Backup Herring cooks up win for ASU

TEMPE, Ariz. – Rudy Carpenter threw for 200 yards and two touchdowns and Keegan Herring filled in for leading rusher Ryan Torain with two scores as well in Arizona State’s 34-13 win Saturday night over San Diego State.

Herring rushed for 161 yards on 19 carries in place of the injured Torain, who sat out to rest his sprained right ankle, after gaining 214 yards in the first two weeks of the season.

Arizona State (3-0) broke open the game with Carpenter’s second TD pass, late in the first half, and Herring’s third-quarter score that gave the Sun Devils a 31-10 lead.

San Diego State (0-2) moved the ball well, amassing 323 yards of offense, but only got into Sun Devil territory five times, settling for two long field goals and scoring on Kevin O’Connell’s 3-yard dive into the end zone with 7:58 left in the second quarter that cut the lead to 14-10.

Carpenter was 15 of 21 with an interception for the Sun Devils, who have started the season 3-0 for the second straight year.

Leading 17-10, Arizona State held the Aztecs on a three-and-out late in the second quarter and then executed their 2-minute offense to perfection. The Sun Devils needed just 36 seconds to drive 76 yards in four plays, capped by a 30-yard pass play from Carpenter to Rudy Burgess that split the defense and gave Arizona State a 24-10 halftime lead.

Herring picked up his second touchdown on a 1-yard dive that ended a 10-play, 85-yard drive with 3:50 left in the third period. O’Connell completed 22 of 38 passes for 180 yards.

The Sun Devils opened the scoring on Carpenter’s 19-yard pass to Kyle Williams with 12:10 left after Arizona State got a 48-yard punt return from Williams to start at the Aztec 36. Arizona State scored on its fifth play.

Herring had most of the first-quarter offense, 46 yards coming on a pretty touchdown run with 3:08 left. The junior took an inside handoff, hid behind left tackle Brandon Rodd, and then took off for the left sideline, outrunning cornerback Vonnie Holmes and then taking corner Scotty James into the end zone for a 14-3 lead.

San Diego State answered with a 78-yard drive highlighted by Brandon Bornes’ cutback 47-yard run to the Arizona State 12.

San Diego State is 0-2 against the Pac-10, having lost to Washington State 45-17 a week ago.

Arizona State is 10-0-1 against San Diego State. It was the second-best night of Herring’s career. He carried for 197 yards in a 52-21 win over Northwestern in 2005.