Arizona State Sun Devils 2-0 Overall (0-0 Conference)

This Week’s Score: Arizona State 38 – Louisiana Monroe 14

Next Week’s Opponent: @Georgia

I was convinced that we would learn quite a bit more about this ASU team after the UL Monroe game. After watching the Sun Devils cruise to a comfortable win against an over-matched Warhawks team, I still can’t get a firm read on how the Devils will perform in the Pac-10. ASU certainly beat a better team than Idaho State on Saturday, but is anyone really sold on this team yet?

I did see a more consistent offense against ULM, as Danny Sullivan was able to throw for a career- high 220 yards (1 TD 0 INT) on 19/31 passing. Sullivan seemed to be more comfortable in the pocket and he delivered the ball on time for most of the night, but what will he do against better teams? I thought the offensive line played a little better as well, but again, we will learn much more about the potential improvement of the offensive front in ASU’s next game.

The running game was decent, as Dimitri Nance scored twice and gained 82 yards on 17 carries, but Nance is no home run threat, and I believe the offense could use some more explosion at tailback (more carries for Ryan Bass maybe?).

The highlight of the night (aside from Omar Bolden’s opening kickoff return TD) was Chris McGaha’s fingertip TD catch that has become his trademark in Tempe.

Defensively, the Devils dominated for most of the night, but I was a little surprised that the unit failed to record a sack. The ASU D will have to carry this team at times, so Craig Bray’s unit needs to be dialed in at all times. The secondary hasn’t had a whole lot to do through two games, so it should be interesting to see how the DBs perform now that the real schedule begins.

Next, ASU makes the trip to Athens, GA, where 92,000 Bulldogs fans will be awaiting at Sanford Stadium. At last, we will finally learn something about the Sun Devils. The offense will need to generate some big plays this week (something we haven’t really seen yet), while also continuing to play turnover-free football (no turnovers through two games for offense). The defense will need to be great (something the unit is capable of being), especially considering how well the UGA offense is playing right now. This litmus test is exactly what ASU needs before entering conference play the next week.

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