Scouting Report: UCLA vs Arizona State
Last season, UCLA ended up dropping its game to Arizona State by a score of 23-20, but they were able to contain Sun Devil running back Kalen Ballage to 24 net yards on 12 rushing attempts. (Daily Bruin file photo)
By Vikram Sairam
Nov. 9, 2017 2:08 a.m.
The Bruins have an uphill battle in the last three games of the season, and it starts with Arizona State on Saturday in Pasadena.
Despite a 5-4 record, Arizona State has been one of the hottest teams in the Pac-12 in recent weeks. Sun Devils coach Todd Graham has led his team to four victories in their last six games, including big wins against No. 9 Washington and Utah – teams that demolished UCLA.
Arizona State did, however, get blown out by No. 11 USC in a 48-17 loss on Oct. 28, and also took a loss to Stanford on Sep. 30 in a 34-24 result.
Their other two losses came against San Diego State and Texas Tech back in September.
Inconsistency has prevented this team from garnering a national rank – even with the amount of talent on the roster. With a 4-2 conference record, a game against UCLA is a chance for Arizona State to gain ground against a Pac-12 South team.
Arizona State’s offense
Base formation: multiple
Run/pass ratio: 55/45
Strengths: several run options
Weaknesses: inconsistency
X-factor: quarterback Manny Wilkins
Arizona State’s offense is pretty versatile. The program has a reputation for running quarterbacks, and this year is no different with Manny Wilkins under center.
Wilkins is one of the most notable quarterback prospects to come to ASU. His athleticism is elite and he makes linebackers and defensive lineman pay when he takes off. Watch this short run against Colorado.
On top of his 2,298 passing yards – good for 26th best in the nation – Wilkins is rocking a 64 percent completion rate and an 11-to-3 touchdown-to-interception ratio. Here’s a clip of a really impressive deep throw to the end zone last week.
Wilkins is a dual-threat quarterback who likes to run, but because of inconsistent offensive line play and a tough conference schedule, Wilkins hadn’t been able to showcase his running ability – until last week. Check out this long run he busted against Colorado.
Against Colorado, he ran for 95 yards on just 14 carries, including a rushing touchdown. Wilkins has five rushing touchdowns on the season and has busted runs of 10 yards or more in all his games but three.
Wilkins could be in for a career day Saturday against UCLA: A defense that has been giving up embarrassing numbers to both tailbacks and option quarterbacks alike.
UCLA’s rush defense will have to worry about a lot more than just Wilkins.
Running back Kalen Ballage was named to the Maxwell Award watch list at the beginning of the season, an award given to the nation’s best all-around football player at the conclusion of the season.
At 6 feet 3 inches and 230 pounds, Ballage poses a powerful running ability and is extremely hard to bring down, not great news for a Bruin team that has struggled to tackle. Here’s a goal line clip of him punching it in for the lone score in their win against Washington.
But so far this season, Ballage has rushed for just 421 yards on 4.1 yards a carry – pretty low numbers for one of the nation’s premier players. The reason why: fellow running back Demario Richard, who has split running duties with Ballage for the entirety of the season.
Richard is a complement to the power running style of Ballage. Standing at 5 feet 10 inches and 219 pounds, he’s an explosive tailback who can make the best of open space and running lanes.
After suffering from an injury-plagued 2016 year, Richard looks quite spry this year as he’s amassed 568 yards on the ground with an average of 4.5 yards per carry.
These two have combined for 11 rushing touchdowns as well as 26 catches for 146 yards – not to mention that both have been a part of the Sun Devils’ offense for four straight years.
Should Arizona State’s offensive line – which has been shaky throughout the year, especially in their loss to USC – play well enough against a struggling UCLA defense, it’ll be a long day for the Bruins. Expect the big men up front, who return three starters from last year, to create space for Ballage and Richard.
And if the Sun Devils decide they want to try putting the ball in the air, watch out for wide receiver N’Keal Harry. The 6-feet-4-inches sophomore is just six yards shy of 800 yards receiving with only three games left in the season, and has four touchdowns as well on 13.2 yards per reception.
Arizona State’s defense
Base formation: 4-3/multiple
Blitz tendency: medium
Strengths: veteran bunch
Weaknesses: secondary prone to big plays
X-factor: linebacker Alani Latu
The Sun Devils have given up 30 points or more in all their games but two – their 13-7 upset of the Huskies and their 30-10 win over the Utes.
Arizona State’s defense played phenomenally against Washington – registering five sacks, nine tackles for loss and seven pass deflections. Husky quarterback Jake Browning was held to a below average 17 for 30 for number of completions per number of attempts over 139 yards.
A lot of this came at the hands of linebacker Christian Sam – the Sun Devils’ leading tackler with 95 on the season. That comes with six-and-a-half tackles for loss and three sacks as well. Sam has also put up double digit tackles in seven of his nine games – demonstrating a clear knack for finding the football. Check out this big hit below.
Led by Sam, this defense sports nine upperclassmen that have vast experience in conference play. The surprise on this defense comes from Alani Latu, a redshirt senior linebacker who was competing for the Spur linebacker spot on defensive coordinator Phil Bennett’s scheme.
Latu has thrived since earning the spot, boasting a team-leading six sacks. Latu also brings coverage ability on top of his pass rushing skills, often dropping back in coverage to confuse quarterbacks. Watch him blow up Colorado quarterback Steven Montez.
All in all, this is a defense that has been inconsistent, but has shown an ability to step up when they want to. The Sun Devils have amassed an impressive 30 sacks on the season and seven interceptions – with 11 different players having recorded a sack.
They’ll likely get a shot at junior quarterback Josh Rosen, who has been working his way through concussion protocol and is likely to start Saturday.
