Time continues to wind down before Saturday morning’s early kickoff gets a late-starting season going for Arizona State. Sophomore quarterback Jayden Daniels spent last year’s matchup between the two Pac-12 foes standing on the sideline watching fellow freshman Joey Yellen make his lone start of the season for the Sun Devils.
Beginning the Pac-12 season in November has given Daniels’ time to absorb and observe the performances of other quarterbacks in his recruiting class. Daniels’ absence during the two team’s 2019 matchup afforded him the chance to key in on USC quarterback Kedon Slovis, who showcased some of the skills that allowed him to throw for 3,502 yards and 30 touchdowns as a freshman for the Trojans.
“I’m very excited for the duel between us,” said Daniels of the quarterback battle between him and Slovis, who hails from Scottsdale, Ariz. “Being able to play against him this year, some things that stood out to me watching him is just he’s a good quarterback. Accuracy, he’s very accurate.”
Against the Sun Devils last November, Slovis took early advantage of the ASU defense, putting up 28 first-quarter points capped off by a 95-yard touchdown pass to Trojans receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown. The early lead for the Trojans was cut into by Yellen and the ASU offense, but still resulted in a 31-26 USC win.
“He has control of the offense,” Daniels told reporters Wednesday afternoon as to what stood out about his quarterback peer. “I’m pretty sure he’ll have more control of the offense in year two.”
As the Sun Devils approach their first game action since their New Year’s Eve Sun Bowl win over Florida State, sophomore quarterback Jayden Daniels and offensive coordinator Zak Hill are closing in on a complete game plan as they match up with No. 20 USC. Between the opening week matchup and the challenge of implementing a highly-regarded quarterback into his offensive system, there are parallels to things Hill has already accomplished to this point in his career.
In 2016 – Hill’s first season as offensive coordinator at Boise State – Hill took over with a talented quarterback coming off a highly-decorated opening season and high expectations. Fresh off being named Mountain West Freshman of the Year and to the conference’s first-team honor, Rypien joined forces with Hill to create a tandem which saw Rypien leave Boise State as the conference’s all-time leader in passing yards and completions. In a similar fashion to this year – where Arizona State’s highest profile game comes in its opening week – the Broncos went into Tallahassee to open the 2019 season and won a statement game with another quarterback (true freshman Hank Bachmeier) in his first year with Hill.
Those experiences give Hill confidence in accomplishing one of the main tasks for which he was hired by head coach Herm Edwards: optimize Jayden Daniels.
“It’s almost more like when I first got to Boise, that was after Brett Rypien’s year where he was a freshman All-American,” Hill explained. “You’re still kind of feeling each other out once you get into game day and having some games under your belt that helps with everything.
“Just trying to give [Daniels] the best advice possible and let him go out there and feel free to go make plays. We don’t want him scared to make a mistake. We want him feeling like he’s got control.”
Daniels appeared to make strides in the aggressiveness department near the end of his freshman campaign, with over 400 yards passing and three touchdowns in ASU’s upset win over No. 6 Oregon. Turnovers, of course, were never an issue for the Sun Devil signal-caller in year one, with only two interceptions.
“What we’re good at we implemented, and we have different wrinkles on stuff,” said Daniels in preparation for his first game with a new play-caller.
Under new USC defensive coordinator Todd Orlando, the Trojans are expected to show some looks in a 3-3-5 scheme, similar to what ASU used defensively under former defensive coordinator Danny Gonzales.
“You’re always trying to find as a coaching staff as you’re game-planning for each team where you feel like you have advantages and where you feel like they might have some advantages,” said Hill, who coordinated a Boise State offense which ranked 19th in the country in points per game with 34.7. “Trying to put a plan together that’s going to be simple for our guys to execute but also hard for the defense. With all the stuff we put in during fall camp and over the COVID period, we’re just trying to select the main things that we feel like we can execute and go play fast and go be physical.”
In order to get the most out of Daniels, the Sun Devils will have to be on the same page early on in game action, with just six regular-season opportunities on the schedule. The added sense of urgency has emphasized making the sophomore quarterback as comfortable as possible, specifically in play-calling.
“I feel like if we execute the way we want to, you’ll see a lot of points put up on the board,” said Daniels of an ASU offense looking to improve on a 24.8 points per game mark in 2019. “The relationship that me and [Hill] have over this time is growing and growing each and every day. He makes sure that I’m comfortable with the game plan, and he tells me to go look over the game plan that we have. Is there anything I don’t like?
“If I don’t like it; we’ll just throw it out. Because he wants me and the whole offense to go out there and play fast, not really do too much thinking.”
Join your fellow Sun Devil fans on our premium message board, the Devils’ Huddle, to discuss this article and other ASU football and recruiting topics. Not a member yet? Sign up today here and get all the latest Sun Devil news!
