ASU Football: Rapid Reaction of Sun Devils loss at Washington

ASU football dropped their second straight game losing 27-20 at No. 10 Washington as they didn’t make enough plays on both sides of the ball.

Arizona State dropped their conference opener Saturday night at No. 10 Washington 27-20 as the Sun Devils simply made less plays than the Huskies.

The Sun Devils got off to a perfect start intercepting a Washington trick play and scoring a touchdown on 4th-and-Goal thanks to a one-yard run from running back Eno Benjamin.

Until a late Manny Wilkins rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter, ASU was only able to muster two field goals despite moving the ball well all night.

After back-to-back games road games, the Sun Devils will return home to face Oregon State, who lost at home to Arizona.

Here are some takeaways from the game:

1. Arizona State ran the ball… a lot.

The running game was a key emphasis all week for Herm Edwards’ squad and he centered the gameplan around it.

Eno Benjamin got the rock early and often with Trelon Smith receiving meaningful snaps for the first time this season.

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Benjamin finished the game with 26 carries for 104 yards and one touchdown. Smith rushed for 45 yards on eight carries showing flashes.

After throwing the ball 46 times last week against San Diego State, Wilkins passed the ball just 27 times against Washington, completing 17 passes for 104 yards and one rushing touchdown.

For Arizona State to have success in Pac-12 play, they need to have a balanced offensive attack and Saturday night’s game proves they have the potential to have one of the best offenses in the conference.

2. Defense couldn’t stop Washington’s balanced attack.

There was a lot of questions entering Saturday’s game about which Jake Browning will show up after a shaky start to the season.

Browning silenced the critics throwing for 202 yards and three touchdowns. The Husky offensive line did a great job protecting Browning as he was only sacked once all night and faced few pressures.

The senior quarterback did a great job using his feet, extending plays and finding open receivers down field. The eventual winning touchdown pass to wide receiver Cade Otton was a prime example of this.

When it came to the run defense, ASU was still a little shaky allowing 171 rushing yards and was plagued by missed tackles.

ASU just couldn’t find a way to stop one aspect of Washington’s offense and it ended up costing them the game.

3. Lots of positives to take away if you’re ASU.

Even though they suffered their second straight loss and their Pac-12 opener, there’s a lot of positives to take away for Arizona State.

The Sun Devils ran the ball effectively rushing the ball 40 times compared to Wilkins throwing the ball 27 times.

While they wished they could have gotten wide receiver N’Keal Harry more involved (finished with five catches for 20 yards), I thought ASU moved the ball well and always set up manageable third downs.

In the end, Arizona State just lacked explosive plays Saturday night and part of that has to do with how good Washington’s secondary is.

Against future opponents, a strong rushing attack paired with Wilkins’ experience at quarterback, Arizona State is going to be in every game and should be able to put up a lot of points.

I think most people would have taken a seven-point road loss against a top-10 Washington team, especially after ASU lost 44-18 in Seattle two years.

Next. ASU Football: Browning’s composure opens up Huskies offense. dark

With Oregon State and Colorado the next two opponents before the bye week, ASU will be favorites in both games and in prime position to contend for the Pac-12 South.

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