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TEMPE, Arizona (AP) – Arizona State has launched the Herm Edwards era with an explosion of UTSA. One could expect to beat a school from a small lecture.
Gather a deficit of 10 points in the fourth quarter against the national team number 15? Now, it's a statement.
Brandon Ruiz started a 28-yard shot at the end of the match and the Sun Devils took a lead victory at the start of Edwards' tenure, eliminating the No. 15 Michigan State 16-13 on Saturday night.
"When you talk to players, winning always justifies what you do," said Edwards. "When you win, they keep buying."
The hiring of Edwards raised some questions when Arizona State drew the former NFL head coach on the sidelines after eight years spent in a television studio. Two weeks after the start of his first season in the desert, the Sun Devils (2-0) showed they could participate in the Pac-12 South title conversation and maybe more.
Arizona State routed the UTSA 49-7 in its first game and had to face a much bigger challenge against Michigan State. The Sun Devils never bowed, relying on their defense to keep the game tight before scoring 13 points in the fourth quarter.
Manny Wilkins missed some deep shots early, but found his mark when Arizona State needed him the most. At the start of the fourth quarter, he hit N'Keal Harry on a 27-yard touchdown and orchestrated the momentum to set up Ruiz's winning kick, finishing with 380 yards passing.
Arizona State is 10-0 against the Big Ten teams in Tempe.
"In that second half, we knew we wanted to make some ground and we started shooting shots," said Wilkins, who completed 30 of his 48 passes. "It paid off."
Michigan State (1-1) struggled to convince Utah State to win its first game by seven. The Spartans had a similar problem with Arizona State after three disks inside the Sun Devils 10 ended by two goals in the field and an interception.
Brian Lewerke, who played at nearby Pinnacle High School, had 314 yards and a touchdown for the Spartans, who are 1-13 in the regular season in the West.
"A loss does not mean the end of everything," Khari Willis said. "It's a loss without a conference, but it's not supposed to feel good."
Michigan State had some success with its first-period ball control offense, leading twice inside the 5-yard line of the Arizona State. The Spartans are left with three points.
After a false start, they had to settle for Matt Coghlin's 37-yard placement after a false start. The next training ended when Lewerke intercepted a pass intercepted by Dasmond Tautalatasi of the Arizona State in the end zone.
Michigan State opened the second half with another good run, reaching Arizona State 7. Coghlin's second goal, from 28 yards, was obtained after Lewerke stumbled.
The Spartans finally found the end zone at the end of the third quarter, when Lewerke put pressure on Cody White, who beat a defender for a 31-yard touchdown, putting the state of Michigan at 13-3.
The Sun Devils struggled to support anything in attack in the first period, plagued by seven games of negative yards.
Ruiz scored two goals on the field to bring the Arizona State back to 13-6 and the Sun Devils needed two games to cover 65 yards in the Wilkins-to-Harry attack.
"We lost a little leverage on them," said Michigan State linebacker Joe Bachie.
THE TAKEAWAY
Arizona State opened its first season with Edwards 2-0 and could qualify for the Top 25 after beating a ranked team.
Michigan State could be out of the Top 25 after struggling to beat Utah State and losing to the Sun Devils.
N'KEAL'S NIGHT
Harry is one of the best receivers in the country, so the defenses naturally give him special attention. The juniors still found a way to impact the game, surpassing the defensive back for the tie and pulling a pass interference call on the third and tenth strokes of the last end. He finished with six catches for 89 yards.
"You can cover it for a while, but it will end up playing," Edwards said.
FOLLOWING
Michigan State has a week off before opening the Big Ten game in Indiana on September 22nd.
Arizona State completes its non-conference program next Saturday in San Diego State.
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