Arizona State football: Three halftime takeaways against Oklahoma State

TEMPE, Ariz. — It’s been a fun night so far for the Sun Devils as Arizona State leads Oklahoma State, 15-10. Here are three quick takeaways from the first half of action at Mountain America Stadium.

Three quick halftime takeaways

Kenny Dillingham isn’t afraid of anything

The offense overall played well in the first half. Arizona State maintained a balanced attack, mixing in a little bit of everything, and I mean everything.

Jaden Rashada is 8/13 passing with 106 yards and a touchdown. On the ground, Skattebo has been the main threat. He tallied eight carries for 32 yards and a touchdown.

The offensive player of the half however has to be Elijhah Badger, with success receiving and rushing. Badger has two catches for 73 yards and a touchdown as well as two carries for 21 yards.

Yep, Elijhah Badger has two carries. That’s actually the least interesting wrinkle Kenny Dillingham and offensive coordinator Beau Baldwin has sprinkled in tonight. They’ve done multiple direct snaps to Cam Skattebo, one of which resulted in a touchdown. Another resulted in a successful two-point conversion.

On a 3rd and short, late in the second quarter, tight end Jalin Conyers lined up under center. It was his turn for a direct snap and he sneaked it for about two yards and the first down.

Dillingham has opened up the tricks tonight after being fairly conservative against Southern Utah.

He also went for two after an Oklahoma State defender jumped offsides on the extra point attempt. Kicker Dario Longhetto nailed the PAT, but Dillingham decided to take the extra yard from the offsides call and go for two.

It’s safe to say he’s not afraid to risk it.

The run defense has been fantastic

Oklahoma State enters the half with, checks notes, zero rushing yards. That’s right, zero. Keep in mind, that this number also includes the loss of yards via sacks, but it’s still incredibly impressive.

Michigan State transfer Elijah Collins is OSU’s leading rusher with 12 yards on four carries. Their other runningback, Ollie Gordon II has three yards on two attempts. All three other players with a carry (Jaden Nixon, Gunnar Gundy, and Alan Bowman) all have negative yardage.

The defensive line has been dominant in the trenches, a great sign. Extra credit to BJ Green who has two sacks.

The secondary needs to step up

Oklahoma State hasn’t been able to do anything on the ground, but they’re still in the game. That’s thanks to their passing game. Two quarterbacks played in the first half for the Cowboys, Alan Bowman and Gunnar Gundy.

Bowman had a lot of success slinging it, going 11/16 for 113 yards, and had a 128.1 passer rating. Gundy went 3/4 for 28 yards.

The secondary in particular has struggled with a lot of action over the middle. Oklahoma State has attacked its man coverage with slants, digs, posts, and other crossing routes.

If Arizona State wants to put the Cowboys away, the secondary will need to step up.

Thank you for reading Sun Devil Daily! Follow us on Twitter to stay up to date with Arizona State news! For feedback, questions, concerns, or to apply for a writing position, please email our Managing Editor at [email protected]. Also, make sure to check out the Sun Devil Daily shop for merchandise! Forks up!