Although Shaun Aguano hasn’t specifically condemned offensive coordinator Glenn Thomas’s recent offensive play calling with his words, he has now done so with his actions. Aguano is putting the fate of his interim head coach tenure fully in his own hands, taking over play calling duties in the wake of a disastrous performance that cost Arizona State the game at Stanford this past weekend. The Sun Devils didn’t score over the game’s final 44 minutes. The futility was obviously enough to warrant a shakeup not just potentially at quarterback but at the controls of the offense.
Aguano plans on being more aggressive and employing more of a no-huddle offense. Given how he’s spoken about his big, physical play making tight ends, they could be used as weapons in the pass game with him at the helm.
“I hope so!” Sophomore tight end Jalin Conyers said with a grin when asked if he and fellow tight end and Missouri transfer Messiah Swinson could be in line for more targets. “Messiah and I, we work our tails off every day to have the quarterbacks confident in us and ready to give us the ball. Personally, I want a lot more targets, and I know Messiah does too, so we’re just going to be available and do what we can to get the ball.”
Conyers, always loudly confident no matter the situation, elaborated on how an offense that can use the tight ends effectively as pass catching weapons can open up so much more for receivers and running backs. Prior to the season, Swinson and Conyers were touted as two of the most athletic tight ends in the conference. Swinson was billed as a player who would open up the aerial attack tremendously. He’s in essence, evolved into a sixth offensive linemen as the season has worn on. Swinson wasn’t targeted once at Stanford.
“No disrespect to any linebacker, but I feel like there’s not a linebacker in the country who can guard me,” Conyers remarked. “For guys like (Elijhah Badger) and (Giovanni Sanders), it really opens things up for them. Instead of having them get covered by two people, you have a tight end in the middle who can make plays. We have to do what we can to be able to get open and make plays.”
No Arizona State player can hope to avoid a media session without being asked about the new quarterback controversy between incumbent starter Emory Jones and former backup Trenton Bourguet. All their teammates have been strictly political in their replies regarding the duel, even the often over-loquacious Jalin Conyers.
“I’m confident in anyone that we put back there. Obviously, anyone will have their struggles back there,” Conyers continued. “I’m relying on either of them, we’re all relying on both of those guys to be ready on Saturday, and I know they will be.”
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Last week, members of the Arizona State defense expressed excitement regarding coordinator Donnie Henderson’s plan to bring more pressure at the quarterback from all levels of the defense. It paid off when employed at Stanford, as the Sun Devils notched a season-high four sacks. One of those came from cornerback Ed Woods, which was a surprise not only to fans but to at least one of Woods’ teammates.
“I’m not gonna lie, I wasn’t expecting that,” safety Jordan Clark said. When they called it, I was like, Oh. My. Gosh. But it worked, and I was really, really excited for him.”
Clark said that the play made him envious and that he can’t wait for his blitzing number to be called by Henderson. Picking up a sack is one thing he hasn’t done in his lengthy collegiate career.
“Man, I’m trying; I need one. I’ve been in college for like 30 years, and I still don’t have one,” Clark lamented.
He may not have a sack, but he does have two interceptions and a touchdown. Those numbers are what defensive backs dream about. Clark attributes the success in the takeaway category to studying and being himself. He believes he and his teammates are at their best when they play instinctively and trust one another.
“I think I’m just playing free,” Clark explained. “I’ve been hesitant (in the past), just not trusting what I’ve seen. So, I’m just trying to put in more time, so when I see what I see, I believe it.”
Clark was visibly emotional following the Stanford loss. As one of the elder statesmen in the ASU locker room, his role as a leader has been tested not only because of the win-loss record or the unusually timed coaching change but because of a losing team’s dangerous direction of getting too comfortable with losing. With captain Emory Jones perhaps on the hot seat as the starter and captain Ladarius Henderson sidelined with an injury; other veteran voices are expected to step up in the locker room.
“In our room, we’ve just been talking about fighting complacency,” Clark said. “Delivering that message that we played a good game, but we lost. And that’s not good enough.”
Colorado has had an abysmal season, especially on the offensive side. They’re last among their Pac-12 foes in passing yards with 1,236, second to last in rushing yards with 767, and their 96 total points through seven games are worst in the conference by a staggering 67-point margin. Simply put, Colorado is on the short list of the worst power five teams in the country, not only this year but in recent history.
Although ASU is only a win better than the 1-6 Buffaloes, the Sun Devils are much better on paper. Athleticism, discipline, and continuity are just a few areas in which the embattled ASU team clears the embarrassingly low hurdle of Colorado. Don’t be fooled by Arizona State being a double-digit favorite, however. They’ve been that before. If you’ve watched this team for much of this season, you know that the games aren’t won and lost on paper. Arizona State is taking no one lightly.
“They have some fast receivers; they like to take vertical shots,” Clark scouted. “Their quarterback has a pretty good arm. They’re physical blockers. Expect the unexpected; they could come out and do anything at this time.”
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