While the 2008 season was a frustrating one for everyone on the ASU football team, it was particularly disheartening for wide receiver Chris McGaha.

Coming off a 2007 season in which he caught 61 passes, many of which that could have been put on a “best catches of the year” highlight reel, McGaha was slowed a great deal by injuries last season and was never able to get completely healthy, finishing with just 35 catches for 501 yards.

The senior caught nearly half that many balls (15 for 165 yards) in Saturday’s 28-17 loss to Oregon State, and he said being fully healthy this season has made a world of difference.

“Last year it was just one [injury] after another, but this year I feel great,” he said.

ASU coach Dennis Erickson has noticed a “huge difference” in McGaha’s health this season and said it has been a big reason the senior has been able to make an early impact.

“It makes a huge difference. He’s able to go full speed, practice and do all the things that are necessary to win,” Erickson said.

McGaha has been a staple in the starting lineup this season and leads the team with 24 receptions for 251 yards.

McGaha’s career-high 15 receptions in Saturday’s game — which came mostly in the slot, where he was filling in for injured wide receiver Kyle Williams — were the second most in Sun Devil history, but the wide receiver, who Erickson says “has some of the best hands” he’s ever seen, had a hard time enjoying the performance.

“My friends and family were happy to see me get the ball a lot, like I was, but we also lost, so it’s kind of bittersweet,” McGaha said.

With the aid of good health, McGaha is enjoying resurgence on the field this season, and his numbers will likely continue as senior quarterback Danny Sullivan’s favorite target.

That good health is benefiting him off the field too, though, because McGaha said he needs all the energy he can muster when hanging out with his 16-month-old son Carson McGaha.

“There was phase where it was starting to get easier,” McGaha said of fatherhood. “But now he’s starting to get a little bit of an attitude, so it’s a little more challenging.”

Now a senior leader on the offense, McGaha said the Sun Devils are close to clicking as a unit.

“We put some good drives together, but it just seems like we always just shoot ourselves in the foot,” McGaha said. “We just need to convert on third down and keep the ball moving and score when we get into the red zone — touchdowns, not field goals.”

ASU is sixth in the Pac-10 in third-down conversions, moving the chains on 19 out of 60 chances (31.7 percent).

Going deep

One aspect that has been missing from the ASU offense through four games this season has been the presence of a deep threat.

Though he has only two catches for 16 yards this season, sophomore wide receiver T.J. Simpson earned his first-career start on Saturday and possesses the speed that could provide a weapon in the long-ball department for the Sun Devils.

“He’s a guy that is consistent. He’s still young, but he can definitely play,” McGaha said of Simpson.

Highly regarded sophomore wide receiver Gerell Robinson could be in the mix more as well.

After putting up career-highs in receptions (six) and receiving yards (58) against OSU, Robinson took most of his reps with the first-team unit on Wednesday.

Freshman quarterback Brock Osweiler will play in certain situations against Washington State on Saturday, Erickson said after Wednesday’s practice, though the coach said he wouldn’t decide until later in the week what some of those situations might be.

On the injury front, Williams participated fully in practice on Wednesday and should be at full health on Saturday.

Reach the reporter at nick.kosmider@asu.edu.