The Sun Devils worked intensely on red zone formations in practice this fall, hoping to be more efficient inside the 20-yard line in 2001 than they were last season.
The Sun Devils use drills on the 20-yard line at the beginning of practice each day to get the team loose, even before the team joins to stretch. This concentration on the red zone is something that quarterback Jeff Krohn believes will help the team improve on its 6-6 record in 2000.
“(Red zone offense) is important to practice,” Krohn said. “In fact, we do it against our own defense because it’s a very important thing to score more than your opponents in the red zone. That is going to win a lot of games for you. If you can get down there (to the 20), you’ll score every time, and that has to be our mentality.”
When Todd Heap left ASU early for the NFL draft, the Sun Devils lost their best red zone receiver. Heap finished the 2000 season with three touchdowns and a team-leading 48 receptions, but Krohn’s targets may be stronger as a whole this year.
“We have a lot more weapons this year than we did last year,” Krohn said. “We’ve got a good group of mature receivers that know what they’re doing that will be a great weapon for us, not to mention our offensive line and running backs.”
The man filling Heap’s shoes this year will be junior Mike Pinkard, who was recruited as a tight end out of high school but was switched to the defensive line in 1999. In 2000, he switched back to tight end and played when the team went to two-tight end formations.
Pinkard is a big target for Krohn to hit (6-5, 263-pounds) and expects to contribute as more than just a receiver in the red zone this year.
“We’re going to take advantage of mismatches more on offense this year,” Pinkard said. “I’m going to contribute as much as I can, whatever it takes for the team to win.
“Blocking is part of being a tight end,” Pinkard continued. “I have to be able to help control the line of scrimmage. We have a lot of seniors on the offensive line, so we know they’re going to get their job done every single time. The tight ends, we’re young, so we have a lot of help with the offensive line being seniors and leaders.”
The team will take advantage of new offensive schemes brought by head coach Dirk Koetter, who has produced high scoring offenses in all of his stints as an offensive coordinator/head coach.
“Our playbook is a lot more complex,” Pinkard said. “We have a lot more formations and plays, so it will take us a little more time to get it, but we’re all pretty much on the same page. We’re ready to go.”
In the first six games of 2000, the Sun Devils’ defense allowed eight red zone touchdowns and had a 4-2 record. In the final six games of the season, the team allowed 14 red zone touchdowns and had a record of 2-4. Defensive end Terrell Suggs said the defense needs as much improvement as the offense in the red zone this year.
“You always can do better than you did last year,” Suggs said. “We’re working on not giving up points in the red zone and being a strong defense.
Reach Greg Salvatore at gregory.salvatore@asu.edu.
