Devils in Detail
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ASU Football: Why Pass Rush Needs to Lead Defense

By Sam Ficarro

Oct 15, 2016; Waco, TX, USA; Baylor Bears defensive coordinator Phil Bennett on the sidelines against the Kansas Jayhawks during the first half at McLane Stadium. Baylor won 49-7. Mandatory Credit: Ray Carlin-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 15, 2016; Waco, TX, USA; Baylor Bears defensive coordinator Phil Bennett on the sidelines against the Kansas Jayhawks during the first half at McLane Stadium. Baylor won 49-7. Mandatory Credit: Ray Carlin-USA TODAY Sports /
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While ASU football had one of the worst defenses in the nation last season, the pass rush had their flashes. Can an effective pass rush improve the defense?

ASU football had a disappointing season especially on the defensive side of the ball.

The Sun Devils, coming off a leaky defense in 2015, were seeking to improve with a large majority of the defensive starters returning. That didn’t come to fruition as the problems that plagued them in 2015 did so as well last season. The defense continued to allow explosive plays and missed tackles marred the unit.

At Pac-12 Media Days, head coach Todd Graham said he regretted blitzing as often as he did in 2015 because of injuries and inexperienced players. So in 2016, while still blitzing a lot from a national perspective, for a Graham-led defense he tended to be a bit more conservative.

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With that, the defense struggled to contain high-powered offenses and caused the secondary to get burned.

Arizona State needs to get back to what it was in Graham’s first couple of seasons by blitzing the quarterback and stopping the run.

Last season, the Sun Devils could not stop the running game versus some of the Pac-12’s some best running back like Colorado’s Phillip Lindsay and Utah’s Joe Williams.

With the success of the opposing run game, it made the play-action deadly and it led to Arizona State being gashed for large chunk plays.

It also created fatigue for the defensive starters.

With new defensive coordinator Phil Bennett, Arizona State will look to improve their defense. Bennett’s specialty at Baylor was blitzing the quarterback and having an opportunistic defense. The Sun Devils need to get back to playing that style of defense.

Arizona State’s best players on defense are their pass rushers led by Koron Crump, D.J. Calhoun and JoJo Wicker. Crump led the team last season with 9 sacks with Calhoun and Wicker having 2.5 sacks each.The best defensive game Arizona State had last season was versus UCLA.

While Bruins were interchanging quarterbacks with Josh Rosen sustaining an injury, the Sun Devils combined for nine tackles-for-loss, five sacks, three interceptions and one fumble recovery. Arizona State held UCLA to only 50 rushing yards allowing the Sun Devils to be aggressive all night resulting in a 23-20 win. ASU just needs to try to replicate that template on a week-by-week basis.

Next: ASU Football's Offense Will Live or Die by Run Game

With the majority of the pass rushers coming back, the defense’s success will be dictated by an effective front seven. If they can be a force up front, that will help shore up the secondary and create a better defensive unit.

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