When Arizona State takes the field positionally, it’s almost guaranteed for several players to show up and perform no matter the circumstance. Players such as junior quarterback Jayden Daniels, senior linebacker Darien Butler, redshirt senior running back Rachaad White, graduate student linebacker Kyle Soelle, or a slew of others are the first names that come to mind.

Barring injury, it’s known that the offensive line will be the same five starters each week or that Daniels will be the go-to option in the backfield alongside White and sophomore DeaMonte Trayanum. Ambiguity doesn’t exist much on the Arizona State roster in Week Nine.

However, the wide receiver room is still a place that is unpredictable in producing a player who will show out each week. There’s no N’Keal Harry to throw the ball up to in a jump ball situation, no Brandon Aiyuk to find downfield open on a streak. There’s too much talent in the room for that. Offensive coordinator Zak Hill has been vocal in his belief in a “by committee” approach, and that didn’t change on Wednesday.

“Our wide receivers each week can be different,” Hill remarked. “Guys are stepping up, and some game plans may favor a certain guy as well, so we are still trying to find a good fit. We got a lot of guys in that room that can be productive and are very competitive. It’s tough getting all those guys the balls they want.”

The committee differs each day, each practice, and each game. Junior Ricky Pearsall was the head of the committee against UCLA. Early in the season versus UNLV, redshirt freshmen LV Bunkley-Shelton and Johnny Wilson had big days. Playing Colorado at home, it was White who rang up a 70-yard house call through the air.

Recently, it’s been graduate student tight end Curtis Hodges who has been the most consistent option catching the ball through the air. The Mesa native leads the team in receptions with 31 catches for 331 yards and a touchdown.

In Hill’s offense, it can be just about anybody’s day. The coaches want to get the ball around to diversify the attack and keep their players happy, but that isn’t always how football is played.

“You want them all to be consistent,” interim wide receivers coach Bobby Wade said. “You definitely wish that they all can have the same number of opportunities; that’s just not how the game works, though. Especially within our offense, we are really focused on putting the best guys out there… One guy might stand out one week; another guy might stand out the next week. In general, they are all being pushed to be the guy.”

“We’d love to spread it around even more; we are trying to get multiple guys touches,” Hill added. “We feel like we have guys that deserve that and then also just trying to keep defenses off balance too. Each guy is different in each week in how healthy they are or whatever’s happened throughout that week, so you’re always making changes.”

While it may be helpful to have a number one receiver and prove a daunting task to get the ball to a surplus of pass catchers, neither matter if you can’t earn consistent gains and move the sticks. The second half against Utah was a perfect example of that, as the passing attack faltered down the stretch, inclining the ASU coaching staff to run the football.

The Sun Devils ran 29 offensive plays against Utah in the second half, with a balanced 15 run/14 pass play breakdown. While the offense might have gained 80 yards through the air compared to just the 17 tallied on the ground, third-down miscues played spoiler.

“We were trying to run the football a little bit and control the game,” Hill recalled. “We missed two of those first third downs – we let one drop and also had a misfire on the spread out. That took us out of drives. You’re limited to the first three plays, and you’re not able to get into some of the other stuff that you keep a defense unbalanced with.”

After the tough loss and the constant adjustment of receivers, Hill and Co. were ready for the bye week and time off. Much like head coach Herm Edwards, Hill found himself heavily occupied during the week though, balancing recruiting, but most importantly, self-evaluation.

“I think we were ready for a bye going into Week Eight,” Hill admitted. “I think our coaches, players were ready for a deep breath. We wanted to go sort things out, go back through our offense and defense. We wanted to get our guys back mentally and health-wise too; I think it came at a good time.”

“You always want to win going into a week off,” Wade agreed. “Fortunately for us with the injuries and how we need to get some guys back at this point of the season, it was really going to work well for us… I thought we had a really good week of preparation for the younger guys. Hopefully, we can get the guys back that we were anticipating to and get them back playing at a high level.”

One such potential returnee to the lineup is the six-foot-seven wideout Wilson, who has been out of the lineup since the Sept. 25 matchup with Colorado. Wilson’s kryptonite has been a hamstring injury, but head coach Herm Edwards announced Monday that he’s on track to return ahead of the Washington State contest. Amidst his comeback, Wade shared his thought on how the unit has performed without one of its star pupils.

“It’s an unfortunate situation when your guy gets hurt like that but what it does create is opportunities for others that they might not have had if Johnny was healthy,” Wade shared. “With that said, a lot of our guys have stepped up to the challenge… It’s really good for the young guys to see how football actually works. You’re one guy away, one injury away, one play away from having an opportunity.”

With Washington State on the horizon, the main tasks on the table for the ASU coaches are properly preparing and making sure the lessons learned in last week’s bye are not a lost cause. That starts with the offense minimizing mistakes and penalties, something it’s done in excess, as 33 of 67 penalties are their responsibility. To be successful, the errors must be reduced.

“We really need to eliminate our mistakes,” Wade expressed. “When you’re a young team like we are in some areas, there’s so many of these opportunities that are very small, minor details that change the outcome of the game. Good teams know how to finish, which is something that we learned last week against Utah.”

“We have to find a way to finish the game, but also have to find the process, which is paying attention to those details that actually make a difference within a game, those small inches, those small yards that will help us be victorious at the end.”

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