2015 Arizona State Sun Devils football team

2015 Pac-12 Conference football standings
	North Division
	South Division
	Championship: Stanford 41, USC 22
	$ – Conference champion; x – Division champion/co-champions; y – Championship game participant; Rankings from AP Poll

2015 Arizona State Sun Devils football
2015 Arizona State Sun Devils football
Cactus Bowl, L 42–43 vs. West Virginia
Conference	Pac-12 Conference
	South Division
2015 record	6–7 (4–5 Pac-12)
Head coach	Todd Graham (4th season);
Offensive coordinator	Mike Norvell (4th season)
Offensive scheme	Spread
Defensive coordinator	Keith Patterson (2nd season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Chris Ball (3rd season)
Base defense	Hybrid Attacking
Captain	Mike Bercovici; D.J. Foster; Jordan Simone
Home stadium	Sun Devil Stadium; (Capacity: 64,248)
	Seasons ← 2014 2016 →

The 2015 Sun Devils football team represented Arizona State University in the 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by fourth-year head coach Todd Graham and played their home games at Sun Devil Stadium. They were a member of the South Division of the Pac-12 Conference.

Personnel[]

Coaching staff[]

Name	Position	Seasons at ASU	Alma Mater
Todd Graham	Head coach	4	East Central (1987)
Mike Norvell	Offensive coordinator, Quarterbacks	4	Central Arkansas (2005)
Keith Patterson	Defensive coordinator	2	East Central (1986)
Shawn Slocum	Special teams coordinator	1	Texas A&M (1987)
Chris Ball	Co-Defensive Coordinator, Defensive backs	4	Western State College (1985)
Chris Thomsen	Offensive line	3	TCU (1993)
Jackie Shipp	Defensive line	3	Oklahoma (1983)
Chip Long	Tight ends	4	North Alabama (2005)
DelVaughn Alexander	Wide receivers	4	USC (1995)
Josh Martin	Running backs	1	Tarleton State (2011)
Reference:^[1]

Previous season and offseason[]

Arizona State finished the 2014 season 10–3 (6–3 in the Pac-12), with a 36–31 victory over Duke in the Sun Bowl. The Sun Devils began the season ranked #19 in the AP Poll and won their first three games convincingly, but suffered a major loss when third-year starting quarterback Taylor Kelly broke his foot against Colorado. Backup junior Mike Bercovici made his first career start in a 62–27 loss to UCLA, the Sun Devils' worst loss under Todd Graham. The team quickly bounced back with a 38–34 victory over USC thanks to a Hail Mary with no time remaining to Jaelen Strong, a play dubbed by the media as the "Jael Mary". This momentum carried on as the Sun Devils defeated perennial Pac-12 power Stanford on ESPN.

Kelly returned from injury against Washington, and led them to a 24–10 victory. The following week ASU won a critical Pac-12 South game against top-25 Utah on a Zane Gonzalez field-goal in overtime. The following week, the Sun Devils played their biggest game in the Todd Graham era against highly ranked Notre Dame, a game that many analysts viewed as an elimination game for a spot in the first-ever College Football Playoff. ASU stormed out of the gates leading 34–3 late in the first half, and although the Irish managed to cut the lead to 3 in the fourth quarter, the Sun Devils pulled away and secured a 55–31 victory. With the win, ASU moved into the top-10 for the first time since the 2007 season. The good feelings did not last long however as the Sun Devils were upset the following week at Oregon State. Despite the loss, ASU went into the final week of the season with a chance to clinch the Pac-12 South championship, and earn the right to play Oregon in the Pac-12 Championship Game.

In the final week of the regular season, ASU was fighting for the Pac-12 South with UCLA, and in-state rival Arizona. UCLA was considered the favorite since they were playing unranked Stanford. But with a loss, the Arizona-Arizona State game would decide the division champ. Both games kicked off simultaneously, and word had reached Tucson that Stanford upset UCLA with minutes to play. Arizona pulled away and defeated the Sun Devils 42–35, clinching the Pac-12 South. The following week, the Wildcats were defeated by Oregon who was selected to play in the inaugural College Football Playoff. ASU was invited to the Sun Bowl where they were matched with Duke. The game was expected to be a shootout as both teams had dynamic offenses. A late interception by ASU's Kweishi Brown sealed a 36–31 victory for the Sun Devils. Freshman running back Demario Richard scored all four Sun Devil touchdowns, and Zane Gonzalez added three field goals. A critical play was freshman Kalen Ballage's 96-yard kickoff return after Duke had taken a 31–30 lead to set up the go-ahead score. The 2014 season was a successful one in Todd Graham's third year as head coach. It marked the first time since 1973 Arizona State won ten or more games in back-to-back seasons.

