Devils hope Herring can add spark to run game

 As it looks to light a fire in its running game, Arizona State hopes the spark can be provided by a back with explosive big-play ability and a delightfully big mouth.

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On the sidelines for three of the Sun Devils’ first four games this season, Keegan Herring has been of little help for a run offense that ranks near the bottom — 110th among 119 teams — of the bowl subdivision.

However, with his hamstring close to healed, ASU’s 10th all-time leading rusher aims to play at California on Saturday.

For Herring, it feels like his senior season is finally starting.

“It was tougher than you think (to sit out),” Herring said. “It was like when you can’t pay your rent, and you can’t get the money that you need. It was tough to see the team playing out there without me. I’m a Sun Devil until the day I die, so it hurt greatly not to be able to be out there. I wasn’t out there with my family.”

ASU, which is averaging 89 yards a game on the ground, is overhauling its rushing approach, starting with a stated commitment to handing the ball off more. The offensive line will have at least one personnel move. Herring and perhaps true freshman Ryan Bass — both quick, shifty backs — will get chances to provide a change of pace.

The per-game yardage is severely skewed by ASU’s last contest against Georgia, when it had 19 rushing attempts for just 4 yards. In two previous outings, against Stanford and Nevada-Las Vegas, the totals were a respectable 127 and 131 yards, respectively.

Still, nobody with the Sun Devils is pleased with the overall production.

When Ryan Torain was ASU’s featured back in 2006 and the first half of ’07, he typically got good yardage on first down and extended drives.

That has not happened this season.

“It’s about doing more and believing in what you’re doing,” coach Dennis Erickson said. “Obviously, we have to get better up front, but it’s harder to run the ball if you don’t run it. We have to balance our offense.”

Herring was a game-time decision against Georgia. As he labored through warm-ups, Herring made eye contact with Erickson and knew that he would not be able to help ASU that day.

“I was kind of hoping that he would tell me at halftime to get dressed,” Herring said.

The Sun Devils might have been aided by Herring’s home run-hitting ability against a quick, athletic Bulldogs defense. Herring has six touchdown runs of 40 yards or more in his career.

Instead, ASU passed 36 times. It got little on first-down runs — starting running back Dimitri Nance had just 9 yards on seven carries on such plays — which helped result in lower-percentage third-down situations.

That is a problem that has plagued the Sun Devils all season. Of the 43 third downs they have faced, only 11 have been with fewer than 5 yards to go.

“Running the ball is a mental thing,” quarterback Rudy Carpenter said. “You have to dig in and say that you’re going to do it. You have to be physical and tough. We’re working on it.

“If we can get the run game going, that’s only going to make the pass work better for us. I know people didn’t like that we always threw it against Georgia, but we had to take what they gave us.”

Matt Hustad, a redshirt freshman who this week is battling junior-college transfer Tom Njunge for the starting right tackle spot, echoed Carpenter’s sentiments, saying the line needs to develop an attitude for running.

“We need to get in there and be hogs and just play,” Hustad said. “If you don’t have the mindset to go out and dominate the person in front of you, I don’t think you’re going to be successful.”

Herring said he is over the hamstring injury, but he needs to rebuild strength in his leg.

Adding muscle to ASU’s running game will require a team effort.

“Any back that is injured feels that he could have made a difference in the game,” Herring said. “I think I could have helped out a little bit, but we’ll never really know. Our guys ran hard, but things just didn’t work out the way we want to. …

“I guess I had to wait for the best opportunity, and that opportunity is now.”