ASU’s offense has blossomed under 1st-year coordinator Marcus Arroyo

TEMPE — A lot goes into making a football team successful, and all the cards fell into place to get ASU there in the first year of a new offense.

“Football teams are aircraft carriers, man,” offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo said on Wednesday. “It takes a long time to turn them around. … There’s a lot of people that don’t get enough credit for what they do to get the operation off the ground. I think that’s why this game is so amazing.”

After the Sun Devils had the worst scoring offense in Power 5 and dealt with an in-season coordinator change in 2023, Arroyo designed a turnaround dramatic enough for him to be named a finalist for the Broyles Award, given to the nation’s top assistant coach.

Arizona State has nearly doubled its scoring average, going from 17.8 points per game to 33.1.

“I think the staff deserves a ton of credit on offense. I’ve never been with anybody on staff, I was the only new guy to come in with Hines (Ward, wide receivers coach),” Arroyo said. “And I think for those guys to be able to sit back and try to digest the whole offense and … try to make it a puzzle and make it fit has been part of what you got to do.”

Ward said on Friday the two have stayed close amid the quick acclimation, and Arroyo’s ability to listen and factor in other opinions has helped make the offense successful.

“With (Arroyo) being with the quarterbacks and me being with the wideouts, I just think we meshed well together,” Ward said. “Me understanding kind of his vision, how he wants it and kind of what the quarterbacks are thinking makes it easier for me to not only teach the receivers technique and fundamentals, but what the quarterbacks are thinking at the same time, so I’m learning a lot from them.”

Starting quarterback Sam Leavitt joining the team also pushed the offense forward, and his relationship with Arroyo has been key.

“He’s a special coach and he understands me as a person,” Leavitt said on Wednesday. “We’ll be in games and I’ll make a play with my legs and he’ll get mad at me because I got out of the pocket too early or something like that, and it just shows he wants the best for you and he demands the highest quality of performance for me which is exactly what I want to be coached by.

“I’m coming off on the sidelines all happy and I get on the headset. He’s like, ‘Hey man, you know, you should’ve done this and this better, but good job.’ … That’s my guy and I’ll ride with him for life.”

Ward said Leavitt’s knowledge is where he’s seen the quarterback grow the most.

“Just, where he picked up the offense. Now, commanding the offense. If he sees some things, he’ll change it. That’s what you need at the quarterback,” Ward said. “Sometimes having a quarterback on the football field that sees things. Coach Arroyo’s at the top of the play booth, he can see it all, but he understands what Sam is doing. And I think the communication aspect of it, making sure we got all 11 guys on the same page.

“I think that’s what you need from a quarterback. Sam is a proven leader, and he’s done that.”

Plus, it doesn’t hurt when Leavitt has a running back behind him who ESPN ranked as a top-three player entering the playoff in Cam Skattebo.

The proof has been in the pudding for ASU’s offense

Arroyo said he came into the season wanting to establish an identity that his offense is physical, explosive and efficient. He wanted them to understand the margins of winning football, an area where ASU has excelled.

The “middle eight” and turnovers are two of the marginal areas most emphasized by the program.

Head coach Kenny Dillingham credits Oregon’s Dan Lanning for the “middle eight” concept, which states that winning the last four minutes of the first half and the first four minutes of the second half is paramount to consistent success.

ASU has been the nation’s fourth-most efficient team in the middle eight this season, according to SportSource Analytics. Six of the teams in the top 10 are in the playoff (Notre Dame, Tennessee, Texas, Arizona State, Ohio State and Penn State).

The Sun Devils have taken care of the ball on offense, as well as taking it out of the opponents’ hands on defense to create a recipe for complementary football.

Leavitt has four turnover-worthy plays in 12 games, including one over the last five games, per PFF. He has also played well in the face of pressure, throwing a higher completion percentage against blitzes (63.4%) than otherwise (62.7%).

Meanwhile the defense has forced a turnover in eight straight games, including nine over the past four games (15 interceptions on the season).

Then in the Big 12 title game when Arizona State was missing its star receiver in Jordyn Tyson, other pass catchers stepped up with newfound levels of production.

“I’m not surprised, ’cause we work at it,” Ward said. “I get it, losing production out of JT is hard to make up. But that’s not to sit there and say that we don’t have the guys that can get it done. I believed in them, and I told them: JT can’t catch the ball for you guys, you still gotta go out there and perform.”