Defensive end Myles Garrett (15) is a load for offensive linemen to handle. Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
KICKOFF: Saturday, 7 p.m. ET
GAMEDATE: 9/5/15
SITE: NRG Stadium, Houston, Texas
TV: ESPN
SERIES: This is the first meeting between Arizona State and Texas A&M.
RANKINGS: Arizona State 15th
KEYS TO THE GAME
Arizona State will carry the Pac-12 flag into its season-opener.
The Sun Devils, who begin the season ranked No. 15 in the AP poll, travel to Houston to play a dangerous Texas A&M team in what won’t at all seem like a “neutral-site” game. But ASU coach Todd Graham says he “loves his team” … so bring on the challenge.
“Scheduling this game first has been really an interesting experience, and it really impacted our summer,” Graham said. “So we’re excited and ready to load up.”
This will be the only regular-season game between the Pac-12 and the SEC, and it comes with the added drama of being between the Pac-12 South and the SEC West, considered — in some order — to be the top two divisions in college football.
Texas A&M isn’t ranked, although the Aggies were second among “others receiving votes” in the AP poll, and they are filled with exciting young talent such as defensive end Myles Garrett, quarterback Kyle Allen and Speedy Noil, who is part of a talented and deep receiving corps.
ASU, meanwhile, returns 17 starters, and that doesn’t include senior quarterback Mike Bercovici, who has become a team leader and fan favorite for how he performed in a three-game stint last season as an injury-replacement for Taylor Kelly.
“Whatever happens in this game is not going to define us,” Aggies coach Kevin Sumlin said. “If we didn’t learn that from last year, you don’t learn anything.”
Texas A&M’s big problem in 2014, other than turmoil and uneven play at quarterback as Kenny Hill won the starting job and failed to hold on to it, was a porous rush defense. The Aggies gave up 216 yards per game and finished the campaign ranking in triple digits.
In order to improve, Texas A&M brought in new defensive coordinator John Chavis from LSU. Chavis has been vague about specific changes but has said he’s encouraged by the Aggies’ young talent. They’ll need new starters at linebacker to fill holes up the middle in order to get better against the run.
Texas A&M has a trusted pass-rushing weapon as it named sophomore defensive end Myles Garrett a team captain. Sumlin said he’s putting a lot on Garrett to embrace that role.
“I used to be a senior-led-team guy and you want that,” Sumlin said. “When you’ve got a young guy who is (playing) every snap, you’re basically saying as a football team you’re trusting this guy every snap. Why can’t you be a leader? Just by your role you are a leader.”
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Sun Devils
—
–WR D.J. Foster is the NCAA active leader in all-purpose yards with 3,965, having spent most of his time at running back. Even so, he was a natural catching the ball out of the backfield or when split out, and he caught 62 passes last season after hauling in 63 a year earlier. ASU’s depth at running back will allow Foster to spend most of his time at wideout this season after he also ran for 1,081 yards in 2014.
–QB Mike Bercovici gets his senior turn as the full-time starter after impressing in limited time last season. Coach Todd Graham raves about the leadership of Bercovici, who passed for 998 yards with eight touchdowns and two interceptions in his first two starts last season. “I don’t know I’ve ever coached a kid that I think it means more to him than to Mike,” Graham said.
–CB Lloyd Carrington, who originally played for coach Todd Graham at Pitt, emerged last season as a new full-time starter, earning honorable mention all-conference honors. He should vie for first-team recognition this time around, but he’ll have plenty to prove against an A&M wide receiving crew that includes big targets Josh Reynolds and Ricky Seals-Jones, as well as speedier threats Speedy Noil and Christian Kirk, a true freshman from Scottsdale.
Aggies
–QB Kyle Allen passed for 1,322 yards and 16 TDs with 7 interceptions while splitting time as the Aggies starter in 2014. However, he took hold of the role in time to win MVP honors in the Liberty Bowl. Sumlin said at that point, Allen took on the leadership role of the Aggies’ offense.
–WR Josh Reynolds could be one of the most dynamic receivers in college football as he begins his junior season. He posted 842 yards and 13 TDs in his debut season at Texas A&M in 2014. With the departure of Malcome Kennedy and Kyle Allen going into his second season as a starter, Reynolds should have plenty of opportunities this season.
–WR Christian Kirk claimed a starting spot going into his first season on campus at Texas A&M. Sumlin said the freshman has the talent, size and understanding to do the job. However, Sumlin said it’s hard to replicate the speed of the game at the college level and it could take a bit for Kirk to adapt.
