The 17th-ranked ASU Sun Devils got going early in their game against the University of New Mexico. On ASU's first offensive play, redshirt senior quarterback Taylor Kelly ran for 52 yards, setting the mark for the longest run of his career.
Four plays later, redshirt senior running back Deantre Lewis scored from one yard to give his team the lead. Coach Todd Graham dug deep into his bag of tricks as redshirt senior De'Marieya Nelson threw a pass to sophomore kicker Zane Gonzalez to complete the two-point conversion.
ASU forced their first turnover of the game on the next drive and the Sun Devils immediately capitalized. Three plays after his team took over, Kelly ran the ball up the middle for 12 yards and a touchdown. The Gonzalez extra point gave ASU a 15-0 lead.
The Sun Devils forced another New Mexico fumble on the Lobos' next possession, giving ASU the ball deep in their opponents's territory. Freshman Kalen Ballage burst through the line for a score, putting the visitors up 22-0.
The Lobos were not set to go away so quickly, however. New Mexico's next drive covered 75 yards in eight plays and was capped off by a touchdown run by redshirt junior running back Jhurell Pressley to put the Lobos on the board.
After a pair of punts, ASU found pay dirt once again. This time, it took the Sun Devils 10 plays and 82 yards to reach the end zone as Ballage powered his way in for his second score of the game.
On their next drive, New Mexico rebounded with another score. Redshirt freshman quarterback Lamar Jordan, who had replaced starter senior Clayton Mitchem in the first quarter, found senior wide receiver Tyler Duncan for 44 yards to start the drive. Jordan then connected with sophomore running back Teriyon Gipson for 32 yards to cut the score to 29-14 in favor of ASU.
A poor read on a handoff on the first play of ASU's next drive resulted in a fumble and gave New Mexico great field position. It took the Lobos just five plays to put more points on the board as senior running back Crusoe Gongbay took a the ball in from the five-yard line to cut the lead to 29-22 in favor of the Sun Devils.
In the closing moments before halftime, the Sun Devils gave themselves some breathing room between themselves and their opponents. Gonzalez knocked a 29-yard field goal through the uprights just before time expired to give ASU a 32-21 halftime edge.
Reach the reporter at mtonis@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @Tonis_The_Tiger
