When asked this week whether or not he thought Saturday’s tilt against a high-powered Texas Tech team would turn into a shootout, Arizona State junior running back Kalen Ballage scoffed.
It wouldn’t happen, he said. His reason?
“Intuition.”
I’m sure he’s glad he was wrong.
Ballage was brilliant Saturday evening in Tempe, putting on the show of his career in a 68-55 win over the Red Raiders that could very well insert him into premature Heisman conversations.
The numbers itself are jarring – of his fifteen total touches, eight ended with him crossing into the end zone. That total matched an NCAA record set by Illinois’ Howard Griffith, shattering the previous Pac-12 record and marking the most-ever scores against a major conference opponent. Ballage in total accounted for 48 points – more than 93 other FBS programs who were in action on Saturday.
It was a performance that reminded Ballage of his younger days, when he dominated the youth circuit with an unparalleled size and athleticism. On Saturday, he did the same to a group of Division I athletes.
“Pop Warner, it happened, a lot,” he said. “But this is college football and that’s big.”
The Sun Devil offense worked its way through a variety of potential heroes – offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey’s creative play calling, quarterback Manny Wilkins’ over 400 total yards of offense and receiver N’Keal Harry’s overall poise as a true freshman come to mind – but none formed quite the same identity as Ballage branded onto Texas Tech.
ASU head coach Todd Graham said the numbers, while impressive, are just the beginning for his young back.
“Kalen is a guy who, you see it in the spring with him and Demario [Richard], but they have improved their game,” Graham said. “[Kalen]’s just starting to surface of his potential. Both of those guys, I’m so impressed with.”
The Texas Tech defense has been futile against the run in the past, finishing fourth-worst among FBS programs last season, but were even exposed through the debut of a special new offensive package. A “Wildcat” goal line set, which could be dubbed the “Wrecking Ballage” after Saturday, saw direct snaps to Ballage account for six of his eight scores.
Not too shabby for a package that Ballage said has only been in place for two weeks.
“Well you know, we kept coming to the sideline and talking to each other saying their offense is great,” Ballage said. “They put on a great show but our defense got a couple of stops and we tried to capitalize on it as much as we could. We got out there and said we are going to have to be unstoppable every time we touched the field and that’s what we ended up doing.”
Ballage’s effort spearheaded a dominant offense that put up 652 total yards, far exceeding expectations and perhaps adjusting what could be possible from this unit. Much of this was possible, Ballage said, to a rebuilt offensive line coming together. When Ballage walked in for his starring moment at the postgame podium, he had the five in front of him – just as they had been all night.
“These guys right here (O-line), every single one of them, they go to work,” he said. “Every practice, every lift, everything we do they have been focusing and it shows. Tonight, what they did up front was actually amazing and that’s why I decided to bring all five of them up here because they deserve it.”
Junior college transfer AJ McCollum made his first career start at center, sliding Stephon McCray to right guard and Quinn Bailey to right tackle. The transition was seamless, and when they felt the game starting to shift in their favor the unit turned a solid performance into dominance at the line of scrimmage.
“I think at that point, it’s just going for the jugular,” McCollum said. “You’re just at their throat and you want to keep it going.”
For Ballage himself, it was finally a shining moment. The junior back has been ogled over since he first arrived on campus, with brief flashes of what was to come. He was hidden at times by his partner in the backfield, Demario Richard, and at others was held back by issues beyond his control. Injuries slowed his freshman year, but he came back with high expectations as a sophomore. Just 48 hours before the season opener, mononucleosis drove a shunt into his progress yet again.
Saturday, Ballage had his shining moment.
“This year is amazing and honestly what feels even better is all that stuff is in the past and it’s really these guys,” Ballage said. “When you have injuries or illnesses you get down on yourself, you really do, and your confidence isn’t where it should be. These guys picked me up and helped me get to where I needed to be and I’m there now. They pick me up and told me after season, after season, after season, that everything is going to be ok and now we’re in a position to where we’re a good football team and we’re going to keep winning football games.”
Ballage did something Graham felt his team needed as a whole – a statement. For the doubters, the college football world, the detractors after a 44-13 win over NAU, Ballage and the Sun Devils put teams on notice with a double-digit victory over a quality opponent in a way few thought they could.
“Our guys had something to say tonight, and they did,” Graham said. “I was really proud of them. They went out, and it was pretty intense in the locker room. I kind of liked it. I could’ve played, maybe one play.
“We had a lot of new guys, and you’re there and there’s bullets flying around. It takes a little bit to get your legs underneath you, and just getting into the speed of the game. What I like, is that sense in that locker room, from our team, that we knew this was a big game. This was a big game for us, and it moved us forward.”
