Halftime Report: Arizona State trails BYU 17-3

Throughout the week, before traveling to Provo to face No. 8 BYU, Arizona State had questions about preparing for a road matchup against a top-10 team.

On Saturday afternoon, the Sun Devils trailed the Cougars 17-3 at halftime, with freshman quarterback Jake Fette making his first career start. Fette struggled in the opening half, managing just 48 passing yards on 9-of-18 attempts, while Arizona State’s offensive line allowed six sacks.

“They're so multiple in their pass defense," head coach Kenny Dillingham said of BYU's defense Monday. "They play cover two sim. They play cover two trap off pressure. They play three sim. They play cover three. They play man free. They play quarters. They play cover six, all on base downs.

"You don't know what you're going to get. It's very confusing because they play so many different coverages, and then they line up with three high safeties. ... That's why I think Coach Taki is one of the best coaches in college football. He's been very successful on defense for a long time. I remember playing him back in the day when I was here as a GA, and I remember him having one of the better defenses. He just does a phenomenal job.”

One of the only bright spots for Arizona State on the offensive end is freshman running back Cardae Mack, who has 12 carries and 79 yards, after a career night in the team's win over the Kansas State Wildcats on October 24.

In the moments before kickoff, Mikey Keene—the Sun Devils’ starting quarterback the previous week—was seen warming up on the sidelines. However, with Keene sidelined by injury, Arizona State turned to Fette to make his first start.

“Just continue to work," Dillingham said of Fette. "There's no way to expedite the progression. The progression's the progression. You just go to work as hard as you can every day and try to be the best version of yourself on Saturday. It's cliche, but it's all you can really do. But there's not like, oh, it's my time now. I just need to expedite my process. I hope we were expediting the process for the last nine months to be ready for the opportunity.” 

As the Sun Devils continue to navigate a roller-coaster season and lose players to injuries, the big question is how they can finish on a high note, and that could start with the Cougars, although it's been a challenging place to play in Provo.