Three Thoughts: Fourth quarter collapse By Colorado
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Final Score: Arizona 41, Colorado 30.
KEY MOMENT: It’s fairly obvious. Colorado led by a touchdown with just over 11 minutes remaining when the Buffs went into punt formation at the CU35. They had three blockers lined up about 5 yards behind the line of scrimmage. As soon as the ball was snapped, an Arizona State player roared in from the edge and blocked the kick. The ball caromed out to the CU41 and returned 1 yard by ASU to the 40. Seven plays later, the Sun Devils scored a TD to tie the score at 27-27 and they dominated the remainder of the game.
TURNING POINT: The drive after the punt block set the tone of the rest of the game. The Sun Devils rushed six times for 34 yards (5.67 yards per rush), including the game-tying 5-yard run by Demario Richard with 8:38 left. Over the final 11 minutes, Arizona State rushed for 187 yards on 17 carries, a mind-boggling 11.0 yards per carry. Included was a 63-yard run, a 40-yard run and a 19-yard TD run. The Buffs’ inability to stop ASU’s ground attack in the fourth quarter cost them the game.
RECAP/NUMBERS TELL THE TALE
The key statistic in the game isn’t difficult to figure out: Arizona State outrushed the Buffs by nearly a 4-to-1 margin (383 yards to 109) and averaged over 7 yards per carry. ASU ran the ball 54 times compared to 34 passes. Demario Richard had 189 yards on 25 carries. He outshined Buffs RB Phillip Lindsay, who managed 80 yards on 23 carries as ASU held him to 3.48 yards per attempt, one of his lowest figures of the season.
Besides running the football effectively, Arizona State accomplished something else en route to outscoring the Buffs 24-3 in the final period. In the first three quarters, ASU was just 4-of-13 on third down conversions. But in the 4th quarter they were 3-of-4 on third downs. Colorado? They were 0-for-3 on third down in the final period after converting 6-of-13 in the first 45 minutes.
Steven Montez finished 23-of-41 for 345 yards and 1 TD. He was also sacked 5 times. Shay Fields had a horrendous drop early in the game and finished with 6 receptions for 128 yards. Frankly, CU’s best players might have been punter Alex Kinney, who averaged 51.2 yards on five punts, and placekicker James Stefanou, who was 3-of-3 on FG attempts from 34, 53 and 28 yards.
Colorado came out throwing the football as Montez attempted 8 passes while Lindsay had 3 carries on the Buffs’ 14-play, 62-yard drive on their first possession. CU was 3-for-4 on 3rd downs. The drive produced a 34-yard FG by Stefanou for a 3-0 lead.
ASU punted again on their second possession as they totaled 30 yards the first two times they had the ball. On CU’s second possession, Shay Field dropped a sure TD pass and the Buffs punted.
Starting at their 37, ASU drove 36 yards to the CU 27 and attempted a 45-yard FG. But the kick missed and CU still led 3-0 with 1:09 left in the first quarter.
END 1Q: Buffs 3, Arizona State 0.
Total Yards: CU 103, ASU 66
Montez 6-12 for 48 yards, Lindsay 6 carries for 28 yds.
CU hit paydirt on their third possession. The key? They started giving the ball to Lindsay, who had 8 carries for 42 yards on the drive. His last carry was a 6-yard TD run to give CU a 10-0 lead with 11:46 left in the 2nd quarter. Lindsay’s first rushing TD capped a 13-play, 73-yard drive.
On ASU’s next possession, the Buffs defense stuffed the Sun Devils on 4th down at the 49-yard line (great play by Landman), giving CU great field position. But one turnover on downs deserves another. The Buffs drove to the ASU 28 where they faced 4th-and-1. But Lindsay was stopped for no gain.
ASU proceeded to drive 72 yards on just 6 plays to score their first points of the game on a leaping 20-yard TD catch by N’Keal Harry in the right corner of the end zone. CU led 10-7 with 5:38 left in the 2nd quarter. Preceding Harry’s catch, the biggest moments of the drive was a PI call on CU and a 21-yard run by Wilkins.
After an exchange of punts, CU started at its 49 with 2:20 left in the first half. Montez hit Jay MacIntyre down the middle for 20 yards to the ASU 28. Four plays later, Montez hit Bobo for 15 yards to within inches of the goal line. The officials reviewed the play to see if Bobo had broken the plane. The call was upheld and the Buffs had 1st-and-goal at the 1.
If you’re CU and you’re less than a yard from scoring a TD, what do you do? That’s right, give the ball to Lindsay. On second down, they did and the senior ran through the left side for the touchdown with 1:07 left in the second quarter.
Ahead 17-7, the CU defense was called upon to stop the Sun Devils in the final minute of the first half. But they couldn’t do it as the Sun Devils drove 77 yards in 7 plays for a TD. Pass completions for 16 yards + a 14-yard run moved the ball to the CU 31. Three plays later, Wilkins hit Kyle Williams for a 25-yard TD with 7 seconds left until halftime.
Making matters worse, ASU’s bouncing kickoff ricocheted off a Buffs player and was recovered by the Sun Devils at the CU 37. All ASU could do was attempt a long 55-yard FG and the kick sailed wide left as the field half expired.
HALFTIME: Buffs 17, Arizona State 14.
Total Yards: CU 248, ASU 236
Passing: Montez 14-25 for 152 yards; Wilkins 11-21 for 129 yards
Rushing: Lindsay 16-65; Wilkins 8-71.
Receiving: Ross 5-23; Williams 4-50.
Third Downs: CU 6-10, ASU 3-8.
The Buffs went 3-and-out on their first possession of the second half but won the battle of field position thanks to a 67-yard punt by Kinney that was downed by Ross at the ASU 1-yard line.
