It was tough sledding yet again for ASU football on Saturday, and the team’s newcomers did not do much to help in the 34-13 loss to Utah.

Here is the full newcomer report:

Offense

Florida transfer quarterback Emory Jones played his worst game as a Sun Devil. The redshirt junior was misfiring all night. Most of his passes were screaming fastballs that went over the head of his targets or dangerous floaters. He threw his first two interceptions of the season, the first of which was especially bad. He looked to his right for senior Virginia Union transfer Charles Hall (two catches, 36 yards in the game), and the pass was read perfectly by Utah cornerback Clark Phillips. Jones had no chance of completing the pass.

While his offensive line did not help much, he hung onto the ball too long at times, taking sacks he probably could have avoided for the most part. He could have utilized his legs more instead of just standing in the pocket. He finished 21-36 (58.3 percent) with 261 yards, one touchdown, and the two interceptions.

“I didn’t play my best ball today,” Jones admitted. “That’s something that I have to lock into this week and make sure that I give my guys the best chance to win.”

After such a subpar performance by the signal caller, ASU may consider moving to either redshirt junior Trenton Bourguet or redshirt junior and Alabama transfer Paul Tyson. While Utah does have a top-10 defense in the country, ASU could have had much more success in the game offensively if Jones had been able to hit open receivers and not take as many sacks. Shaking things up at the position could be what the Sun Devils need to get their offense going. It is at least worth a try.

Another fresh face struggling on offense was running back Xazavian Valladay. The graduate transfer from Wyoming had just eight carries for 30 yards, gaining a season-low 3.8 yards per attempt. He did have four receptions for 29 yards, which was a season-high in both categories.

Defense

Other than struggling to get off the field on later downs, ASU’s defense had a decent game. The first-year defenders were a big part of the solid performance.

Graduate transfer Khoury Bethley had the game of his ASU career so far. The former Hawaii defensive back had a game-high and an ASU career-high 14 total tackles and forced a fumble late in the first quarter. ASU was unable to recover, but it was still a great play.

Miami transfer defensive lineman Nesta Jade Silvera also had a solid night. The graduate student had 12 total tackles, a quarterback hit, and half a tackle for loss. His best play of the game was when he combined with linebacker Connor Soelle for a one-yard tackle for loss to bring up third down and long late in the first half.

Special Teams

Special teams were the highlight of the night for ASU, and the newcomers were a big part of that performance. True freshman kicker Carter Brown hit both of his field goal attempts. His first one was 36 yards and his second make was a career-long 47 yards.

One of Brown’s field goals was set up by another fresh face making a great play. True freshman wide receiver Javen Jacobs returned a kick 47 yards to the 47-yard-line late in the first half. The offense on teh ensuing drive set up Brown for his 47-yarder.

Other newcomers seeing playing time in the game

Junior Samford transfer defensive back Chris Edmonds (five total tackles)

Graduate San Diego State transfer offensive lineman Chris Martinez

Graduate Penn State transfer offensive lineman Des Holmes

Redshirt junior Vanderbilt transfer receiver Cam Johnson (two catches, eight yards)

Junior junior college transfer defensive back Tarik Luckett (two total tackles)

Junior University of Mary transfer defensive back Damon Williamson

Sophomore junior college transfer linebacker James Djonkham (two tackles)

Redshirt senior Northern State transfer offensive lineman Emmit Bohle

Redshirt junior Missouri transfer tight end Messiah Swinson (one catch, 11 yards, touchdown)

Redshirt junior and junior college transfer defensive lineman Dylan Hall (one total tackle)

Sophomore junior college transfer defensive lineman Jalil Rivera-Harvey (one total tackle)

True freshmen who have not yet appeared in four games, therefore preserving their redshirt year

Quarterback Bennett Meredith (no appearances)

Running back Tevin White (one game played)

Tight end Jacob Newell (out for the year due to a preseason injury)

Defensive lineman Robby Harrison (two games played)

Defensive lineman Blazen Lono-Wong (no appearances)

WR Javen Jacobs (three games played)

***

True freshmen kicker Carter Brown has appeared in four games and, as the starting placekicker, is not expected to redshirt. Playing in the upcoming game at USC will officially remove the chance of him redshirting.

Join your fellow Sun Devil fans on our premium message board, the Devils’ Huddle, run by the longest-tenured Sun Devil sports beat writer, to discuss this article and other ASU football, basketball, and recruiting topics. Not a member yet? Enjoy a 30-Day FREE trial by signing up today here and get all the latest Sun Devil news!