to perform in order for this team to win.
2) Get After Luke Falk
This is your weekly “no-brainer”. Washington State is starting Luke Falk at quarterback. This will be his second start. Even though he looked good in his first start against Oregon State, he probably hasn’t truly been tested. He needs to be pressured and confused for this game. Whether ASU shows complicated blitzes and drops back into coverage or if they show blitzes and bring the pressure, they need to make Luke Falk uncomfortable and keep him guessing. Falk may drop back to pass 60 times. The Sun Devils need to make him hurry. The defensive game plan must be to force Luke Falk to be perfect. Chances are, he won’t be.
3) Get Physical
This key should be number one on the list. And oddly, the task of “being physical” is a mental one. This is a game that ASU needs to make a physical statement. On paper, ASU is a more talented team. They need to play that way. The Sun Devils need to physically dominate the Cougars. That’s an attitude. ASU needs to push the Washington State defense down the field. They must run the ball and run it well. They need to keep Taylor Kelly’s uniform clean in pass protection. Defensively, they need to defeat the pass pro and defeat double teams versus the run. If ASU has hopes of making it to the PAC-12 championship game and hold on to hopes of being in the final four, they need to punish the Cougars at the line of scrimmage. This needs to be an embarrassing affair for the Cougars up front. The Sun Devils need to embrace the adage and pursue a “shutout and a body count”.
The secondary is not exempt from this requirement. When ASU blitzes and the secondary is stuck playing man to man, they need to physically dominate. Whether in bump and run or playing a soft man, they need to get hip to hip with the Cougar receivers and be physically dominant.
4) Be Perfect on Special Teams
Enough is enough. If you aspire to be a nationally recognized football team, it’s time to stop coming up with excuses as to why your special teams are lacking. No more talk about weather, injuries or any other circumstances. It’s time for ASU to win the kicking game. The Sun Devils need to win the coverage game, the return game, the field position game and the “red zone” game. End of story. Coaches and experts know that a team can be judged by their special teams. ASU has been deficient in this phase of the game for the most of the last two seasons. This is a game where they need to be dominant in the kicking game. End of story.