Devils end 6-game skid, struggle past winless Huskies

SEATTLE — During the final moments of Saturday’s game, a flock of birds congregated in the air above the west end zone at Husky Stadium. From Arizona State’s perspective, they were not vultures, for a change.

Herring, Jones back in form in Huskies game

ASU notebook: Devils’ secondary passes test

While the seagulls frolicked at one end of the field, the scoreboard at the other end signified something that the Sun Devils had not enjoyed since September: a victory.

The 39-19 win against Washington ended a school-record six game losing streak, provided coach Dennis Erickson his first win in Seattle in five tries and kept ASU’s long-shot bowl hopes alive.

“We’ll take a win,” Erickson said. “We’ll take any win after six losses. It was good to get the feeling back. It’s been awhile.”

After time expired, the Sun Devils (3-6 overall, 2-4 Pac-10) showed that they had not forgotten how to whoop it up after a win.

Jovial running back Keegan Herring, who ran for 144 yards and a touchdown, danced on the track surrounding the field. Players gathered in front of the small contingent of ASU fans among the announced crowd of 57,103. And chants and hollers emanated from the locker room.

“Man, it’s been the longest month — actually, it’s been two months, hasn’t it? — of my life,” quarterback Rudy Carpenter said. “It’s been terrible, but that’s the course our season has taken. I’m glad that the guys hung in there and kept playing hard.”

Washington (0-9, 0-6), the only winless team in the NCAA’s bowl subdivision, put up a fight well into the third quarter. In their second game since coach Tyrone Willingham was let go, effective at the end of the season, the Huskies threw deep often and unleashed an array of trick plays.

One went for a touchdown, when quarterback Ronnie Fouch caught a 6-yard scoring pass from wide receiver Cody Bruns in the second quarter.

But trickery that backfired put the game in ASU’s favor.

A double reverse in the third quarter put the ball back in the hands of Fouch, who was walloped by ASU defensive end James Brooks at the 8-yard line. Two plays later, the Huskies punted, tipping field position to Erickson’s team.

“That play was a turning point,” Erickson said. “They wanted to throw it, and (cornerback) Terell Carr had it covered, and we get a sack. We didn’t have good field position most of the day, but that play changed the game.”

ASU took little time to post two touchdowns that gave it a 30-19 lead, put an exclamation point on a career day for receiver Michael Jones and tied quarterback Rudy Carpenter with John Elway for fourth all time in the Pac-10 in touchdown passes, with 77.

After Brooks’ stop, the Huskies punted, and the Sun Devils took over 41 yards from the end zone. They covered that ground in eight plays, the last a 7-yard TD toss to Jones. Washington went three-and-out, and ASU marched to another score when Carpenter hit Jones from 2 yards out.

“In the first half, they did a couple of things on defense that we didn’t expect, so we had to make a couple of adjustments at halftime,” Jones said. “We did that and came out in the second half on fire. You want to go out and have fun. It hasn’t been much fun around here. That’s what the game is about. We came out, we played hard and won. That was fun.”

Jones had 11 catches for 146 yards, both career highs. Much of his success was due to ASU’s oft-beleaguered running game, which had a 100-yard rusher for the second straight game. Shaun DeWitty, who had 110 yards last week at Oregon State, started and was more physical, while the speedy Herring changed the pace.

“I think the important thing was that the offensive line did a great job, we ran the ball well, and the guys up front protected well,” said Carpenter, who was 22-of-31 for 218 yards and two touchdowns.

The Jones touchdowns relieved some red-zone pain — ASU scored on all five trips inside the 20, but the first three were field goals. The 12 penalties (for 92 yards) were a season high. Troy Nolan scored a touchdown for the second straight week, returning a fumble 44 yards for a score.

For the Devils, though, those are secondary details to be dissected during today’s film study. The main objective was finally met.

“After you lose so many times, just getting a win is all that matters,” Herring said. “People can have faith in us now. We can still turn this around and have a decent season.”

Did you see that? For the second game in a row and the fourth time in his ASU career, safety Troy Nolan made it to the end zone. The senior, who had an interception return for a touchdown last week, scooped up a fumble by Washington running back Paul Homer and returned it 44 yards for a score in the second quarter.

Thumbs up: Linebacker Mike Nixon had only three tackles, but his nose for the ball was still strong. He had an interception, his third of the season, to set up a fourth-quarter touchdown.

Thumbs down: ASU had a season-high 12 penalties and — for the fourth game this year — had a kick blocked.

Injury report: Center Thomas Altieri and defensive tackle David Smith both suffered stingers. Guard Zach Schlink departed with a sprained ankle and a knee injury. Defensive tackle Lawrence Guy left in the final two minutes with a right shoulder injury that did not appear serious.

Quotable: “People don’t understand, this is the Pac-10, and everybody has some pride. Everyone wants to win it, and Washington is like that as well. They wanted to get a win just as badly as we did, because it has been a long season for them as well.”
— ASU quarterback Rudy Carpenter.

Up Next: Washington State at Arizona State
When: 3:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Sun Devil Stadium
Records: Washington State 1-9 overall, 0-7 Pac-10; ASU 3-6, 2-4
Washington State this week: The Cougars, who have the worst defense in the nation, allowed 531 yards, 317 via the run, in a 59-28 loss against Arizona.
Outlook: As bad as Washington has been this year, its rival, WSU, could be even worse. The Cougars have allowed at least 58 points six times, including each of the last four games. After this game, ASU should have a winning streak — perish the thought.