ASU hosts Arizona in State Farm Territorial Cup duel
After a snowy, 37-27 defeat at the hands of Washington State the Sun Devils will look to rebound against in-state rival Arizona in the State Farm Territorial Cup game on Saturday, November 19 at Frank Kush Field/Sun Devil Stadium. ASU enters the showdown with a 6-4 record, 4-3 in Pac-12 play. Arizona is 2-8, including a 1-7 mark in Pac-12 play. UA dropped a 48-29 decision at Colorado last week.
ON THE AIR: The IMG-Sun Devil Sports Network will carry all 12 of ASU's football games live on their 10-station radio network. Tim Healey (play-by-play) and former Sun Devil quarterback Jeff Van Raaphorst (color analyst) will call the action. The Arizona game will air on 620 AM. The game will also air on Sirius/XM radio (139/195).
LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION: Arizona State's game with Arizona will be broadcast by Fox Sports Arizona. Tom Leander, Adam Archuleta and John Fina will call the action.
SUN DEVILS VS. WILDCATS: This will be the 85th Duel in the Desert, with Arizona leading the all-time series 46-37-1. Arizona State won an instant classic last season in Tucson, beating UA 30-29 in double overtime. The Wildcats won the last meeting in Tempe, beating ASU 20-17 in 2009.
COACH ERICKSON VS. ARIZONA: Dennis Erickson is 9-4 in his career against Arizona, including a 2-2 mark at Arizona State.
FINDING PAYDIRT: Junior running back Cameron Marshall added another touchdown on the ground against Washington State, giving him 25 in his career. He is one of only 11 Sun Devils all time to score at least 20 touchdowns on the ground. The 25 puts him in a tie for fifth place all-time in ASU history with Ben Malone (1971-73)
THE TERRITORIAL CUP: The Territorial Cup is awarded annually to the winner of the football game between Arizona State University and the University of Arizona. The NCAA has certified it as the oldest award given for a rivalry game.
BLACK OUT: Arizona State will be hosting the second Black Out Game of the season against Arizona. The Sun Devils will don their All Black uniforms for the match-up with the Wildcats.
CAPTAINS: Omar Bolden, Garth Gerhart, Brock Osweiler, Colin Parker and T.J. Simpson have been named the captains of the 2011 Sun Devil football team.
WASHINGTON STATE RECAP: Jamal Miles returned the game's opening kickoff 95-yards for a touchdown, but ASU could not stop the Cougars aerial attack, as WSU beat the Sun Devils 37-27 on a cold, snowy night in Pullman. Brock Osweiler threw for 351 yards and Gerell Robinson had 158 yards receiving, but WSU's Connor Halliday tossed four touchdowns and threw for 494 yards to lead the Cougars to the win.
STATE FARM TERRITORIAL CUP SERIES: The winner of the Arizona/Arizona State game will earn a point for its school in the State Farm Territorial Cup Series. The schools compete in 17 common varsity sports, and the school that accumulates the most points over the course of the school year will win the competition.
MARSHALL OF THE TOUCHDOWN: Cameron Marshall has set a new career high with his 14 rushing touchdowns this season. The 14 scores puts him sixth place in school history for most rushing touchdowns in a single season by a Sun Devil. The school record for rushing touchdowns in a season is 18, set by Woody Green (1972) and Terry Battle (1996). Marshall leads the Pac-12 with his 14 touchdowns on the ground and has scored more rushing touchdowns than six Pac-12 teams (WSU 13, Arizona 13, Utah 12, USC 10, Colorado 9, Oregon State 9).
