ASU coach Dennis Erickson is headed to familiar territory.
The Sun Devils (2-5, 1-3 Pac-10) will be in Corvallis on Saturday to counter Oregon State, where Erickson coached for four seasons from 1999 to 2002
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Erickson said there is added incentive when playing against a former school, but with the Sun Devils battling to salvage their season, winning is the only motivation necessary.
“It’s a game where hopefully we continue to improve and give ourselves a chance to win,” he said.
Erickson led the Beavers to a 31-17 record during his tenure there.
This season’s OSU squad (4-3, 3-1 Pac-10) is currently tied for second in the Pac-10 and knocked off then-No. 1 USC on Sept. 25, their second upset of the Trojans in three seasons.
The Sun Devil defense has faced a host of talented running backs this season, but Saturday’s game will feature a matchup with the Pac-10’s rushing leader.
OSU freshman Jacquizz Rodgers has burst onto the scene this year and is averaging 116 yards per game.
“[Rodgers] runs the football inside very well but he also has great speed,” Erickson said. “I knew he was going to be a great runner before he emerged in the USC game.”
The 5-foot-7-inch Rodgers garnered national attention during OSU’s upset victory against the Trojans, rushing for 186 and two touchdowns.
“He’s a good [running] back and he’s hard to see, so we’ve got to get him and wrap him up,” junior linebacker Travis Goethel said.
While Goethel and the rest of the Sun Devils will have their hands full with Rodgers, ASU’s offense is trying to find resurgence in its own running game.
Freshman Ryan Bass is expected to receive more carries on Saturday.
“He’s got a little bit of magic to him,” senior quarterback Rudy Carpenter said of Bass. “He can make [tacklers] miss and he’s got a lot of speed.”
ASU eclipsed the 100-yard team rushing mark for just the third time this season in Saturday’s loss to the University of Oregon and the Sun Devils hope Bass can continue to provide a spark.
Regardless of who is on the field, Erickson expressed the need for his team to play relaxed.
“You’ve got to play loose,” Erickson said Thursday. “Sometimes you press, particularly in the situation we’re in right now. We’ve just got to go play football.”
The mood at practice this week was noticeably light, and players said they are trying to keep off the pressure that comes with a five-game losing streak.
“After we started losing a few games we started putting more and more pressure on [ourselves],” Goethel said. “We’re just trying to go back and play like we were playing at the beginning of the season.”
Thursday, Erickson emphasized the need for his team to start fast against OSU, something the Sun Devils have been unable to do much of this season.
ASU has given up scores on its opponents’ opening drives in each of the last three games.
In all of those games, the opponents have reached double figures in scoring before the Sun Devils have put any points on the board.
“We dig ourselves a hole every single week,” Erickson said.
Last season, the Sun Devils were trailing 19-0 at halftime to the Beavers, before finishing with a 44-32 win.
ASU will be without junior wide receiver and return specialist Kyle Williams (concussion) for Saturday’s game.
Assuming the punt return duties for the Sun Devils will be senior wide receiver Nate Kimbrough, while sophomore cornerback Omar Bolden will handle kickoff returns.
Reach the reporter at nkosmide@asu.edu.
