ASU Football: Why Eno Benjamin is the most important player down the stretch

N’Keal Harry may dominate the highlight reel but Eno Benjamin will need to be the primary reason why ASU football makes a bowl game this year.

On second-and-6 from the 34-yard line, Manny Wilkins looked deep to pass.

The redshirt senior quarterback, who has been maligned in recent weeks, had Sun Devil fans holding their breath when the ball was released from his fingertips toward ASU superstar receiver N’Keal Harry.

With his defender pulling Harry down with his right arm, the 6-foot-4 junior leaped up and snatched the ball in mid-air with just his right arm all while falling down.

Harry’s catch was the snatch of the season. A perfect highlight to a great win for Sun Devil football.

Harry finished his afternoon with four catches for 95 yards and a touchdown to go along with a punt return for another score. Although the wideout’s SportsCenter top-10 worthy plays are what fans will remember from this game, the real takeaway from the victory should be the performance from ASU running back Eno Benjamin.

On 29 carries, Benjamin rushed for 192 yards, increasing his season total on the ground to 938 yards in just eight games.

The tailback’s explosiveness and agility in between the tackles has resulted in his fifth game over 100 yards rushing. The sophomore also rushed for a school record 312 yards three weeks ago against Oregon State.

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It has not only been the volume of yards that Benjamin has rushed for, it has also been the value of those rushes.

In three of ASU’s four wins this season, the Sun Devils’ feature back has rushed for over 100 yards and in the one game in which he didn’t, Benjamin had six catches for 54 yards.

“Eno was fabulous,” coach Herm Edwards said after the game. “He ran the football and that started shrinking the game.”

“Shrinking the game” has been coach Edwards’ motto throughout the season with the first-year head coache’s goal being to win the time of possession battle and force opponents offenses to stay off the field.

There is no option better suited for that task than Benjamin.

On Saturday at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, ASU won the time of possession battle, 32:15-27:45. The Sun Devils at halftime held the ball for 8:56 longer than the Trojans.

The added time with the ball resulted in a 24-14 lead heading into the break with Benjamin already amassing 125 yards on the ground.

“We were just going to play our game,” Benjamin said. “I knew (USC) had some young linebackers and I just trusted our (offensive line) to get the job done.”

Wilkins had a solid afternoon with 166 passing yards and a touchdown. But if Sun Devil fans have learned anything about this season, especially after last week, it’s that ASU cannot put all of their faith in the redshirt senior’s right arm.

Wilkins’ fumble in the third quarter resulted in a touchdown on the other end for the Trojans. It was his second fumble and third turnover in two weeks.

Does Harry need to be a force? Yes. Does Wilkins need to protect the ball and make plays? Yes.

Next. ASU Football: Manny Wilkins perseveres in emotional win over USC. dark

But if ASU is to finish the season strong, the Sun Devils No.1 source of success will need to come from its top tailback.

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