Washington State hosted Arizona State in a Thursday night Pac-12 showdown, but the Sun Devils were rude guests, blowing out the Cougars 55-21.
Arizona State vs. Washington State reaction: Cougar fans unhappy with ‘embarrassing’ loss
Taylor Kelly totals seven touchdowns as the Cougar faithful start to question their head coach.
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Kelly started the day with two rushing touchdowns and a 11-yard scoring throw in the first quarter, giving Arizona State an early 21-0 lead. Washington State finally got on the board early in the second on Connor Halliday’s 34-yard touchdown pass, but the Sun Devils responded by scoring three touchdowns in a row again, this time three touchdown tosses from Kelly. The Cougars bounced back on Halliday’s 15-yard touchdown pass, but it was 42-14 at halftime.
Arizona State outscored their opponents 13-7 in the second half, but by that point the game was very much over.
Kerry Crowley from House of Sparky was impressed with the Sun Devils’ offensive performance.
The Sun Devils entered Thursday's game averaging 45.4 points per game and they were able to add to that total against Washington State. Arizona State hung 50 points on an opponent for the fifth time in eight games this season and it marked the second time the Sun Devils have done so away from Sun Devil Stadium under Todd Graham.
Arizona State also recorded one of its most balanced offensive performances this season. Of the 557 total yards, 275 came on the ground and 282 came through the air. The Sun Devils will have to rely on their balance as they take on the Utah Utes next Saturday in their quest to win the Pac-12 South.
Mark Sandritter of Coug Center says that for Washington State fans, concern with head coach Mike Leach’s stewardship is growing.
Now, to be clear, I’m not putting all of the blame on Leach for last night’s result, or even a number of the issues. He inherited a kitchen from a guy who walked in and saw an oil fire and threw water on it. We knew Leach had a mess to clean up. Most didn’t expect 10-win seasons overnight, but we did expect him to put that fire out. Now 21 games into the Leach era and coming off another embarrassing loss, it’s still a question of whether he’s done that. WSU was outcoached on Thursday and turned in subpar performances in all three phases of the game. You’d be hard pressed to find an area where the Cougars outplayed the Sun Devils.
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