Arizona State’s Marcus Hardison ‘playing at an All-American level’

TEMPE, Ariz. — He may have been the one bright spot in what was a very dull evening in Corvallis, Ore. last Saturday.

Arizona State senior defensive end Marcus Hardison recorded a career-high three tackles for a loss — including two sacks — and a forced fumble leading to a Sun Devil touchdown in a 35-27 loss at unranked Oregon State.

Hardison was easily the best defender on the field and an argument can be made he’s been the top player on ASU’s defense for the better part of the past month.

“Over the course of the last five weeks, he’s not even the same player,” defensive coordinator Keith Patterson said. “You watch him on film the last two weeks and it’s impressive. He is as active and playing as well as anybody in the country, I believe, at that position. It’s been very impressive to watch.”

Head coach Todd Graham went one step further when asked about the 6-foot-5, 300-pound lineman.

“Marcus Hardison’s a guy right now that I think is playing at an All-American level,” he said. “His light has gone on. I’m so excited for him.”

Lofty praise indeed.

“It makes me feel good,” Hardison said, when asked about his coaches’ comments. “It means I’m going in the right path. I’ve just got to keep improving. That’s the main thing.

“I’ve been playing really, really good, but there’s always room for improvement because I can always be better.”

Hardison pointed at his fundamentals and technique as areas where he needs to improve.

With five sacks in the past four games, Hardison leads the team with eight, which ranks 14th nationally.

“Confidence and believing in myself are the main things,” he said, explaining his recent success. “I write myself goals down every Thursday. I just believe it. Visualize, and I go out there and play.

“I’m on track, trying to get all my goals done. It feels good, but I can only get better.”

Hardison, who had one sack all of last year, will likely be leaned on heavily this week against Washington State (3-7) and the country’s top-rated passing offense. Since replacing the injured Connor Halliday, freshman quarterback Luke Falk has completed nearly 70 percent (82-of-118) of his throws for 817 yards and seven touchdowns.

According to Patterson, the Sun Devils will utilize “a different kind of game plan (defensively) than what maybe you’ve seen over the course of the last few weeks. You’ll see a lot more direct pressure coming right into the teeth of the quarterback.”

That strategy plays to Hardison’s strengths.

After a standout two-year stint at Dodge City Community College in Kansas, Hardison chose the Sun Devils over offers from Auburn, Baylor, Florida State, Oklahoma, Texas A&M and others.

Saturday, his two-year tenure at ASU nears completion as he and 12 other seniors play their final game at Sun Devil Stadium.

“It’s going to be crazy, because I was just saying when I first showed up here in May last year, I’m like, ‘these two years, they’ll take a little while’, but Senior Day just popped up on me just that fast,” he said. “It’s going to be awesome at the moment, but it’ll probably hit me later on, like ‘man, that’s my last time ever playing in the stadium’. Senior Day, going out there with my guys and get the W.”

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