MARSHALL, MARSHALL, MARSHALL: Junior running back Cameron Marshall has put together a terrific 2011 season. Marshall has run for 837 yards so far this year, eclipsing his previous career-high of 787 set in 2010. That's the most rushing yards in a season by a Sun Devil running back since Ryan Torain for 1,229 yards in 2006. Against Utah Marshall passed the 1,500-yard mark for his career and has now scored 25 career touchdowns on the ground. At UCLA, Marshall recorded his fifth career 100-yard rushing game, gaining a career-high 168-yards on 27 carries. It was his third 100-yard game of the season. He has also run for three scores in a game three times in his career, including twice this season. Marshall is also a receiving threat out of the backfield. Against UC Davis he caught four passes for a career-high 86 yards, including a 47-yard reception. On the season he has 19 catches for 162-yards.
100-YARDS ON THE GROUND: Arizona State is 4-1 when Cameron Marshall runs for at least 100-yards. He did it last year against Portland State and UCLA and this season against USC, Colorado and UCLA. ASU is now 255-53-5 all-time when it has a 100-yard rusher.
BROCK AND ROLL: Despite the loss to the Cougars, quarterback Brock Osweiler put up big numbers. The sophomore signal caller threw for 351 yards, his fifth career game with over 300 yards passing. Four of those games have come this season. Osweiler has thrown for 2,890 yards this season, second most in the Pac-12. He has also thrown 20 touchdowns.
ACADEMIC HONOR: Aaron Pflugrad was named to the Capitol One Academic All-District VIII team, making him eligible for Academic All-American honors. Pflugrad was an Honorable Mention Academic All-Pac-10 choice last season.
MR. TOUCHDOWN: Junior wide receiver Jamal Miles has become a touchdown machine in 2011. Miles returned a kickoff for a touchdown in the season opener against UC Davis and did it again at Washington State, threw a TD pass against Missouri and has caught six touchdown passes this year. Against Oregon State, Miles added another notch to his TD belt, returning a punt 78-yards for a score. Miles is the only player in the nation to have scored a touchdown on a reception, kickoff return and punt return as well as throw a TD pass. Miles TD pass was the first of his career on his second career attempt. He also set a new career-high with his nine receptions for 55 yards and a touchdown against USC.
RUNNING FOR MILES: Jamal Miles returned his third career kickoff for a touchdown and second this season against Washington State, bringing it back 95-yards for the score. The two kickoff return touchdowns this year ties Miles with Terry Battle (1996) for most kickoff return touchdowns by a Sun Devil in a single season. The kickoff return TD against Washington State made Miles ASU's all-time leader in that category, moving him past Omar Bolden, Terry Battle and Whizzer White who all had two in their careers. It was the seventh kickoff return for touchdown the Sun Devils have had since Dennis Erickson took over as head coach in 2007, the most under one coach in school history.
MORE ON MILES: The 78-yard punt return by Jamal Miles against Oregon State was the first punt returned for a touchdown by a Sun Devil since 2005. On November 25, 2005, Terry Richardson returned an Arizona punt 71-yards for the score. It took 68 games before Miles did the same thing against the Beavers.
BALLHAWKING: After forcing only one turnover in the first two games, the Sun Devil defense has dialed up the takeaways. Over the last eight contests, Arizona State has forced 27 turnovers. ASU has intercepted 13 passes this season after totaling 10 interceptions all of last year. The Sun Devils have forced 28 total turnovers this year after forcing 17 last season. The +14 turnover ratio leads the Pac-12 and is fourth best in the nation.
BIG YEAR FOR G-ROB: Senior wide receiver Gerell Robinson is making his final season in Tempe a memorable one. Last week against Washington State, Robinson equaled his career-high with eight receptions and set a new career-high with his 158-yards. It was Robinson's fourth career 100-yard receiving game, which have all come in the last five weeks. He leads the Sun Devils with his 50 receptions for 901 yards. Both of those numbers are single season career-highs for Robinson, who made his 100th career reception in the game against the Bruins. He has gained 1,575 yards and scored 10 touchdowns in his career as a Sun Devil.
