Arizona State football lost 30-21 to Eastern Michigan Saturday in one of the worst defeats in program history. The game was ultimately the final straw in the tenure of Herm Edwards as the school, and the coach mutually parted ways Sunday.
While the loss was on the team as a whole, ASU’s first-year players played a major role.
Here is the full newcomer report:
Offense
Transfer quarterback Emory Jones had his worst performance out of his three games to date at ASU. The former Florida player struggled all night, missing throws that could have resulted in big plays and even touchdowns. Also, he did not seem to necessarily have the trust of the ASU coaching staff.
With about eight minutes left in the first half, Jones missed a throw to wide receiver Andre Johnson which would have been a big play. On a second down play early in the third quarter, Jones missed Johnson again, overthrowing his wide receiver. Later on on the same drive, ASU finally decided to go deep. However, Jones overshot junior college transfer wideout Zeek Freeman. Freeman probably could have hung on to the pass but Jones did not make it easy on him. ASU decided to go deep two more times in the game following the misfire to Freeman. Sun Devil wide receiver Elijhah Badger should have hung onto the first of these two throws but the throw from Jones could have been a bit more crisp. The second of these two throws was entirely on Jones as he missed his target completely.
As for the apparent trust issues, they started from right off the bat. On ASU’s first drive of the game, the Sun Devils had a third and four and instead of throwing the ball with Jones, they decided to run. Later in the first half as the clock was winding down in the second quarter, ASU did not seem to want to run a quick offense where Jones threw passes down the field. ASU head coach Herm Edwards did refute this in his postgame press conference, saying the team was trying to move the ball quickly. It just did not seem like it from the outside looking in.
Jones finished the game 20-32 with 182 yards and one touchdown. He did run a bit more than Week 2 and scored a rushing touchdown late in the second quarter.
“I kind of feel like the whole week (the) team overall - we weren’t really locked in to the little bitty details that we usually are and I feel like it showed up today,” Jones said.
Transfer running back Xazavian Valladay had a good rushing night but his stats were a bit misleading. The former Wyoming star’s 16 attempts for 128 yards were helped by a 44-yard touchdown late in the game. He also had a crucial drop early in the fourth that could have been a solid gain.
Another ASU fresh face who struggled on offense was lineman Des Holmes. The Penn State transfer had a holding penalty in the first quarter, a false start penalty in the third quarter and a personal foul penalty late in the fourth quarter. All in all, accounting for a third of his team's nine penalties that night.
Defense
The biggest storyline from the game regarding ASU’s newcomers on defense was the absence of cornerback Ro Torrence. The Auburn transfer was hurt in ASU’s Week 2 loss to Oklahoma State and inactive for Saturday’s game. The loss of Torrence was big for the Sun Devils as he played a great game against the Cowboys.
ASU’s defense as a whole played awful on Saturday. The Sun Devils allowed a whopping 458 total yards. However, there were a couple bright spots from the ASU newcomers.
In the first half, Miami transfer Nesta Jade Silvera had the only pass breakup for ASU on a batted ball. Also, transfers Khoury Bethley and Chris Edmonds were tied for fourth on the team in the game in total tackles with six.
Special Teams
ASU freshman kicker Carter Brown hit all three of his extra points on the night and did not attempt a field goal.
Other newcomers seeing time Saturday:
Transfer offensive lineman Chris Martinez
Transfer wide receiver Charles Hall IV (two catches, 16 yards)
Transfer tight end Messiah Swinson (one target)
Junior college transfer wide receiver Shawn Charles
Junior college transfer linebacker James Djonkam
Transfer wide receiver Cam Johnson
Transfer offensive lineman Emmit Bohle
Freshman wide receiver Javen Jacobs
Transfer defensive lineman B’Ahmad Miller (one solo tackle)
Junior college transfer linebacker Dylan Hall (two assisted tackles)
Junior college transfer defensive lineman Jalil Rivera-Harvey (one solo tackle)
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