ASU Football: Sun Devils refocus after bye week

ASU football suffered a tough road loss to Pac-12 South foe Colorado in Week 6. Now, the team is locked in for Stanford after a rejuvenating bye week.

ASU football had a great chance to take the lead in their conference division, but allowed the opportunity to slip away in Boulder. After a tough and physical game, the bye week seemed to come at a perfect time.

“Going through the bye, the first thing you do is evaluate yourself as a football team,” ASU head coach Herm Edwards said. “The things you’ve done well the first six weeks and the things you need to continue to improve on.”

With his football team at 3-3 halfway through the season, Edwards confessed “there was a laundry list of things” the Sun Devils needed to work on.

“We’ve made an emphasis on certain things that we feel like if we improve, we’ll become a better football team,” he said.

The Herm train has hit a few bumps so far this season with three road losses, each by one score. However, it is still chugging along in a positive direction as Edwards continues to mold the program in his first year as head coach.

“I think there’s a good focus, a good energy about our football team right now knowing that we only have six opportunities left and they are all important,” he added.

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Up next in the Pac-12 gauntlet is the Stanford Cardinal (4-2, 2-1), a team also fresh off of a bye week. Stanford, coached by David Shaw, brings a certain DNA that is wrapped in toughness and physicality.

“This will be a good test for us,” Edwards said. “It’s one that we need to win. We need to start winning some games here down the stretch if we’re going to make some hay for the rest of the season.”

The building blocks are there for the Sun Devils but Edwards expects his players to clean up the mental errors.

“We struggle in third and four situations as an offense,” Edwards said. “We’ve gotta play better in the third quarter offensively.”

There has been a strong emphasis from Edwards on controlling the pace of football games. But ASU is near the bottom of the FBS in time of possession at 27 minutes and 28 seconds a game according to teamrankings.com.

The Sun Devils are averaging just 26 minutes and 35 seconds when on the road.

A bye week focus was evaluating whether or not the offensive mistakes come from the call or the player. Also, the Sun Devils want to improve their field position in close games and sustaining drives.

“You gotta move the ball early in the third quarter, especially if you possess it the first time coming out of the half,” Edwards said. “More important to me is that you change the field.”

Edwards noted that the Stanford offense is methodical. ASU matches up very closely in that aspect as well, but explosive plays have benefited the team most.

The Sun Devils are ranking 27th in the nation with over six yards a play on average.

But another issue they must improve on is finding a balance between the players that can make those big plays, such as N’Keal Harry, Eno Benjamin and Frank Darby.

“That’s what makes it hard for a coordinator because you have so many explosive players you want to get the ball to,” Edwards explained.

“I just think when you possess the ball and go on long periods of drives, then we become very good on offense. It’s fun to watch. It’s fun for me to watch on the sideline because we’re in a flow and you can just see it.”

N’Keal Harry received a hard hit against Colorado and didn’t finish the game. But the All-American wide receiver has been practicing after the bye and is expected to play.

“We anticipate everyone on deck,” Edwards said.

“I thought the bye came at a good time for us. It really did because we’ve had some guys that are nicked up. But everyone’s nicked up.”

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However, Stanford’s senior running back Bryce Love is projected to be healthy as well, posing a major big play threat. His Cardinal team will enter Sun Devil Stadium on Thursday evening for a battle under the lights on ESPN.

All quotes in this article were obtained firsthand by Devils in Detail unless otherwise noted.

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