Exposure high, stakes even higher as ASU visits Oregon

With the Arizona State football team climbing high in the rankings and Bowl Championship Series standings, the Sun Devils are receiving media attention the kind of which they have rarely experienced.

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Top BCS teams hold ground

ASU, which remained fourth in the BCS standings released on Sunday, is at Oregon (fifth in the BCS) this week, and ESPN’s “College GameDay” will be on the scene in Eugene.

In recent years, the Sun Devil coach’s day-after-game phone interview has been held with the two local newspaper writers that cover the squad. On Sunday, Dennis Erickson conducted a teleconference with 24 reporters listening in from such far-away locales as New Orleans and Portland, Ore.

With the media in overdrive around them, the Sun Devils (8-0 overall, 5-0 Pac-10) are conducting their business as usual, Erickson said.

“Our guys have responded the same each week,” Erickson said. “I don’t expect it to be any different.

“It’s not like we’re a cocky or arrogant team. We’re quiet, and we realize we have to earn it and get better every week. That’s how we approach it. We’ll keep playing as hard and well as we can. I don’t expect anything different with the stakes going up, so to speak.”

The stakes are skyrocketing for an ASU team that is sixth in both the Associated Press and USA Today (coaches) polls as the Sun Devils picked up another first-place vote in the AP rankings. Austin Ward of the Casper (Wyo.) Star Tribune joined Neal McCready of the Mobile (Ala.) Press-Register, who has had ASU No. 1 on his ballot for three weeks.

The contest at Oregon’s Autzen Stadium could be an elimination contest, as the loser’s national championship hopes will be put in peril.

Oregon is favored by 7.

“We’re playing Oregon, and that’s another game that we really need to get,” quarterback Rudy Carpenter said. “Oregon is a great football team, and we have to play in probably the toughest stadium in the Pac-10. It will be a big test for us, and I’m sure we’ll be up to the task.”

On Sunday, Erickson gave the Ducks (7-1, 4-1) a boatload of respect.

Asked if he is worried that the Sun Devils could go undefeated and, like Auburn in 2004, be left out of the national-title game, Erickson said: “We just hope we can go up to Eugene and win a game up there, which is going to be more difficult than the national championship game would be for us.”

Erickson has taken teams to Eugene twice, both with Oregon State. Ten ASU players — four of them starters: safety Josh Barrett, receiver Rudy Burgess, tight end Brent Miller and center Mike Pollak — played the last time the Sun Devils visited Oregon in 2004.

“This team has never been up there,” Erickson said. “I know that I’ve never had a lot of fun there. I can’t say I have any fond stories.”

Grading out

• The Arizona State football team has earned praise for its ability to make adjustments this season, winning four games after trailing at halftime. However, the Sun Devils have been notoriously slow starters, losing by double digits in the first quarter of three contests — Colorado, Oregon State and, on Saturday, California.



“Obviously, it’s not planned like that,” coach Dennis Erickson said. “We would like to play better early, but we haven’t. We have had resiliency in the second half. We’ve gotten turnovers and have been able to run the ball, and we catch up.”

Also, Erickson said he believes that practicing in the heat has enabled ASU to be better conditioned for the long haul than its opponents.

• The running game maintained its effectiveness minus star back Ryan Torain, as Keegan Herring (96 yards rushing) provided the speed and Dimitri Nance (85 yards, three touchdowns) the power. Erickson said that the offensive line had its best effort of the season.



“We miss Ryan,” Erickson said. “He’s more physical than the other two and can do it all the time. But the combination of the two ran pretty well (against California).”

• The defense remained in its base 4-3 alignment for most of the game, as Erickson did not want his cornerbacks isolated against the Golden Bears’ fast receivers. The Sun Devils did not need to take many risks defensively.

“If they were going to score, we wanted them to earn it,” Erickson said. “We weren’t going to give up the big play. We stayed in zone coverage. When we did play man, we did it well. We got pressure on (quarterback Nate) Longshore in the second half with a four- or five-man rush.”

Injury report

• Quarterback Rudy Carpenter had swelling in his right (throwing) thumb on Sunday, Erickson said. Carpenter sprained the thumb colliding with Nance on a broken play in the third quarter.

“He should be ready to practice on Tuesday,” Erickson said.

Notes

• Aurora (Colo.) offensive lineman Andrew Sampson and two receivers from Crenshaw High in Los Angeles, Kemonte Bateman and Clint Floyd, committed to the Sun Devils during the weekend, recruiting services reported. Bateman, who had previously committed to UCLA, and Sampson are rated among the top 50 at their positions. ASU has 12 known commitments in the 2008 class.

• With 15 field goals in as many attempts, ASU freshman Thomas Weber has the longest active streak in the nation.

• A victory this week would tie Erickson for the best start by a first-year coach in the Pac-10. Leonard Allison at California (1935) and Charles Taylor at Stanford (1951) began with nine straight wins.

Looking ahead

ASU’s contest at Oregon (3:45 p.m., Saturday, FSN Arizona) is a homecoming of sorts for freshman defensive lineman Bo Moos, even though he will not play because he is redshirting. Moos’ father, Bill, was athletic director for nearly 12 years in Eugene before stepping down in March.

Premier pairings

Arizona State’s game at Oregon Saturday ties for the best combined ranking (Associated Press poll) for a college football matchup this season:

10: (2) Boston College at (8) Virginia Tech, Oct. 25

10: (6) ASU at (4) Oregon, Saturday

14: (13) Florida at (1) Louisiana State, Oct. 6

14: (9) Southern California at (5) Oregon, Oct. 27

17: (3) California at (14) Oregon, Sept. 29

17: (11) Missouri at (6) Oklahoma, Oct. 13

18: (16) South Carolina at (2) LSU, Sept. 22

18: (1) LSU at (17) Kentucky, Oct. 13

19: (3) West Virginia at (16) South Florida, Sept. 28

20: (18) Virginia Tech at (2) LSU, Sept. 8

20: (3) LSU at (17) Alabama, Saturday