(Photo: Lindsey Nelson/WCSN)
The No. 17 Arizona State Sun Devils didn’t look as crisp as many would have expected against the New Mexico Lobos, but they shook off a rough second quarter to pull away with a 58-23 victory on Saturday night.
New Mexico outscored the Sun Devils 14-10 in the second quarter as they roared back from a 22-0 deficit in the first quarter to make it close once again, but a strong second half by the ASU offense put the game back in cruise control.
The win was the first non-conference road victory for ASU since 2006 when they defeated the then-non-conference Colorado Buffaloes in Boulder, 21-3.
Player of the game: D.J. Foster
It’s hard to wrap your head around the idea that Foster managed to rack up 270 yards of total offense on just 22 touches, and didn’t find the end zone until the fourth quarter. Despite averaging more than 12 yards every time the ball touched his hands, he couldn’t quite break away fully from the Lobos’ defense.
Still, he was the unquestionable tone-setter who accounted for nearly half of the team’s total offense.
Biggest concern:
While there was plenty of complaining about the defensive struggles in the second quarter, it really wasn’t that poor of a showing against a team that averaged more than 420 yards of offense per game in 2013, as the Sun Devils held the team to 3.6 yards per carry.
Instead, the concern for me was the huge momentum shift in favor of the Lobos that the Sun Devils struggled to shake. With an inexperienced defense, it’s on Taylor Kelly to avoid such slides from happening, especially against better teams that will capitalize more than UNM did.
Unsung hero: Jordan Simone
After starting in the opener against Weber State, Simone was relegated to second-team duty against New Mexico. While James Johnson played very well in his place, Simone shined in a reserve role, making several big plays. It’s an inexperienced group, but the coaching staff has to be happy about the depth of the safety position.
Stat of the game: 621 yards of offense
It doesn’t matter how the defense looks this season, if the Sun Devils can rack up that much offense on a consistent basis, they will be a very tough team to beat. Taylor Kelly didn’t have his best day through the air, but he made big plays on the ground and hit a couple long touchdowns through the air to keep things going well for ASU.
What’s next?
The Colorado Buffaloes avoided disaster on Saturday by narrowly edging Massachusetts, 41-38. Still, it’s a team that looks like it’ll struggle to win any Pac-12 games and should represent a third preseason game for the Sun Devils.
You can reach Adam Stites on Twitter @AdamStitesASU or by email arstites@asu.edu
