Cougs Face Devil Of A Task Despite Loss Of ‘Magical’ Players, Arizona State Still Has Plenty Of Weapons

Words like “destiny” and “magical” pervaded Arizona State’s march to the Rose Bowl last season, but the Sun Devils won 11 games for one simple reason: Coach Bruce Snyder had the best players in the Pacific-10 Conference.

Eight Sun Devils were selected in last April’s NFL draft. Six more signed as free agents.

Magic, shmagic.

This season, ASU is 5-2 and ranked No. 20 - not because of any mystical afterglow from ‘96, but because the offensive line can block, the running backs can run and the defense can tackle.

Those factors, plus home-field advantage, have made ASU a three-point favorite in Saturday night’s pivotal game against 10th-ranked Washington State (7-0).

The Sun Devils have gained national acclaim by beating good teams consistently. They have won 20 of their last 24 games, including nine of 10 on the road. The victims include Washington, Nebraska and Miami.

ASU is getting respect also because of players like Kyle Murphy, a fifth-year senior who rates among the Pac-10’s best offensive linemen.

When Murphy came to Tempe from Huntington Beach, Calif., in 1993, Snyder was in his second season and the program was in transition.

“We had some years here that were a real struggle - 6-5 and 3-8,” Murphy said. “We put a lot of work into it. This team has a lot of talent now, and this will be a program that continues to rise.”

Like Snyder, Murphy is determined to prove that last season was more than an aberration, that the program had enough depth to succeed without stars like Jake “The Snake” Plummer, Juan Roque, Derrick Rodgers and Terry Battle.

The Sun Devils bristled at preseason polls that predicted a middle-of-the-pack finish.

“I don’t think people gave us enough credit,” Murphy said. “I can understand when you lose a guy like Jake Plummer, and we lost a lot of guys on defense, but we went 11-1 and it couldn’t have been just because of those guys.”

Plummer’s departure left the quarterbacking to freshman Ryan Kealy. That would normally be a scary situation, but ASU has offset Kealy’s inexperience with a solid running game and a defense that is allowing just 13 points per game.

“He’s not the Snake, cuz the Snake could move,” WSU defensive tackle Leon Bender observed, “but he’s a good quarterback, a good pocket passer.”

Kealy’s production has been sporadic.

He completed 21 of 34 passes for 281 yards and three touchdowns against USC. The next week, against Stanford, Kealy hit on just 14 of 36 passes for 195 yards and no touchdowns.

The bottom line: ASU won both games by comfortable margins. For that, Kealy can thank an underrated supporting cast.

J.R. Redmond is ASU’s best tailback, but he is not alone. When Redmond missed the Stanford game with a hip injury, backups Michael Martin and Marlon Furlow kicked in with more than 100 yards apiece.

“You got a solid offensive line and three or four good backs and you can run the ball pretty well,” Bender said. “I’ve been keeping up with who’s who in the offensive-line department, and these guys are good.

“It’s going to be a real game, one for the books.”

WSU notes

Despite having a full day to burn before Saturday night’s 7 o’clock kickoff, Price said the Cougars don’t have any specific plans.

Two years ago, when WSU played a night game at Oregon, the team took in a matinee - with disastrous results. The Ducks won 26-7.

“We watched Dead Presidents and it was a real downer,” Price recalled. “Then we went out and got our (butts) handed to us. We won’t be doing that again.”

Among the titles at the team hotel in nearby Mesa: Devil’s Own.

Thursday’s high temperature in Tempe was 82, with clear skies. The low was 55.

Quotable

“I don’t know where that came from, but it did blow my cover in terms of going to the team and saying, hey, we don’t get any respect.” - ASU’s Snyder, on being a three-point favorite against WSU.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: LEAF SHOULD BE READY Quarterback Ryan Leaf will not be limited by his bruised left shoulder, coach Mike Price told reporters during a conference call Thursday. The injury occurred when Leaf collided with a teammate after an attempted handoff during practice Wednesday. But Leaf practiced Thursday and appeared to be 100 percent, Price said. “When we get down to Tempe, me and Ryan are going to hide out at the hotel so you guys can’t see the sling,” Price joked.