Before every football game this year, The Blue Zone will sit down with a football writer from the opposing school’s student newspaper to get the scoop on their team and season.
This week, The Chronicle’s Nick Martin spoke to the The State Press' assistant sports editor Fabian Ardaya about Saturday's desert clash between Duke and No. 15 Arizona State in the Hyundai Sun Bowl.
The Chronicle: Duke and Arizona State have had very similar seasons in that both seemed to be on their way to a big bowl game until the last three weeks of play hit and they unraveled, with both losing two of their last three contests. Seeing as the Sun Bowl—although in a warm location—is not the bowl game either team was gunning for, how motivated will the Sun Devils be and what will they be looking to prove Saturday?
State Press: For sure there's got to be a frustration level for ASU, just look at Jaelen Strong's tweet after the announcement. They were on the verge of breaking into the College Football Playoff heading into the Oregon State game, and still had a chance to win the Pac-12 South only to lose it to their biggest rivals in Arizona in the Territorial Cup. How they deal with that frustration, however, is up to them. Coach Todd Graham has said all season that this team has the highest-character guys he's ever had, and they've handled adversity well for the most part this season. It's the final game for some of this team's leaders (redshirt senior quarterback Taylor Kelly, senior defensive lineman Marcus Hardison, redshirt junior Jaelen Strong), and they're trying not to overlook an unranked team in their bowl game for the second straight year.
TC: In the past few days, a lot of the talk surrounding Arizona State has concerned Jaelen Strong's decision to enter the NFL Draft? How big of a threat has he been to opposing defenses and how do you expect he will perform in his final game as a Sun Devil?
SP: I think he could quite possibly be the best wide receiver to come through ASU. He's a physical mismatch with his size and strength, and has only gotten better this season at his route-running. He has the ability to change games by himself just like he did against USC (ten catches, 202 yards, three touchdowns, including the "Jael Mary"), and is no stranger to making the spectacular play. Look for Taylor Kelly to try to find Strong early and often on his back shoulder to get this offense going, something that didn't happen in last year's Holiday Bowl (four catches, 28 yards).
TC: Aside from Strong, who is the one player the Blue Devils need to look out for on defense?
SP: Junior running back D.J. Foster is as versatile a player as you can find, as offensive coordinator Mike Norvell loves to use him in a variety of ways. Foster can line up in the slot (he is second on the team with 59 catches for 646 yards and three touchdowns) or in the backfield (1,002 rushing yards, nine touchdowns), and has been a reliable option to help get the offense going whenever it becomes stagnant. Another name to look for is sophomore wide receiver, who is the team's third-leading receiver (41 catches, 596 yards, six touchdown) and can beat the defense with his game-breaking speed. He had six catches for 131 yards and two touchdowns against Washington State this season, a game Strong missed due to a concussion.
TC: The Blue Devils rank 18th in the nation in points allowed per game and—outside of a major setback against North Carolina and a shootout at Pittsburgh—have remained pretty even keel all season. What will ASU coach Todd Graham and redshirt senior quarterback Taylor Kelly need to do to put up points against Duke?
SP: Well really it's up to offensive coordinator Mike Norvell. He's been heralded as one of the top playcallers in the country, and has proven so for the most part this season. Outside of the 19-16 OT win over Utah, ASU has scored at least 20 points in each game this season and has never seemed to struggle moving the ball despite going between two different quarterbacks during the season. Kelly has looked sharp in bowl practice and seems to finally have his confidence back after injuring his foot early in the season against Colorado, and redshirt junior quarterback Mike Bercovici is a gunslinger who isn't afraid to stretch the field and make explosive plays. The Sun Devils rank 20th in the nation with 36.4 points per game, and that's around the amount I expect them to score this game.
TC: Arizona State lets up 170.2 rushing yards per game and Duke rushes for 183.3 yards per contest. What will the Sun Devils do to slow down the Blue Devil ground attack and have they game-planned at all for Thomas Sirk—Duke's short-yardage and jump-pass specialist?
SP: Todd Graham is an extremely aggressive defensive playcaller, sometimes even to a fault. He often gambles in sending heavy blitzes in hopes of creating plays for loss and turnovers. In some cases, such as against UCLA and Oregon State, offenses have beaten the blitz and taken advantage of the young defense for explosive plays. Fittingly, those games resulted in losses for ASU. I don't see anything changing for this defensive scheme, and I expect Graham to try to pressure Anthony Boone and this ground game to try to create negative plays and turnovers.
I'm sure Graham has looked at Sirk, and may even have a package in mind to attack it, but I'm not sure he's spent much time worrying about it.
TC: Like Duke, Arizona State has just turned the ball over 13 times and both rank in the top 20 in turnover margin with ASU at No. 9 and the Blue Devils at No. 18. But eight of the Sun Devils' turnovers have come in their three losses. Heading into this game, how much will ball security be stressed for ASU and who are the playmakers on the Sun Devil defense that will be tasked with creating a few turnovers of their own?
SP: In the three years the Graham has been head coach he has emphasized ball control more than anything when talking about the offensive side of the ball. ASU's offense has proven to be hard to stop whenever they hold onto the ball, and Graham has made it his mission to limit "critical errors" -- turnovers and penalties. Defensively, look for senior defensive lineman Marcus Hardison to get pressure on the quarterback and make an impact with strip sacks or by batting down passes at the line of scrimmage. Another name is redshirt senior defensive back Damarious Randall, a ballhawking safety with the ball skills to take a return a pick all the way.
TC: The Sun Devils let up 271.4 yards through the air per game but have not really been gashed for any crazy numbers in their three losses. Although Anthony Boone is coming off a poor three-game stretch, players like Issac Blakeney and Jamison Crowder will still be explosive threats at receiver, not to mention all three Blue Devils are playing in their final game as a Duke player and are looking to raise their draft stock. So what does Arizona State's defense have in store for the Duke passing attack and how do they keep Boone and Co. in check?
SP: I think it's more of what I said before. Graham loves to bring the pressure, and if the pressure gets there then ASU's defense will have success. Otherwise this is a "bend, but don't break" defense that can give up a lot of yards to opposing quarterbacks. Redshirt junior cornerback Lloyd Carrington has done a decent job this season, but there has been plenty of turnover when it comes to the secondary corner position. Randall has been a ball-hawk and redshirt junior Jordan Simone has been ASU's best tackler at the Bandit (free) safety position.
TC: What's your score prediction for the Sun Bowl?
SP: 35-27 ASU.
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