The game last year between the Oregon Ducks and the Arizona State Sun Devils ended with questions and controversy galore. An overtime touchdown that was unclear after initial views and an offside call that didn’t get flagged caused many in Sparky’s colors to be more than a little upset at the final decision. Now it is a new season, and a chance for Todd Graham to rectify all the mistakes in that game with a win this week.
Shoulder Could Bench Wilkins Again
Manny Wilkins has been on again and off again all season with his slew of injuries including his ankle and now a shoulder injury. Last week he was knocked out of the game by the Washington State Cougars in a tough game that saw the Sun Devils drop in the standings and Todd Graham drop a few expletives in a profanity laced post game handshake amongst the rumors that he was stealing signs by Mike Leach, head coach of WSU. Now with Wilkins potentially missing yet another game the idea that Wilkins may never be healthy enough to finish the season is surely swimming in Graham’s head as this shoulder injury could end up nagging his quarterback for the remainder of the schedule. Dillon Sterling-Cole will be the next man up if Wilkins turns out to require the week off, and Sterling-Cole has been caught at practice working with the starters throughout the week. Oregon would love to get Sterling-Cole off tempo early and force him to play backyard football in the pocket, scrambling around to buy time as Oregon has always been known to have the athletes in the front four. If they can get a few chase down sacks, all the better for the home team.
Shaking Off the Streak
From division leaders to middle of the pack. It is amazing what a few weeks in the world of football can do to a program. Three weeks ago the Sun Devils looked like they could make a run as the front runner in the Pac – 12 South division. Now they are fourth after three straight losing performances in the conference. Now they go up against a team that is also battling within themselves try and regain their form, except with Oregon they are trying to get their form from perhaps three years ago as opposed to weeks. This Oregon team cannot be confused with the old Chip Kelly squads from the glory days of the program. The Ducks have lost five straight games, four of them in conference. Sitting at a shaky 2 – 5 record, Oregon could miss out on a bowl game for the first time in almost 12 years. Both teams can blame their defenses for these performances as ASU has had perhaps the worst pass defense in the college ranks the past two years, and Oregon can’t seem to put the right talent together to make their scheme work as a unit. If either team is going to shake off the slumps they are in, the defenses must come together to stop their opponent.
Herbert Against Richard
Justin Herbert is a very talented young man. The quarterback for the Ducks stands 6′ 6” and has 507 yards and 8 touchdowns to his name in his two starts this season. He has taken over the job from former Eastern Washington quarterback Dakota Prukop and the freshman has not looked back. Last week alone he tossed six touchdowns against Cal, making his matchup against the ASU pass defense all that more worrisome for the coaches of ASU. The best they can hope for is to get the ball into the hands of Demario Richard early and often. The Oregon defense is giving up 5.5 yards per carry this year and Richard should be able to generate a strong presence carrying the ball throughout the night. However, with Wilkins likely missing the game, Oregon will keep 6 or 7 in the box throughout the game to try and entice Sterling-Cole to be the focus of the offense and get ASU to make a mistake. If Richard can’t get started early, look for Herbert to start laying it on ASU when given the opportunities.
The game will kick off from Eugene, OR at 2:00 PM this Saturday on the Pac – 12 Networks.