It looks like all the ASU football team was able to get out of its Duck hunt in Eugene was a horde of banged-up bodies and bruised egos.
Let’s face it, things are just downright bad for the Sun Devils right now. If the team can’t win one of its next two games (a road trip to UCLA followed by a home showdown with archrival UA) it will have its second-straight losing season for the first time since the Harry Truman administration.
Watching Oregon’s offense move the ball with such ease in its 44-21 win on Saturday had us wondering just where things went wrong. Just two seasons removed from a 10-3 season that nearly included a BCS bowl berth, ASU has quickly returned to the realm of mediocrity.
It isn’t that ASU hasn’t been competitive. The Sun Devils have been in a majority of the games they’ve lost. And come on, the Ducks are lighting up the scoreboard on everybody they face. But there are certain things that cause concern about the future of the program.
Take the penalties. ASU is No. 120 out of 120 Football Bowl Subdivision teams in penalty yardage this season. When the yellow flags become a trend, questions about a team’s discipline arise in spades. There have also been the suspensions, which further cast a negative light on the program.
Athletic director Lisa Love has been vocal about her support of coach Dennis Erickson, her first football hire. And there is no doubt Erickson deserves a leash beyond this season. The coach has made it clear that his strategy is to build a program around high school recruits, not two-year junior college transfers.
The approach is certainly bringing talent to Tempe. One only has to look at the 18 true freshmen who have played in the past two seasons to see the influx of the young talent into the program.
Building a solid college football team requires patience. When Dirk Koetter was fired in 2006 and Erickson was brought in, a new foundation had to be laid. But fair or not, fans aren’t going to be happy waiting for that foundation to cement itself if more losing seasons have to come along the way.
And while the talent continues to develop and recruiting classes strengthen, only winning will fill the seats in Sun Devil Stadium that have been empty for much of this season.
Given the promise of what could be in seasons to come, the team must realize there is still plenty to play for in this one.
A win on the road Saturday would put ASU in the same position it was last season: needing a win against the Wildcats to avoid a losing season. But more than that, wins in the final two games could build momentum going into a 2010 season in which expectations will be sky-high.
So while things looked meek on a cold night in Oregon, fans shouldn’t close the book on this Sun Devil team just yet.
