Bucky Been Blacked

Arizona State University just beat the 20^th ranked team in the  country. You can argue whether they deserved to win all you want, a win is a win no matter how ugly it comes. All that matters is ASU is 2-0 and getting national attention.

Now we can look forward to the next couple of weeks and begin to speculate on ASU’s legitimacy for becoming one of the Pac-12’s finest. But first, what did this statement win over one of the nation’s best teams really mean for this ASU football team?

“We just beat the defending Big-10 champion, but we made so many mistakes.”

This quote from Todd Graham pretty much summarizes the significance of this bizarre win over Wisconsin. ASU failed to score on their first opportunity of the game on a 4^th and 2. Later, a bad snap by ASU led to a fumble recovery and touchdown for Wisconsin. Also, the ASU receivers uncharacteristically dropped passes left and right during the first half. In the third quarter, ASU seemed to have a prime opportunity to capitalize on a Wisconsin fumble, but Taylor Kelly threw an interception on the next play from scrimmage. To add to that, gutsy play calling by Coach Graham backfired several times and led to 5 points being left on the field.

In short, ASU didn’t play up to their standards or abilities.

What should have been a dominant ASU win turned into a close, riveting game. They gutted out the win with a little help from the refs, but at least they won. Overall though, this should not have been a close contest. Despite their flaws, ASU outplayed Wisconsin.

ASU is only beginning to tap into its potential to becoming what could be a special 2013-14 season. When I look at all the weapons they have there is no doubt in my mind that they can contend for the Pac-12 Championship. Taylor Kelly is emerging into such a consistent and reliable quarterback that you know you are always going to get a solid game from him. He puts his team in a position to win. Marion Grice is running the ball extremely well with 4 TD against Wisconsin and he is showing no signs of stopping. Also, ASU’s defense, lead by Will Sutton, will be able to keep ASU in games when the offense struggles, which is not that often.

Looking forward to their next game against Stanford, there has to be great optimism. If they can dispatch a very talented Wisconsin team despite all of their mental mistakes and obvious errors, they should have a standing chance in beating a highly touted and ranked Stanford team who hasn’t played well in its first two games.

With a win against Stanford, ASU will solidify its position as one of the best teams in the Pac-12 and in the country. Let’s hope they don’t disappoint in what is turning into one of the premiere Pac-12 games of the year.