(CORVALLIS, OR) Sun Devil Football closed out the 2020 regular season in impressive fashion on Saturday, piling up 514 yards in total offense, including 375 yards on the ground, in a 46-33 win at Oregon State.
Photo – ASU Athletics
Rachaad White went over the 100-yard mark in rushing for the second consecutive week with 158 yards and a pair of touchdown runs on only 13 carries. White, who averaged 12.2 yards each time he received a handoff from quarterback Jayden Daniels, also accounted for 28 yards on two receptions.
In addition to White, Daniels (six carries, 83 yards, two touchdowns), Chip Trayanum (12 carries, 57 yards, one touchdown), Daniyel Ngata (10 carries, 48 yards) and Ricky Pearsall(one carry, 29 yards, one touchdown) all contributed to ASU’s highest single-game rushing total since churning out 396 yards in a win over the Beavers on Sept. 29, 2018.
SUN DEVIL TOP RUSHING GAMES (1996-PRESENT)
@Arizona, 450, Nov. 23, 1996
@New Mexico, 423, Sept. 6, 2014
Oregon, 405, Nov. 15, 1997
Oregon State, 396, Sept. 29, 2018
Colorado, 381, Nov. 4, 2017
@Oregon State, 375, Dec. 19, 2020
Daniels was his usual efficient self, throwing for 139 yards, including a 63-yard touchdown pass to Geordon Porter for ASU’s third touchdown of the game.
Photo – ASU Athletics
Defensively, the Sun Devils created a pair of turnovers, forced another turnover on downs and made the Beavers punt four times. Evan Fields led ASU’s defensive effort with 10 tackles while DeAndre Pierce and Kyle Soelle had nine stops apiece. Fields also forced a fumble and Pierce recorded a tackle for loss and came up with an interception on OSU’s first drive of the second half that eventually led to an ASU touchdown – a 53-yard touchdown run by Daniels – and a 33-15 lead.
Combined with last week’s 10-touchdown performance in their 70-7 Territorial Cup win at Arizona, Saturday’s victory at Oregon State gave perhaps the most accurate summation of what the 2020 Sun Devils were capable of had they not played such an uneven schedule – including the cancellation of three-straight games – due to Covid-19.
For only the second time this season, the Sun Devils found themselves playing consecutive weeks. More than 10 months removed from their Sun Bowl win last December, ASU was edged by eventual Pac-12 South champion USC in the season opener on November 7.
The next time the Sun Devils suited up for a game would not be until December 5 when they hosted UCLA. After taking a half to shake off a month’s worth of rust, ASU came back from 17 points down to take the lead before a late UCLA touchdown ended its comeback bid.
Like last week’s game at Arizona – a contest in which they built a 42-0 lead nearly 25 minutes into the game – the Sun Devils looked like a well-oiled machine in all phases of the game.
Photo – ASU Athletics
After giving up an early touchdown, the Sun Devils responded with 26 consecutive points to take a commanding 19-point lead after White’s four-yard touchdown run capped a seven-play, 60-yard drive.
White, who earned the Bob Moran Territorial Cup Most Valuable Player award behind his 133-yard, three-touchdown effort in last week’s win, came up with ASU’s first big play of the night with a 51-yard dash that moved the Sun Devils inside the five-yard line. Trayanum capped the drive with a two-yard run to knot the score at 7-7
The Sun Devil special teams set up ASU’s next score after a blocked punt gave ASU possession of the ball at the Beaver 37-yard line. The Sun Devils calmly marched their way to the end zone with an eight-play drive that took nearly four minutes off the clock. Daniels’ first touchdown of the night, a seven-yard run gave ASU a lead it would retain for the remainder of the game.
Less than two minutes later the Sun Devils struck again. One play after Jermayne Lolerecovered a fumble forced by Fields, Daniels dialed up Porter for a long-distance connection that covered 63 yards and increased ASU’s lead to 19-7.
White concluded the flurry of 26 points – which took just over 12 minutes of game time – with a four-yard touchdown run that gave the Devils a 26-7 lead midway through the second quarter.
The Beavers would draw within 12 points after scoring a touchdown that cut ASU’s lead to 33-21 with 7:06 remaining in the third quarter.
White made sure the Beavers would get no closer as he anesthetized their comeback hopes with a 55-yard touchdown run on ASU’s ensuing drive to once again make it a three-score game, 40-21.
In their final two games of the season, the Sun Devils (2-2, 2-2 Pac-12) accumulated 17 touchdowns – 13 rushing, three passing, one on a kickoff return – for 116 points while amassing 1,000 yards in total offense: 634 rushing, 366 passing with zero turnovers.
Defensively, the Sun Devils forced nine turnovers (five fumbles, four interceptions) in addition to giving the ball back to its offense on downs on five times.
Press Release courtesy of ASU Athletics