PUSH `EM BACK: In 2010, the Sun Devil defense routinely made tackles for loss or for no gain. The defense finished 2010 with 143 plays that went for negative or no yards, totaling 307 yards lost for the offense. Against Washington State, the Sun Devil defense totaled nine plays of negative or no gain for the Cougars for 22 yards lost.
THREE AND OUT: The 2010 ASU defense was one of the top teams in the nation to force opposing offenses into three-and-out possessions. The Sun Devils averaged 4.08 three-and-outs a game, for a total of 49 in their 12 contests. That placed them in the top 20 in the nation. So far in 2011, ASU has forced opponents into 30 three-and-outs.
NOEL HUDDLE OFFENSE: Offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone always says how the Sun Devils can score in a hurry, and they have not let him down this season. Arizona State's first two touchdown drives against UC Davis both took under 1:10. Last season, ASU had 11 scoring drives that took under 1:10. Against Missouri, ASU had an eight second scoring drive and in the Oregon State game the offense scored on a :44 second drive. At Utah, ASU had a 1:03 scoring drive. Against Colorado, ASU had four touchdown drives that took under two minutes, including a 35 second one and a 32 second one. Against UCLA the Sun Devils had one touchdown drive that took under two minutes. But ASU also showed they could do a long drive if necessary, turning in its two longest scoring drives of the season. The Sun Devils had a 97-yard drive and a 93-yard drive against the Bruins, both of which resulted in touchdowns. Against Washington State, ASU turned in a :59 second scoring drive.
SENIOR CLASS: The 2011 Sun Devils will feature one of the largest senior classes in the nation, as there will be 24 seniors playing in their final season. The senior class includes: Linebacker Oliver Aaron, wide receiver George Bell, offensive lineman Chris DeArmas, safety Eddie Elder, safety Clint Floyd, defensive end Jamaar Jarrett, tight end Trevor Kohl, offensive lineman Nick Emanuele, linebacker Shelly Lyons, wide receiver Angelo Magee, wide receiver Gerell Robinson, wide receiver Mike Willie, cornerback Omar Bolden, offensive lineman Garth Gerhart, snapper Cameron Kastl, offensive lineman Dan Knapp, offensive lineman Mike Marcisz, offensive lineman Trent Marsh, defensive lineman Bo Moos, linebacker Colin Parker, wide receiver Aaron Pflugrad, offensive lineman Aderious Simmons, offensive lineman Adam Tello and wide receiver T.J. Simpson.
PAC-12 PREDICTIONS: Arizona State has been picked to finish second in the Pac-12 South in the annual media poll. Oregon has been picked to win the Pac-12 North. The winners of the two divisions will face each other in the first ever Pac-12 Championship Game on December 2.
BROCK'S TALLER THAN YOU: Quarterback Brock Osweiler checks in at six foot eight inches tall, making him the tallest quarterback in the FBS. Osweiler is one of nine QBs 6-6 or taller in the nation.
SELECT COMPANY: Head Coach Dennis Erickson is in select company when it comes to conference Coach of the Year awards. Coach Erickson is one of only two coaches in the nation to have six Coach of the Year trophies to his name. Erickson won Pac-10 Coach of the Year honors in 1988 (Washington State), 2000 (Oregon State) and 2007 (Arizona State) and Big East Coach of the Year honors in 1991, 1992 and 1994 (all with Miami). The only other coach with six Coach of the Year awards is South Carolina's Steve Spurrier.
TRUE FRESHMEN UNDER ERICKSON: Since Dennis Erickson took over in 2007, 27 true freshmen have played for the Sun Devils. This season, three (Mike Bercovici, Ezekiel Bishop, Rashad Wadood) have played. Last year only three played after eight saw the field in 2009. ASU saw a school record 10 play during the 2008 season. Five schools in the Pac-12 this year have played at least 10 true freshmen, led by Colorado who has used 13.