Players drafted[]

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Team
1	30	Damarious Randall	Safety	Green Bay Packers
3	70	Jaelen Strong	Wide Receiver	Houston Texans
4	114	Jamil Douglas	Offensive Guard	Miami Dolphins
4	135	Marcus Hardison	Defensive End	Cincinnati Bengals

Reference:^[2]

Class of 2015 signees[]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Jalen Bates DE	Kaplan, LA	Kaplan High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	240 lb (110 kg)	Oct 7, 2014
Jalen Bates DE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Cade Cote OG	Gilbert, AZ	Williams Field High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	257 lb (117 kg)	Jun 23, 2014
Cade Cote OG	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Davon Durant OLB	Greenwood, SC	Butler Community College	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	240 lb (110 kg)	Oct 21, 2014
Davon Durant OLB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Raymond Epps TE	Yuma, AZ	Arizona Western College	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Apr 5, 2014
Raymond Epps TE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Morie Evans ATH	Buford, GA	Buford High School	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Jan 16, 2014
Morie Evans ATH	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Dillon Faamatau DT	Norwalk, CA	Norwalk High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	268 lb (122 kg)	Jan 26, 2015
Dillon Faamatau DT	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Tommy Hudson TE	San Jose, CA	Archbishop Mitty High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	250 lb (110 kg)	Jul 1, 2014
Tommy Hudson TE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Malik Lawal OLB	Murrieta, CA	Chaparral High School	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	202 lb (92 kg)	Jun 18, 2014
Malik Lawal OLB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
George Lea DT	New Orleans, LA	Landry-Walker High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	258 lb (117 kg)	Nov 12, 2014
George Lea DT	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Jaason Lewis ATH	Virginia Beach, VA	Ocean Lakes High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	241 lb (109 kg)	Sep 25, 2014
Jaason Lewis ATH	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Steve Miller OT	Gilbert, AZ	Gilbert High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	280 lb (130 kg)	Jun 23, 2014
Steve Miller OT	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Stanley Norman CB	Gardena, CA	Junipero Serra High School	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Jan 3, 2015
Stanley Norman CB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Kareem Orr DB	Chattanooga, TN	Notre Dame School	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Feb 2, 2015
Kareem Orr DB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Bryce Perkins QB	Chandler, AZ	Chandler High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	201 lb (91 kg)	Apr 3, 2014
Bryce Perkins QB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Nick Ralston RB	Argyle, TX	Argyle High School	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Feb 1, 2014
Nick Ralston RB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
DeOnte Reynolds DT	Pinole, CA	Contra Costa College	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	325 lb (147 kg)	Feb 4, 2015
DeOnte Reynolds DT	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Zach Robertson OG	Bellflower, CA	St. John Bosco High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	313 lb (142 kg)	Dec 26, 2014
Zach Robertson OG	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Khaylan Thomas OLB	Etiwanda, CA	Etiwanda High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Apr 3, 2014
Khaylan Thomas OLB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Mason Walter OT	Temecula, CA	Chaparral High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	275 lb (125 kg)	Jun 23, 2014
Mason Walter OT	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Brady White QB	Newhall, CA	William S. Hart High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	186 lb (84 kg)	May 2, 2014
Brady White QB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
JoJo Wicker DT	Long Beach, CA	Long Beach Polytechnic High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	260 lb (120 kg)	Feb 4, 2015
JoJo Wicker DT	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Jay Jay Wilson ATH	Valencia, CA	Valencia High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Feb 2, 2015
Jay Jay Wilson ATH	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 19 Rivals: 20 247Sports: 20 ESPN: 26
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2015 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 5, 2015.

