Defensive back Damarious Randall blocks Stanford quarterback Kevin Hogan. ASU beat Standford 26-10 at Sun Devil Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2014. (Photo by Mario Mendez)After its defense suffocated Stanford for most of the game, the ASU football team appears to have finally come together on that side of the football.
The Sun Devils (5-1, 3-1 Pac-12) seemed to confuse senior quarterback Kevin Hogan and the Cardinal offense, holding the unit to just 160 yards through three quarters, before desperation time hit.
One of the reasons that coach Todd Graham alluded to is the fact that redshirt sophomore linebacker Laiu Moeakiola, who has been in and out of the lineup this season, is back in more and stabilizes the unit.
"He's a really, really smart player and he's got a vast knowledge of what we're doing conceptually," Graham said "He really understands the big picture of what we're trying to do. He's really, really good at pass coverage and really, really good at pressure."
Graham has had high praise for Moeakiola since fall camp and made him a captain on Sept. 9. Graham called him one of the smartest player he's ever coached and attributes his eagerness to learn as the reason he's been so good.
"He's a great technician, he gets it," Graham said. "He's very disciplined. He grades out and he doesn't make mistakes. That position is very critical to us and I haven't had someone since I've been here understand it the way that he does... If he asks me a question, they're very profound questions, so he's a smart guy that's very dependable and does exactly what he's coached to do."
In addition to Moeakiola, Graham was impressed with the performance of redshirt junior linebacker Antonio Longino, who had eight tackles Saturday.
"I was really proud of how he played," Graham said. "He had done some things throughout the year. I thought Tony played his best game, I was really proud of him and how he progressed. He's a very physically strong person and a tough guy and I was really happy for him and how he played."
Graham was happy with the split of the two groups that he put together on the field and the dichotomy between them.
"I liked whenever we subbed and used (sophomore linebacker) Ami (Latu) and (freshman defensive lineman Tashon) Smallwood and the speed that that gave us," Graham said. "You look back at the snaps and it's about half the time with one group and half the time with the other group and when we do that we have to be a little bit more specific schematically because there are certain things you can do with one group that enhance their abilities that's different with the other group."
Additional Notes:
-Redshirt senior safety Damarious Randall was named the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week. He had seven solo tackles, a sack and broke up a pass. Randall also forced and recovered a fumble. It is the first weekly Pac-12 honor this season for ASU.
-Graham said he expects redshirt senior quarterback Taylor Kelly to start against Washington.
Reach the reporter at mtonis@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @Tonis_The_Tiger
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