SCHOLAR BALLERS: 22 Sun Devil football players have been named Scholar Ballers for their work in the classroom: Oliver Aaron, Sil Ajawara, Derrall Anderson, Mike Bercovici, Gannon Conway, Chris Coyle, Evan Finkenberg, Alex Garoutte, Brandon Johnson, Cameron Kastl, Ronald Kennedy, Jr., Kody Koebensky, Shelly Lyons, Brandon Magee, Mike Marcisz, Trent Marsh, Kyle Middlebrooks, Colin Parker, Aaron Pflugrad, Max Smith, Grandville Taylor and Austin Williams.
HALL OF FAME: Pat Tillman entered the College Football Hall of Fame in July, the ninth Sun Devil enshrined. Tillman joins former Sun Devil coaches Dan Devine, Frank Kush and John Cooper and student-athletes defensive back Mike Haynes, wide receiver John Jefferson, offensive lineman Randall McDaniel, linebacker Ron Pritchard and quarterback Danny White as representatives of Arizona State University in the College Football Hall of Fame.
HOME SWEET HOME: With its win over UCLA in the home finale last season, Arizona State won its 250th regular season game at Sun Devil Stadium. Sun Devil Stadium opened in 1958. The Sun Devils also won five Fiesta Bowls at Sun Devil Stadium.
EXPERIENCE: Defensive Coordinator Craig Bray and Offensive Coordinator Noel Mazzone boast a combined 68 years of both college and pro coaching experience, the third most experienced coaching duo in the nation.
SPREADING THE WEALTH: Three Sun Devil quarterbacks have completed 245 passes this season, finding 14 different receivers. Last season, three ASU QBs combined to throw completions to 16 different receivers. Against Colorado, 10 different Sun Devils caught a pass.
LINE EXPERIENCE: Arizona State has six offensive linemen with starting experience, totaling 114 career starts. Center Garth Gerhart leads the way with his 32 career starts, followed by Mike Marcisz (21), Andrew Sampson (19), Evan Finkenberg (17), Dan Knapp (16) and Aderious Simmons (9). Evan Finkenberg returned to the starting line-up against UCLA after missing three games with an injury. Dan Knapp started in his place at left tackle, with Aderious Simmons starting at right tackle.
ASU HALL OF FAME: Against Oregon State, former Sun Devil football greats Adam Archuleta and Marvel Smith entered the Arizona State Athletic Hall of Fame. Archuleta played at ASU from 1996 to 2000 before going on to an eight-year NFL career. Smith donned the Maroon and Gold from 1996 to 1999 before playing 10 seasons in the NFL and winning two Super Bowl rings with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
UNI-WATCH: Arizona State wore their traditional uniform combo for the season opener against UC Davis (gold helmet, maroon jersey, gold pants). They wore all black against Missouri and all white for the first road game at Illinois. Against USC they wore all maroon and against Oregon State they wore white helmets, maroon jerseys and white pants. At Utah and at Washington State they wore gold helmets, white jerseys and gold pants. Against Oregon the Sun Devils wore maroon helmets, white jerseys and maroon pants. For the Homecoming game against Colorado ASU wore black helmets, black jerseys and gold pants. At UCLA, ASU wore black helmets, white jerseys and black pants.
DEBUT DEVILS: 24 student-athletes have seen their first action at Arizona State this season: Charles Beatty, Steve Gallon, Rashad Wadood, Alex Garoutte, Anthony Jones, Kipeli Koniseti, Carl Bradford, Tyler Sulka, Kevin Ozier, Ezekiel Bishop, Josh Hubner, Jamil Douglas, Jordan McDonald, Davon Coleman, Rashad Ross, Mike Bercovici, Sil Ajawara, Kevin Ayers, Marcus Washington, Taylor Kelly, Angelo Magee, Chike Mbanefo, Joita Te'i and Gannon Conway. Wadood, Bishop and Bercovici are all true freshmen.
UP NEXT: The Sun Devils will close out the regular season by hosting the California Golden Bears at Sun Devil Stadium.