With ASU backed up almost into its own end zone, the onus was on the Buffs defense to come up with a defensive stop. They did, forcing a 3-and-out. ASU had 2nd-and-2 at the 9, but Ryan Moeller tackled Kalen Ballage for a 3-yard loss to the 6. Eventually, the Sun Devils punted and the boot went just 33 yards, giving the Buffs great field position at the ASU 39.
But the CU offense went 3-and-out as Lindsay was dropped for a 5-yard loss on 3rd-and-2 from the ASU 31. Just when it looked like the Buffs would waste a golden opportunity to expand its lead, Stefanou boomed a 53-yard field goal through the uprights to give CU a 20-14 lead with 11:02 left in the third quarter.
A pair of completions to Harry for 17 and 9 yards help ASU drive to the CU 36. The Sun Devils faced a 4th-and-1 and gave the ball to Richard for a 4-yard run and a first down to the CU 32. After the play, Moeller limped off the field with the help of CU trainers. ASU continued to run the football with success and moved into the red zone.
However, two straight pass incompletions brought out the ASU placekicker for a 34-yard field goal. The kick was GOOD, cutting CU’s lead to 20-17 with 6:00 minutes left in the third quarter.
CU responded with one of its biggest plays of the game. After 8 and 7 yards gains on the ground (the second by Lindsay to give him 70 yards on 19 carries), Montez dropped back and found Fields racing down the right sideline about 3 or 4 yards beyond the ASU secondary. Fields caught the ball (unlike earlier in the game) around the 25 and sprinted the distance into the end zone for a 54-yard score, the Buffs’ third TD of the game, and a 27-17 lead with 4:55 left in the third quarter.
Rather than run the football with Lindsay and try to take some time off the clock, Montez dropped back to pass three times and none were completions. Kinney’s 64-yard punt was returned by Harry all the way into CU territory, but the long return was wiped out by an illegal block penalty, forcing ASU to start at its 5.
Unlike earlier in the quarter, ASU moved the ball out of the danger zone, completing a pass for 31 yards when Wigley tried to jump a pass towards the sidelines but missed. Ballage rushed for 19 yards to the CU 23 on the final play of the third quarter.
END THIRD QTR: Colorado 27, Arizona State 17.
After ASU moved into the red zone, a third down pass fell incomplete. The ASU placekicker trotted out and booted a 37-yard field goal with 13:37 left to cut CU’s lead to 27-20.
On CU’s ensuing possession, Montez was sacked on first down before quickly making amends with a 19-yard completion to Ross to the CU 37. But Montez was sacked again on the next third and down and the Buffs went into punt formation.
The Buffs lined up three players as a shield in the backfield, but ASU managed to get a player through to block the punt and the Sun Devils started at the CU 40. The Sun Devils methodically moved the ball inside the red zone by running the football. On first-and-goal from the 5, Richard powered into the end zone to even the score at 27-27 with 8:38 left.
What do the Buffs do when they need a big play? Get the ball into the hands of Lindsay. Thanks to some improvisation by Montez, a catch-and-run pass to Lindsay resulted in a 60-yard gain to the ASU 15. However, the Buffs stalled in the red zone and settled for a go-ahead 28-yard field goal by Stefanou for a 30-27 lead with 7:09 left.
Problem is, as soon as CU regained the lead, they gave it up as ASU rocketed 75 yards down the field in just 5 plays. The killer was a 40-yard run by Richard. Two plays later, freshman RB Eno Benjamin rumbled straight through the CU defense, shaking off would-be tacklers along the way, for a powerful 19-yard TD to give the Sun Devils a 34-30 lead with 5:33 left.
After an encouraging start to the ensuing possession, CU’s offense stalled on the second series of downs and they were forced to punt, which was fair caught at the ASU 15.
The CU defense absolutely, positively needed a stop on ASU’s next possession. But they didn’t get it as Demario Richard raced 63 yards on second down to the CU 17. The back-breaking play forced CU to exhaust their supply of timeouts. Benjamin’s 11-yard run gave ASU a first-and-goal at the 3. Two running plays were stopped short of the goal line. ASU called timeout with 52 seconds left before a third-and-goal play. Wilkins took the shotgun snap and rolled left. He stretched the ball over the pylon at the same moment his foot stepped out of bounds. The play was reviewed and the TD call was upheld. Arizona State led, 41-30, with 46 seconds left.
THREE TAKEAWAYS:
1. The Buffs need to run the ball to win: Coming into the game, two factors favored Colorado. They had one of the best running backs in the Pac-12 in Phillip Lindsay and ASU was 10th in the conference in run defense (186.9 ypg). Curiously, the Buffs came out with a game plan of trying to throw the ball. Lindsay had just 7 carries in the second half even though CU had the lead or the game was tied for the vast majority of the time. Overall, CU threw it 41 times and ran it 39 times. From the Buffs’ perspective, that’s not a winning formula.
2. The path to bowl eligibility is fraught with danger: With a 5-5 record and two games remaining, CU must find a way to win at least one of its last two games to qualify for a bowl game. However, the Buffs host Pac-12 South leader USC next Saturday afternoon before a bye week and then traveling to Salt Lake City to face Utah, a team that could also be seeking the coveted sixth win on Nov. 25 as their next two games are against Washington State and Washington. Both CU and Utah could be 5-6 going into the last game.
3. No Turnovers, No Road Victory: In addition to the inability to stop ASU’s rushing attack, the CU defense fell short in another area – they failed to get a single takeaway from the ASU offense. The shutout ended CU’s 9-game streak with at least one turnover forced (translation: first time this season without a turnover). The Buffs came into the game having forced at least one turnover in 34 of their last 36 games. Saturday night in Tempe, they forced 5 punts, stopped ASU on fourth down and ASU missed a FG. But no turnovers, an essential ingredient to winning on the road.
