3 Negatives from ASU's Week 1 Win

It is very exciting that the Arizona State Sun Devils football team is victorious. However, even in victory, there are some elements that they could clean up.

Penalties

The Sun Devils had a total of 12 penalties. Yes, 12, and for a total of 93 yards. One of the penalties even called back a Touchdown and another penalty called back a Sam Leavitt deep completion to Jordyn Tyson that would have set the Sun Devils up in the red zone.

Several other penalties caused huge ASU gains and big plays to disappear. One could say that the game was over officiated, but NAU only had 6 penalties, so it was more so ASU committing mistakes than over officiating.

Now, it is Week 1, and ASU has not played Football since January 1st, when they played the Texas Longhorns. The Sun Devils also have new players on the team. Both of those are reasons why there were a lot of penalties, but Kenny Dillingham has prided his style of team play on disciplinary football, so the amount of penalties was not a great showing. Coach Dillingham should get this cleaned up, but if it persists, it could be a huge issue for the Sun Devils this year.

A penalty flag rests on the field during a high school spring football exhibition game between Beachside and Parker on May 16, 2025. Beachside was penalized 15 yards for a facemask. [Clayton Freeman/Florida Times-Union] | Clayton Freeman/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Wide Receivers Quiet Debuts

As mentioned, ASU had some new players on the roster. One such player was Fresno State Transfer, Jalen Moss. Moss had some great flashes at Fresno and had a very good training camp over the offseason.

However, Moss ended up getting no catches in Week 1 action, though he did recover an ASU fumble, which was key for the Sun Devils. Now, Leavitt did target Moss over the middle. Moss had it in his hands, but NAU's secondary did jar the ball loose. Nevertheless, it was a bummer that Moss ended up with no catches. Now, Moss is a good player and he will bounce back, but it might take him a bit while to get going than fans expected.

Malik McClain was also very quiet in the game, as he had two catches for five yards. Now given, Jordyn Tyson had a really great game, as did Kyson Brown, but it would have been nice to see Moss and McClain have more of an impact on the stat sheet.

Arizona State Wide Receiver Jalen Moss — Arizona State wide receiver Jalen Moss (18) catches the ball during football practice at Kajikawa practice fields in Tempe on Aug 1, 2025. | Cheryl Evans/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Offensive Line

The Offensive Line was very split in this game. In terms of run blocking, they actually played very well. They paved some really nice running lanes for the Sun Devil backfield.

However, the pass blocking did struggle. Sam Leavitt was already under more pressure than he should have been. There were many passing plays where Leavitt had to run instead of staying in the pocket and reading out the defense.

Arizona State Quarterback Sam Leavitt runs into the end zone — Arizona State quarterback Sam Leavitt (10) runs into the end zone against NAU cornerback Mikale Greer (2) during a game at Mountain America Stadium in Tempe on Aug. 30, 2025. | Patrick Breen/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

In conclusion, there are some things that the Sun Devils have to clean up. ASU has a great coaching staff, so the issues should get fixed, but it is something to focus on.

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