ASU Football: Can UTSA defense replicate last year’s success?

ASU football will face UTSA Saturday after the Roadrunners finished as a top-10 defense nationally last season. Can UTSA replicate last year’s success?

What did standout during this relatively down season?

Defense.

Head Coach Frank Wilson had one of the best in the nation as a matter of fact. UTSA ranked fifth in the nation in total defense, second in total yards allowed behind only Alabama, and were top 10 in scoring defense coming in at eighth.

The defense was led by defensive end Marcus Davenport who was drafted No. 14 overall by the New Orleans in the 2018 draft. Davenport applied constant pressure to the quarterback during his senior season as he finished the season with 8.5 sacks along with 17.5 tackles for loss.

Wilson knows a thing or two about attracting elite talent as he served as an ace recruiter for LSU before leading the Roadrunners. During his time in Baton Rouge, Wilson helped the Tigers land five top-10 ranked classes in six years. He was also essential in the recruiting and commitment of Leonard Fournette and Jarvis Landry.

So, what does all this mean for Arizona State heading into both teams opening matchup of the season in Tempe?

If the Sun Devils need a reminder of how competitive UTSA can be, they only have to look two years back where ASU was trailing in the final quarter of play and had to come from behind to beat the Roadrunners.

UTSA is going to have an extremely competitive defense that will look to shut down the trio of senior quarterback Manny Wilkins, junior N’Keal Harry, and sophomore Eno Benjamin.

While the Roadrunners will be without both Davenport and their defensive coordinator Pete Golding from a season ago, who left for a coaching job at Alabama, there are three key players UTSA will lean on to shut down the Devils offense.

Lorenzo Dantzler, Defensive End

The former Last Chance U product from East Mississippi C.C. enters the year with high expectations to fill the shoes of Davenport. He will determine the impact of the defensive line which is an integral part of UTSA’s 4-2-5 scheme.

This scheme plays with two defensive ends and two defensive linemen on the line of scrimmage, two linebackers behind, and five defensive backs. This lineup gives the defense many different looks and allows players such as Dantzler to pressure the quarterback constantly.

Josiah Tauaefa, Linebacker

After leading the team in tackles two years ago, Tauaefa will look to come back from a knee injury suffered halfway through last season. It was just two years ago that the linebacker was among the best defensive players in Conference USA securing 115 tackles and six sacks in a standout season.

If Tauaefa can return at full strength, the Roadrunners will look for him to be a key part in stopping ASU’s running attack while also assisting in pressuring the quarterback.

Clayton Johnson, Cornerback

A speedy walk-on who first began his career at Oklahoma State, Johnson will look to be a key factor in a secondary that ranked second in pass defense a year ago.

UTSA will be without three key players in the secondary from last years team as they lost corners Austin Jupe, Devron Davis, and free safety Nate Gaines who snagged four interceptions a season ago.

Despite these losses, the Roadrunners will lean on Johnson who will most likely matchup on Harry. The big key in this matchup will be Johnson’s ability to cover the taller Harry as Johnson stands at 5-11 compared to Harry at 6-4. The shorter Johnson has shown his ability to be a ballhawk as he secured two interceptions against Rice a year ago.

Verdict

While UTSA is missing a first-round talent on the defensive side of the ball and their defensive coordinator from last season, the Roadrunners are still a threat on the defensive side of the ball. The 4-2-5 scheme that almost led UTSA to an upset over ASU two years ago is still in place and the Sun Devils will be in their first game under the direction of new head coach Herm Edwards.

After allowing only 17.1 points per game last season compared to the Sun Devil’s 31.3, the Roadrunners have established they can shut down opposing offenses at will. Will the losses on the defensive side of the ball combined with ASU’s trio of talent be too much for UTSA to handle? We’ll figure out, September 1st, in Tempe.