Schedule[]

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 5	4:00 pm	vs. Texas A&M*	No. 15	NRG Stadium Houston, TX (Texas Kickoff)	ESPN	L 17–38	66,308
September 12	8:00 pm	No. 18 (FCS) Cal Poly*		Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ	P12N	W 35–21	46,500
September 18	7:00 pm	New Mexico*		Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ	P12N	W 34–10	43,310
September 26	7:30 pm	No. 19 USC		Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ	ESPN	L 14–42	61,904
October 3	4:30 pm	at No. 7 UCLA		Rose Bowl Los Angeles, CA	FOX	W 38–23	80,113
October 10	7:00 pm	Colorado		Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ	P12N	W 48–23	44,157
October 17	7:00 pm	at No. 4 Utah		Rice-Eccles Stadium Salt Lake City, UT	ESPN	L 18–34	46,192
October 29	7:30 pm	Oregon		Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ	ESPN	L 55–61 ^3OT	56,534
November 7	1:30 pm	at Washington State		Martin Stadium Pullman, WA	FS1	L 24–38	32,952
November 14	1:00 pm	Washington		Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ	P12N	W 27–17	51,695
November 21	1:30 pm	Arizona		Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ (Territorial Cup)	FS1	W 52–37	64,885
November 28	8:00 pm	at California		California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA	FS1	L 46–48	45,385
January 2	8:15 pm	vs. West Virginia*		Chase Field Phoenix, AZ (Cactus Bowl)	ESPN	L 42–43	39,321
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Mountain time

Reference:^[3]

Game summaries[]

Texas A&M[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Sun Devils	0	7	7	3	17
Aggies	7	7	3	21	38

Cal Poly[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Mustangs	0	14	7	0	21
Sun Devils	7	14	0	14	35

New Mexico[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Lobos	0	0	10	0	10
Sun Devils	0	10	14	10	34

USC[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Trojans	7	28	0	7	42
Sun Devils	0	0	7	7	14

UCLA[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Sun Devils	9	6	14	9	38
Bruins	0	10	0	13	23

Colorado[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Buffaloes	7	3	7	6	23
Sun Devils	17	7	14	10	48

Utah[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Sun Devils	10	0	8	0	18
Utes	7	7	0	20	34

Oregon[]

	1	2	3	4	OT	2OT	3OT	Total
Ducks	10	7	17	7	7	7	6	61
Sun Devils	0	14	17	10	7	7	0	55

Washington State[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Sun Devils	14	0	7	3	24
Cougars	0	10	7	21	38

Washington[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Huskies	10	7	0	0	17
Sun Devils	0	3	7	17	27

Arizona[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wildcats	0	10	13	14	37
Sun Devils	14	17	0	21	52

California[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Sun Devils	10	17	6	13	46
Golden Bears	3	7	21	17	48

West Virginia[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Mountaineers	9	13	14	7	43
Sun Devils	3	15	14	10	42

Rankings[]

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. т = Tied with team above or below. ( ) = First place votes.
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	15	RV	RV	RV	NR	RV	RV	RV	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR
Coaches	16	RV	RV	RV	NR	RV	RV	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR
CFP	Not released									NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	Not released

References[]

^ "Football – 2015 Coaches". Arizona State University Department of Athletics. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
^ "Football – 2015 NFL Draft". National Football League. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
^ "Schedule". Arizona State University Department of Athletics. Retrieved January 9, 2015.

[Coaches-1] "Football – 2015 Coaches". Arizona State University Department of Athletics. Retrieved January 9, 2015.

[Draft_Results-2] "Football – 2015 NFL Draft". National Football League. Retrieved May 4, 2015.

[3] "Schedule". Arizona State University Department of Athletics. Retrieved January 9, 2015.

[1]

[2]

[3]

v t Arizona State Sun Devils football
Venues	Normal Field (1897–1926) Irish Field (1927–1935) Goodwin Stadium (1936–1957) Sun Devil Stadium (1958–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Arizona (Territorial Cup)
Culture & lore	Sparky the Sun Devil "Maroon & Gold" Marching band Stomp the Bus
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907–1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022

2015 Pac-12 Conference football standings
v t	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
North Division
No. 3 Stanford x$		8	–	1		12	–	2
No. 19 Oregon		7	–	2		9	–	4
Washington State		6	–	3		9	–	4
California		4	–	5		8	–	5
Washington		4	–	5		7	–	6
Oregon State		0	–	9		2	–	10
South Division
USC xy		6	–	3		8	–	6
No. 17 Utah x		6	–	3		10	–	3
UCLA		5	–	4		8	–	5
Arizona State		4	–	5		6	–	7
Arizona		3	–	6		7	–	6
Colorado		1	–	8		4	–	9
Championship: Stanford 41, USC 22
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll