Monday, September 25, 2006

ASU Web Devil: Turnovers doom Devils in Berkeley

by Taylor Price

BERKELEY, Calif., - What was expected to be a heavyweight battle of Pac-10 contenders ultimately turned into a knockout in the middle of the second quarter. In a span of six minutes, the ASU football team gave up four touchdowns, opening the flood gates to an eventual 49-21 beat-down courtesy of the No. 23 California Golden Bears Saturday in Berkeley. "That six-minute period was it," ASU coach Dirk Koetter said. The No. 22 Sun Devils (3-1, 0-1) saw their 7-0 lead turned into a 35-7 deficit in the blink of an eye.  "You can't turn it over," Koetter said. "Four or five big plays in that six-minute stretch in the second quarter and that's the game."

ASU looked composed early, as sophomore quarterback Rudy Carpenter led the offense on a 12-play, 76-yard drive capped off by a nine-yard touchdown reception by junior Ryan Torain on a screen pass. Torain started the game because sophomore Keegan Herring was nursing an injured hamstring. Torain responded by rushing for a career-high 191 yards on 24 carries. "I knew I had to step it up, work hard, run hard and take what I could get," Torain said. Cal answered ASU's drive with its own 80-yard drive, with running back Justin Forsett catching a nine-yard pass from sophomore Nate Longshore.

Read the entire article here.

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