Check out photos from Saturday's game against OSU in this slideshow.
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The first quarter had the makings of a catastrophe.
Turnovers and an anemic offense that produced a measly 58 total yards placed the ASU football team in an unfavorable, 13 point hole early on in Saturday’s matchup against Oregon State.
But something clicked for the No. 22 Sun Devils (4-1, 2-0 Pac-12) at the start of the second quarter and things took a drastic change for the better. ASU overcame a less than stellar showing in the game’s beginning stages to cruise to a 35-20 win over the Beavers (0-4, 0-2).
“The first half was a disaster with turnovers for us but I thought we played outstanding on defense, particularly in the second half,” ASU coach Dennis Erickson said. “We made some plays on offense in the second half to score enough points to win but again, two days from now we are still 4-1 and that’s the bottom-line. But we definitely have some changes to make on offense.”
Junior quarterback Brock Osweiler threw for 258 yards by completing 24 of his 37 passing attempts. He also collected two touchdowns.
Junior running back Cameron Marshall ran for 80 yards and powered into the end zone for a pair scores to push his career total to 18.
However all of Osweiler and the Sun Devil offense’s success came after a variety of much needed adjustments were made.
Coming off last week’s thrilling victory over then-No. 23 Southern California, the Sun Devils got off to a slow start, particularly on offense in their second Pac-12 conference game of the season.
Osweiler was intercepted twice and fumbled in the first quarter alone. Entering Saturday’s game, he had thrown just three interceptions all season.
“We just couldn’t get rolling,” Osweiler said. “I was making some bad errors obviously. Oregon State schemed us pretty well, at times it seemed like they almost knew exactly what was coming.”
On ASU’s first offensive possession of the game, OSU junior cornerback Jordan Poyer grabbed Osweiler’s pass at the OSU 47 for his first interception of the game.
After the Beavers took advantage of the ASU turnover for three points, Osweiler trotted back out there for the second series. But he was sacked on the third play and fumbled.
The Beavers again capitalized on ASU’s turnover with three points on a field goal.
ASU’s third and final possession in the opening quarter resulted in another picked off pass. Poyer corralled an Osweiler throw at the OSU 29 for his second interception.
That turnover also resulted in a Beaver scoring drive when OSU freshman running back Terron Ward completed a 10-yard touchdown run at the start of the second quarter.
That’s when ASU’s fortunes started to improve as Osweiler managed to turn things around soon after the first quarter ended.
“We understood what Oregon State was trying to do defensively,” Osweiler said. “We made a few tweaks here and there and we got the ball rolling.”
On ASU’s ensuing possession, Osweiler marched downfield and hit junior wide receiver A.J. Pickens on a 17-yard touchdown pass. He then connected with senior wide receiver Gerell Robinson for a 24-yard touchdown to give ASU the lead.
The ASU running game proved to be crucial for the Sun Devils as they adjusted from their first quarter woes. Marshall bolted for a 37-yard score in the third quarter as he bounced off a slew of oncoming Beaver defenders.
“I got a lot of love for that one when I came back to the sidelines,” Marshall said. “It was a good play so I was glad my teammates gave me love and I was glad we got to celebrate. We all got to celebrate together, and we got a touchdown out of it.”
Marshall then tacked on an eight-yard touchdown in the fourth for his fifth touchdown in two games.
It was far from a perfect offensive performance, but the Sun Devils adjusted enough to pull out the win.
“Thankfully we got the win tonight,” Osweiler said. “It’s always easier to learn when you get the win, and it shows a lot of character what this team fought through tonight.”
Reach the reporter at greg.dillard@asu.edu
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