Playmakers missed
TEMPE, Ariz. – Alex Brink and the Cougar offense fielded questions all week about how they would play without wide receivers Jason Hill and Michael Bumpus.
On Saturday night, the answer seemed to be: not very well.
Without the team’s top two receivers, Brandon Gibson became the primary threat and was the target of 15 out of 32 throws made by Cougar quarterbacks.
He led WSU receivers with five catches for 51 yards, but was one of only two wideouts to reel in a pass. (Charles Dillon had three grabs, including a first-quarter touchdown reception.)
The Cougars were forced into a different offense, with tight ends Cody Boyd and Jed Collins both on the field for an unusual number of snaps.
“The answer’s out there on the field,” Brink said. “We were playing with two tight ends; in our base sets we normally have three wide receivers. It’s hard, but we’ve got to execute and respond and fight through that adversity.”
Other than the two wideouts and the two tight ends, running back Dwight Tardy was the lone Cougar to catch a pass – and that was good for minus-1 yard.
Injured again
As if getting beaten badly wasn’t bad enough, the Cougars also sustained three potentially significant injuries Saturday night.
Wide receiver Chris Jordan was injured away from the play early in the second quarter, and head coach Bill Doba said he thought Jordan had torn his ACL in the same left knee that has been injured repeatedly in the last three years. If that’s the case, the senior’s career is over.
Linebacker Scott Davis also missed the second half with a right wrist injury. X-rays taken at Arizona State were inconclusive. And although defensive coordinator Robb Akey said he expected the defensive captain to play against Washington, further tests could force the senior out of action.
Finally, defensive tackle Aaron Johnson, who recently missed a game with a right elbow sprain, sprained his left elbow and spent the latter stages of the game watching from the sidelines with his shoulder pads off. His status for the Apple Cup is uncertain. Akey said the team’s other injured front-line defensive tackle, Feveae’i Ahmu, should be back in time for next week’s game.
Notes
Defensive tackle Ropati Pitoitua (knee) and running back DeMaundray Woolridge (shoulder stinger) both did not make the trip. Pitoitua had practiced during the week and was expected to see limited time, but Akey said swelling in the knee caused him to be ruled out on Thursday night. … This was the most lopsided score out of all 33 WSU-Arizona State games played to date. … Safety-turned-wide receiver Michael Willis did take to the field for what appeared to be a blocking assignment on a toss play, but a false-start penalty halted action before it began. Willis did not end up playing at any other time. … Arizona State continued to throw the ball late in the fourth quarter, even with backups on the field for both teams. The Sun Devils scored the game’s final points with 14 seconds remaining. Doba fended off questions about that after the game, and also declined to discuss what he said to Arizona State coach Dirk Koetter after the game. … Mkristo Bruce was held without a sack for a fifth consecutive game. … The Sun Devils completed eight passes of 20 yards or longer.