ASU wideouts can’t break out vs. Cover 2 defense

 Before the season, Arizona State boasted so many options at wide receiver, it was suggested that one ball might not be enough for the Sun Devils’ sea of hands.

Indeed, the ASU receivers cherish when they get the ball — but not because catches need to be shared. Rather, making substantial gains has been a challenge because opposing defenses in Cover 2 formations are blanketing the receivers with defenders.

ASU football notebook: Carpenter practices, wants to play

The situation is not of their making, which is unfair. But until the Sun Devils can establish the run, forcing teams to come out of the Cover 2, that is life for the wideouts.

“It’s tough, because you look around, and you have one guy over you, one guy underneath you, and you look back and see the quarterback on the ground or scrambling for his life,” receiver Michael Jones said. “Our offense has to start clicking. If we can run the ball, that gives us more one-on-one matchups.

“That’s our weakness right now. We have to come up with some Cover 2 beaters, or run the ball.”

Nevada-Las Vegas put the strategy on film, and each ASU opponent since then has copied it: A Cover 2 formation, with the safeties playing deep, and the linebackers and cornerbacks manning the underneath zones. The simple math is against the Sun Devils, with seven defenders covering three or four receivers.

ASU has had few answers for the Cover 2. It has been unable to run the ball with consistency, ranking 113th in the nation with an average of 85.4 yards a game. And the quarterback usually does not have enough time to wait for a late-opening receiver.

Rudy Carpenter threw for 733 yards in wins against Northern Arizona and Stanford in the first two games of the season. He has been held to 615 in the last three contests, all losses.

“We have to find ways to throw it against the Cover 2,” coach Dennis Erickson said. “There are ways to do it. When it’s first and second down, you can throw short and medium routes, although that cannot be all that you do on offense. The hard part is when it’s third and long.”

A different quarterback could be trying to solve the mystery when the Sun Devils visit Southern California on Saturday. With Carpenter hobbled by an ankle injury, junior Danny Sullivan could make his first career start.

“We haven’t had the luxury to sit back and wait,” Sullivan said. “Hopefully, we’ll be able to get a quick game going and get the ball out to our receivers in a hurry.”

The Trojans boast the defensive athleticism for a menacing Cover 2. Their defensive line is strong enough to, by itself, handle the run and put pressure on the QB.

Erickson said that, in the past, USC has utilized the “Tampa 2,” in which the safeties get deep coverage help from the middle linebacker.

“They don’t do that as much as they used to,” Erickson said. “With those four guys they usually have rushing, it makes no difference.”

Last week at California, ASU showed signs of life against the Cover 2.

Catching mostly quick out throws, Chris McGaha had a season-high six receptions. Kyle Williams employed his speed on a quick underneath pattern, resulting in a 30-yard touchdown reception. And when the Sun Devils utilized a two-tight-end formation, the Golden Bears came out of the Cover 2, enabling ASU a handful of shots downfield.

“It was nice to get the receivers some more touches, but it would have been better to get the win,” McGaha said. “We’re pretty much going to be seeing the Cover 2 from here on out, but I think we can be successful against it. Basically, we have to be able to run the ball. Once that happens, things should open up for us.”

Another key for ASU, Williams said, is avoiding turnovers, which caused early trouble at California.

“If you want teams to come out of the Cover 2, don’t fall behind 17-0,” Williams said. “You can talk about the running game all you want, but the entire offense caused (that deficit) to happen.”

Despite the tough sledding the last three games, the ASU receivers remain upbeat, confident that the team will find the running game and passing strategy to properly attack the Cover 2.

When that happens, Jones said, the receivers will live up to the preseason talk of their talent surplus.

“If they come out of the Cover 2, we’ll try to beat them over the top,” Jones said. “It’s a cat-and-mouse game. We have to find that right mix and wait for that busted coverage. Then, we’ll take advantage of it.”