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    ASU Football Beats Wyoming: A Closer Look

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    Many expected a hard-fought game when Wyoming marched into Mountain America Stadium to take on Arizona State on Saturday in the season opener for both teams. The Sun Devils were six-point favorites and Wyoming boasts 17 returning starters from a team that won nine games in 2023. But the game was never close, as the host team led 17-0 after the first quarter and rolled from there.

    It was an impressive start to the second season of the Kenny Dillingham era. Dillingham, who is known for being tough on his team, especially when it comes to effort and competitiveness, was pleased with his team’s performance.

    “Our kids love football,” he said. “That was the easiest thing to take away, the passion they have for the game. They play really hard. They practice really hard. So it’s really a reflection of how we practiced. But what I was proud of was that we played smart. There were a couple of times where we got fouled and our guys didn’t respond. Last year we were crazy and to be able to just step back in and make the next play and keep making the next play is a big growth for the football team. That’s probably the biggest thing. And then the fact that we dominated the line of scrimmage. That’s a team that runs the ball and stops the run and they’ve been doing that for six years. The fact that we went out there and ran the ball for 240 yards and I think we outran them by 201 or something. There’s no way on earth we would have come close to that last year.”

    What went well?

    Do you have take-out?: The Sun Devils managed just nine goals in 12 games last season, and four of those came in one game. Against Wyoming, ASU forced three — interceptions by linebackers Zyrus Fiaseu and Keyshaun Elliott and a fumble recovery by Justin Wodtly.

    The defense threw a shutout, sort of: The defense couldn’t have played better. The only touchdown allowed came on the second-to-last play of the game against the second-team defense, with ASU already up 48-0.

    Discipline: ASU had only four penalties for 30 yards, and one of them was a pass interference in the final seconds. There were no late hit or unsportsmanlike behavior penalties — the kind of thing that drives coaches crazy. The offensive line has been maligned a lot in the past, and this year there wasn’t a single holding penalty.

    Balanced attack: The Sun Devils have a lot of talent at the skill positions, so it’s no surprise they spread the ball around. ASU had 241 yards rushing and 258 passing, so it was the balance in both facets and the balance between the players who contributed to each.

    Steady Quarterback Play: Sam Leavitt was in the pocket, had good field awareness, had some nice runs and did an admirable job throwing the ball. He was efficient 14 of 22 for 258 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 47 more. He will only get better with experience. It was a promising start.

    Third down success: ASU was 8-for-15 (53.3%) on third down. In 2023, ASU converted just 54 of 173 attempts (31.2%).

    What went wrong?

    Two missed field goals: Hershey made his first two attempts before missing from the 38, and Carston Kieffer missed a 43-yarder late. Dillingham took some of the blame for the later miss, simply because Kieffer had been stationary for most of the game and wasn’t exactly loose.

    ASU sports: What sports are at school this week? Football, soccer to play in Tempe

    What to watch this week

    Injuries: Most of the players who missed this game are unlikely to return next week. One exception would be LB Jordan Crook. The good thing about the injuries is that they weren’t all on the same unit. There also didn’t appear to be any new injuries in the game.

    Keep the momentum going: ASU won more convincingly than anyone could have imagined. Next, the Sun Devils get a shot at a team from the mighty SEC. Sure, Mississippi State is one of that conference’s bottom feeders, but it’s still an SEC school, and ASU has a chance to make a statement.

    Numbers

    Attack (A): The offense racked up 499 receiving yards and 27 first downs. The Sun Devils didn’t score until 6:45 left in the third quarter. Sophomore Kyson Brown had 73 receiving yards on two catches, one of which went 68 yards for a touchdown. The time of possession was in ASU’s favor from 37:04 to 22:56.

    Defense (A+): Brian Ward’s group limited the Cowboys to eight first downs and just 118 total yards. The Sun Devils also scored 14 points on defense with Fiaseu returning an interception for a touchdown and Wodtly returning a fumble for another. LB Keyshaun Elliott recorded a team-high seven tackles and an interception. The Sun Devils had three sacks and the pass rush was solid.

    Special teams (B-): Parker Lewis handled kickoffs and had six touchbacks on nine attempts. True freshman punter Kanyon Floyd averaged 46 yards on two attempts, a 10-yard improvement over how ASU performed throughout the 2023 season. Melquan Stovall had four punt returns for 38 yards, including one return for 20 yards. ASU’s coverage teams were also solid. The only sore point here were two missed field goal attempts of 38 and 43 yards. Ian Hershey’s returns of 24 and 29 yards were good.

    Staff notes

    Several players were injured: DL Anthonie Cooper (knee), Prince Dorbah (knee), RB Raleek Brown (hamstring), OL Sean Na’a (undisclosed), OL Jalen Klemm (undisclosed), LB Jordan Crook and LB Tate Romney (broken arm). Elijah O’Neal, whom Dillingham identified as the player who improved the most in camp, started in place of Dorbah, while Cade Briggs started in place of Na’a at one guard. A total of 68 players entered the game, including a handful of walk-ons.

    Next

    The Sun Devils remain home for a 7:30 p.m. game against Mississippi State on Saturday at Mountain America Stadium. The Bulldogs, who are 5-7 in 2023, opened the season with a 56-7 win over Eastern Kentucky on Saturday.

    ASU has never defeated an SEC school. This will be the first meeting between the schools.

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