Two Sun Devils Claim Pac-12 Player of the Week Honors

Congratulations to Jayden Daniels and LaDarius Henderson Jr. for representing ASU well.

After such a dominating performance from the Arizona State Sun Devils in their 42-23 victory over UCLA, it was only a matter of time before individual players received some recognition. 

On Monday, the Pac-12 announced their Week 5 players of the week, which featured two Arizona State players grabbing honors. 

Jayden Daniels Wins Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week

Quarterback Jayden Daniels brought home the conference's offensive player of the week award after accomplishing the following:

• Led the Sun Devils to a 42-23 win over No. 20 UCLA, the second-largest margin of victory against an AP top 25 team on the road in program history. Daniels did it with both his arm and legs, but excelled in the passing game.

• Threw for 286 yards on an efficient 13-for-18 passing, throwing for a pair of touchdowns. It was his ninth game with two-plus scores through the air. It is his 12th career performance accounting for two or more touchdowns and the ninth time he reached at least 250 yards passing.

• Accounted for 331 yards of offense, going over the 300-yard mark for the eighth time. He averaged 22 yards per completion, which set a new career high. He added 45 yards on the ground on only six carries.

• Created explosive plays with his accuracy and arm strength, completing four passes for over 40 yards. As a result, he was PFF's 21st-highest graded player overall in FBS for the week at 87.6. The rating was 12th among all quarterbacks and was the best in the Pac-12 this week. His 15.1 yards per attempt were second among FBS quarterbacks. Additionally, he had the eighth-highest NFL QBR in the FBS according to PFF.

• It is the second time he has won the award and the first time an Arizona State player has won it since Daniels did in November, 2019 as a freshman. Daniels actually won both the Offensive Player and Freshman of the Week that time.

LaDarius Henderson Jr. Wins Pac-12 Offensive Lineman of the Week

Left guard Ladarius Henderson Jr. won Pac-12 Offensive Lineman of the Week honors after providing the following against UCLA:

• Established a physical presence at the line of scrimmage in the victory over UCLA. Henderson and the offensive line unit paved the way for an extremely balanced offensive attack that produced 42 points and 458 total yards (286 passing, 172 rushing).

• Graded out at 84%, including two pancakes and one knockdown. He did not allow a single quarterback pressure and still has allowed only one all season.

• Was effective as a pull blocker on run plays and also showed his athleticism when getting out to block on Ricky Pearsall's 58-yard touchdown on a screen pass.

• Third time an Arizona State player has won this award since its inception in 2019. Dohnovan West won it in December 2020 and Cohl Cabral in September 2019.