By Mike Howell for DieHardDevil.com

The 56-24 loss to Boise State in the Macao Las Vegas Bowl last Thursday marked the end of another disappointing Sun Devil Football season. Hopefully, it was also end of some disturbing trends that have been the trademarks of ASU football during the last decade.

A year ago, the Sun Devils finished 2010 with an inspirational double-overtime victory against arch-rival Arizona in Tucson. Even though it capped the end of what could have been much more than a 6-6 Season, there were many signs pointing to a proud year ahead in 2011. The team would benefit from a large senior class, a promising starting QB in Brock Osweiller and an experienced Sun Devil offense and defense coming into their own in a new faster style of football. However, it was also clear that Dennis Erickson and staff needed to coach a “smarter” brand of football to fix a glaring problem with excessive penalties and detrimental personal fouls by less disciplined players like Vontaze Burfict. After all, the Sun Devils finished #108 of 120 BCS Programs in penalty yardage last season.

Fast forward one year to 2011…

Coming into Thursday’s Bowl game in Las Vegas, ASU’s Sun Devils were closing this season with an identical 6-6 record and were the most penalized team (yds) in college football. The program slipped the only eight remaining spots from last year to finish #120 of 120 in 2011. This particular deficiency reflects more on the state of Sun Devil football leadership and is indicative of the overall discipline and accountability within the football program. This Bowl game gave ASU nearly three weeks to prepare to play one of the best teams in the country. Dennis Erickson and his team had one last chance to send the seniors with class, and play with a pride that would honor the DieHard fans of Sun Devil Nation who remained committed to their team despite the end-of-season collapse. Then not long after kick-off, it didn’t take long for the Sun Devils to make a statement to their fans, their opponent #7 ranked Boise State and the national audience on ESPN.

NO ONE IS IN CHARGE HERE.

In the 1st Quarter, ASU committed three straight penalties, the first of which was on their kick-off return following Boise State’s second score. Penalties #2 and #3 came before the ball was even snapped on the next two plays. Three minutes later after Boise State scored it’s third touchdown to go up 21-0, Vontaze Burfict earned a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, not for tugging a player away from the ball after the whistle, but for whatever came out of his mouth directly after that moment in front of the official. In this game, the team managed to exceed their penalty averages with 92 yards on 10 calls. There were also other questionable late hits and more than a couple instances of Sun Devil players chest thumping and taunting the opponent, this coming from a team lucky to be in a Bowl game due to a sub-par season while losing by a few touchdowns to a nationally respected 12-1 team.

Perhaps the most poignant moment of Thursday night came in the third quarter when ASU’s offense was 4th & short enough. Erickson chose to punt calling the offense off the field. Brock refused repeatedly and motioned the punting team to stay off the field. While Erickson & Coach Noel Mazzone tried to regain control of the moment, players on the sidelines (and maybe even some of you in the stands or at home) raised their arms in urgency, yelling in encouragement of Brock’s defiance & leadership, while effectively over ruling their coaches alongside them. As a DieHardDevil in that brief moment, I felt alive. Something felt right. For a split-second, I felt a pride and urgency that I hadn’t felt since our ship began to sink at the start of November in Pasadena. Watching Brock refuse to come off the field felt like every Sun Devil saying “NO MORE” to the leaders they depended on. Brock exemplified that desperate sense of urgency and seemed to be saying, “I would rather go for it and fail than leave this in your hands.” As a fan in that moment, I felt the same frustration with the ASU coaching staff. Although he made a valiant effort to inspire his team, the next play failed as Brock couldn’t connect with receiver, Rashad Ross.

Looking back, some fans believe that ASU’s leadership began sinking long before the infamous “3rd and 27” at UCLA on November 5, and that the ship included more than just the ranks of ASU’s football program. Incidents and events over the past several weeks have drawn warranted speculation from Sun Devil faithful about exactly who has been steering ASU’s ship in the highly competitive world of BCS college football. Are our leaders at Arizona State truly giving their best? Are the most qualified people who believe in the greatness of Sun Devil Football involved or being heard? Has someone in charge simply conceded that .500 is the program’s sweet spot after 5, 10 even 15 years of the same? Is this it?

Sun Devil Stadium, Arizona State University

Amidst all of the chaos in December, something very positive became clear. Sun Devil Nation is alive and strong, and it is demanding a different program than the one that has produced mediocre results for the past several years. The broken record philosophy that ASU’s base is made up of mostly “fair weather” fans fell on its head when no one was looking. When details surfaced about the progress of the ASU coaching search, it suggested that key decision makers were at best, largely disregarding the sentiments of the fan base or at worst, weren’t even listening to qualified advisement. Almost overnight, the noise generated by Sun Devil alumni, boosters & fans reached a fever pitch across social network sites and message boards. The offices of ASU Athletic Director, Lisa Love, and President, Michael Crow, were inundated with calls, emails, texts and letters from fans expressing their frustration. Some were strongly considering pulling their support from the program. The collective voice & undeniable passion of Sun Devil fans and supporters was loud & persistent enough that it had a direct impact and altered the course of the search.

Enter Todd Graham. DieHardDevil fully supports our new Head Coach in his efforts to develop a winning football program. We embrace his philosophies of “Speaking Victory” and “Winning every day”, and we intend to act on those values. Graham’s leadership can be a game-changer, and the potential for the greatness of Arizona State Football is very real. As Sun Devils, we have been there before, and we will fight our way back. But the effort doesn’t stop with Coach Graham and his staff. If we expect our Sun Devil football players to devote themselves to excellence, to constantly prepare, to practice the fundamentals and mind the small details, to fully commit in practice and fight for every inch on game day and most importantly, to give everything they have to honor their team & their university, then that is EXACTLY what we must expect from ourselves at the fan level straight to the top of the Athletic Department. Exceptional leadership and passion at every level is the straightest line to Sun Devil Greatness. How will you lead?

DieHardDevil.

Are You? Prove it.

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