Arizona State could be in for offensive breakout vs. USC

The struggles of the Arizona State Sun Devils on offense are relatively well-documented. They’ve battled slow starts in each of their last couple of wins, with the offensive line and lack of a consistent gameplan really causing some issues for the Devils early on. Heading into a game of potentially monumental importance for ASU, though, that could all be remedied against a scuffling University of Southern California defense.

While ASU has obviously had their own issues on the defensive side of the ball (54th in yard per game and 106th in rushing yards against per game), USC has had a hard time slowing opposing offenses, something that ultimately doomed them against Stanford last weekend. This is a Trojans team that ranks 70th in the nation in rush yards against per game and 80th in total defense overall. If the Sun Devils are looking for a week in which to find that offensive rhythm, this might be that opportunity.

One of the silver linings for the ASU offense, even with the inconsistency that we’ve seen early on, is the fact that this was a group that wasn’t completely healthy, and is still working their way toward achieving ultimate health on that side of the ball. After battling mono, Kalen Ballage should return to the backfield and help to spell Demario Richard. Another potential impact addition could come in the form of Devin Lucien, the UCLA transfer who is out with a hamstring injury. While he’s not all but confirmed like Ballage, signs point to him appearing on the field against the Trojans.

When you factor in the successes that ASU has had early in the season, we could be looking at a shootout on Saturday night at Sun Devil Stadium.

Demario Richard had a fantastic night last week against the University of New Mexico, both on the ground and through the air, eclipsing the century mark for yardage in both phases. Given USC’s tremendous struggles in stopping the run game to this point in the season, he’ll likely be leaned on again for production, and should very well find it. The re-addition of Ballage to the backfield should only help the Sun Devils to run the ball.

We touched on the success of Mike Bercovici in last year’s tilt with the Trojans, mentioning reasons why another dominant performance could be in store here on Saturday. In addition to what’s laid out there, USC ranks 83rd in defense against the pass. That should bode well for Berco and the ASU passing game. Having three big play threats to get the ball to, in Lucien, Tim White, and obviously D.J. Foster, in addition to Richard and Ballage out of the backfield, should give him the weapons necessary to spread the ball around.

Even if the gameplan remains conservative, which is likely given the lack of health along the offensive line, any one of those guys is capable of turning a short completion into a big play. Which is likely what the Devils are going to have to rely on in order to defeat USC on Saturday.

It’s odd to think of a matchup against the USC Trojans as an opportunity to find a rhythm in any sense. They’re such a consistently strong team, as far as rankings are concerned. But they have had some serious woes on the defensive side of the ball this year, and even an inconsistent ASU offense should be able to get into a groove against them. With the offensive group slowly getting healthier, the gameplan should start to open up more, and we should start to see more from Bercovici and the rest of this group. It starts on Saturday against a reeling defensive unit.

Randy Holt is the managing editor for Devils in Detail. You can follow him on Twitter @RandallPnkFloyd.