ASU’s Graham talks accountability for players, fans, himself
Todd Graham takes responsibility for loss against San Diego State, looks to improve his team and move forward to Texas Tech and having his team healthy.
Arizona State head coach Todd Graham spoke to the media Monday after ASU's loss to San Diego State (Omar Soussi/Cronkite News)
(Omar Soussi/Cronkite News)
TEMPE, Ariz. — On the heels of a disappointing loss to San Diego State, Arizona State head coach Todd Graham sent a message of accountability.
To his players. His fans. Himself.
“No one’s more disappointed than I am …” Graham said Monday at his weekly press conference. “As coaches, we’ve got to get our players to perform better than that.”
With the lackluster play against the Aztecs, Graham said he doesn’t blame anyone for criticizing the team and players when they play poorly but also said that type of reaction isn’t productive.
“We try to talk to our guys about controlling the things we can control,” Graham said. “That’s our attitude and effort and all you have to do is go out and perform on the field and you don’t have to worry about that kind of criticism.”
The loss that ASU suffered to San Diego State led many fans on social media to vent their anger on those sites, sometimes even directing the vitriol toward players. The ASU football Twitter account even stepped in:
If you feel the need to Tweet/DM degrading and insulting comments at our student-athletes, please direct it to this account instead. Thanks.
— Sun Devil Football (@FootballASU) September 10, 2017
Graham said he has put his heart and soul into the program and wants to make sure he gets it right.
“I don’t have any negative feelings towards anything negative because you bring it upon yourself by not performing and that’s on us as coaches,” he said. “I’m not talking about the players.”
Among his on-field concerns was the play of special teams.
“What was disappointing was we had two delay penalties and then a couple other little things,” he said. “Obviously some of the kicks were not good but all of that rest on us.”
The punting game struggled as twice sophomore Michael Sleep-Dalton shanked punts that gave the Aztecs good field position.
A traditional right-legged kicker, he has been kicking from his opposite leg due to an injury for the last two weeks.
Special teams wasn’t the only area that needed improvement, Graham said, and pointed to an offensive line that has given up 12 sacks this season. Graham said that the team needs to “get everyone on the same page” and though he believes players protected better than last week, they need to keep working hard and executing better.
Even with all the issues that came from the game, Graham said the team is “on to Texas Tech,” which will present a much different challenge than San Diego State’s pound-and-ground offense.
“Every year they’re the best passing team offense in the country, very well coached on special teams and playing a lot better defensively,” Graham said.
When Graham was asked if his secondary will be ready for the air raid offense, he answered honestly.
“You’re never ready for anything, you just get out there and do it,” Graham said.
Comments
40 Comments
Agreed Manny = Deer in the headlights
Agreed Brady = More game tape, and more demonstration that he gets it and could be special.
I have been the biggest Brady fan for a while now, especially after the UCLA game. My only concern about Brady, going back to high school are questions if he's too physcially fragile. To that point, he looks so much bigger right now.
But I'm telling you right now, the more I watch Blake make decisions, change plays, see the throws he can make, how quick the ball comes out, the more I understand why they he got over 100 full scholarship offers, including ones from every major program. Blake has the frame to get bigger for sure. He has a much bigger ceiling.
Let me set you straight: I AM A MANNY FAN, just not of his abilities to play QB. What Manny doesn't have has nothing to do with his work ethic or his intelligence. Its largely just God-given abilities, and then having the opportunity to develop them at an age early enough so you can imprint them in memory. The reality is, Manny started working on those abilities either too late in life, or just didn't have them in significant quantities that they could be developed.
Most importantly, I will never forget how after DSC basically melted down last year, Manny I went out and became the starter for the rest of the year, doing so with the knowledge that he was likely going to get his butt seriously beat. Yet, he never complained, offered no excuses, threw himself under the bus to protect his teammates - that is the essence of character to me. That alone makes me a Manny fan for the rest of my life, as it should for everyone who proclaims they are a Sun Devil fan. That is courage, that is loyalty, that is bravery, that is what I always hope to find in every player I ever played or coached.
That being said, I really disagree that you "KNOW" things would be the same with either Blake or Brady in there, than what Manny is experiencing, because I don't think there's any level of certainity that such a change might completely transform the team, program and his season. Let me give an example how he could help out the offensive line.
If you go back and look at film ON EVERY PLAY where the offensive line looked bad in either game; i.e. where Manny got sacked, RB had no hole, etc. at presnap, when Manny walked up to the LOS, there were very slight adjustments he could have easily made to either the play, the formation and especially the blocking scheme, which would have eliminated the defensive advantage before it every became a problem. IT IS ESSENTIAL TO REMEMBER: Napier's QB philosophy is you take what the defense gives you, and eventually they'll give you the game. The essence of that philosophy wherever, and whenever its been applied in college football, is having a QB who is able to change the play, formation or blocking scheme when he first comes to the line of scrimmage - to take what they give you.
Both NMSU and SDSU were gaming/ scheming all night but Manny never tried to alter ASU's scheme to attack them, make them pay. He didn't do it last year, and he hasn't done it this year. On 2 passing plays in particular, SDSU stunted their DT outside, brought their DE inside, to confuse blocking, but in the process left a 5-6 foot gap in the line for a good second ASU could have really exploited. When that gap occurred SDSU is seriously vulnerable in the short zone in the middle of the field at the LOS. The only person between a runner and the goal line was a single high safety, playing about 12 yards off the line of scrimmage.
All Manny had to do was: (1) motion the HB/TE to the weak side, threatening the boundary, which would have pulled the safety out of the middle; (2) move ASU's RB up closer to the line of scrimmage; (3) change the blocking scheme so both guards cross-blocked, the center going downfield and takes the first color from either side; and (4) have the QB fake like he's going to pass, and then hand the ball off to the running back who follows the center. Its a classic trap draw, and exactly how you attack anyone running a stunt with all 4 lineman.
The Elite 11 is a competition for high school QBs that tests them for their abilities to change plays like this, to take what the defense gives them, as well as how fast they can process information - which is key. It is not that Manny can't do process information, it's that he takes way too long to do it. Brady and Blake showed in high school they can do it light-years faster. Brady demonstrated against UCLA he's become even better at it since.
Their senior year in high school, Blake finished 1st, Brady 2nd, Manny far last, and really struggled in that competition. He did, however, always keep trying and had a incredible attitude, so the staff made up a special award for him, proclaiming what a great teammate and leader he was.
Your last sentence is golden. Besides head case (generally speaking of course) juco transfers, our bread and butter was recruiting the peoples republic of California's 3.5 star athletes who were passed over by USC/UCLA who had chips on their shoulders and wanted to prove scouts wrong.