The Good, The Bad & The Ugly in Arizona State's game against Texas A&M

Arizona State played an interesting game against Texas A&M last Saturday. The Sun Devils lost by 28 points but outgained the Aggies by 114 yards.

The Good

The Sun Devils' rush defense was outstanding, keeping the Aggies to 2.6 yards per rush. The rush defense was a strength last season, and holding the Aggies to 92 yards on 35 attempts is something that can continue into future games.

Senior wide receiver Reed Harris logged another outstanding game, hauling in nine receptions for 189 yards and a pair of touchdowns. 71 of his yards came after the catch, showing he can make key plays when needed. Harris is fourth in the NCAA in reception yards.

The Bad

The red zone offense struggled, scoring only a field goal in its two red-zone drives. The first drive stalled out after a pair of incompletions. The second drive crept into the red zone on the final play of the drive.

The Sun Devils struggled on third downs, converting three of 12. They averaged 6.8 yards to go and went one of three from four yards or less.

Sixth-year kicker Carson Smith’s two field goals were the only thing going great on special teams. Senior Nick McLarty only averaged 41.5 yards per punt, with one being a touchback, and none inside the 15-yard line. One of McLarty’s punts had poor coverage, allowing a 21-yard return from junior wide receiver Terry Bussey.

The Sun Devils failed a fake punt on fourth down on their own 42, turning the ball over on downs, which allowed the Aggies to score a field goal, expanding the lead to four at that time. Sophomore wide receiver Corey Butler Jr. muffed a punt, allowing the Aggies to recover, and they scored a touchdown on the drive, giving them the first points of the game.

The Ugly

The Sun Devils had six giveaways in the game: a muffed punt, two turnovers on downs, two interceptions and a fumble. Two of those were tied to special teams in the first half, as already mentioned. All others came in the fourth quarter in consecutive drives.

The Sun Devils' 4th quarter was a disaster as they were outscored 24-0. To start, Texas A&M finished a touchdown drive after the Bussey return. 

The turning point came when sophomore defensive end Marco Jones picked off a pass for a pick-six after fifth-year right tackle Jalen Klemm got beat by senior defensive end T.J. Searcy on a bull rush, allowing Arizona State junior quarterback Cutter Boley to get hit and the ball to float to Jones. Arizona State was on short field after Texas A&M senior punter Tyler White bobbled a snap.

When the Sun Devils got the ball back, they lost it again on the first play of the drive after senior defensive lineman Sam M'Pemba punched the ball out of senior running back Kyson Brown’s left arm. The Aggies scored a field goal on the drive. 

Boley’s second interception was on a screen pass after he jumped on his throw. Fifth-year corner Julio Humphrey jumped the route and scored a touchdown.

Arizona State had nine accepted penalties for 62 yards compared to Texas A&M’s one penalty for five yards. Three of the four offensive penalties were presnap. One was an illegal formation that nullified a 19-yard Harris third-down conversion. 

Defensively, the Sun Devils had four for 32 yards. Two were offsides. The others resulted in Aggie first downs. The Sun Devils also received a penalty on special teams that nullified a Jalen Moss return that would have put the Sun Devils in decent field position.