Arizona State football enters 2017 with a coach on the hot seat. Can the Sun Devils rebound from two straight losing seasons to compete in the Pac-12 South?
Arizona State seemed on course for bowl eligibility in 2016 despite a slew of injuries at key positions. Quarterbacks had been dropping like flies, but Todd Graham’s team continued to remain in the hunt. Then the Sun Devils collapsed on Black Friday after Thanksgiving. In the Territorial Cup game against rival Arizona, the Sun Devils gave up 56 points and fell to 5-7 on the season.
It was a painful end to a tough season. For the first time in Graham’s five seasons in Tempe, Arizona State missed out on a bowl game. A team just a few years removed from back-to-back 10-win seasons collapsed at the final hurdle. Now Graham finds himself on the hot seat, having boosted expectations among the Sun Devils faithful.
2017 offers new hope for a team that found itself in far too many shootouts last season. If the Sun Devils are going to return to bowl eligibility in the upcoming season, they will need better luck with players’ health on offense and a more consistent presence on defense.
The situation isn’t quite as dire for Todd Graham as it is for his counterpart Rich Rodriguez at rival Arizona. ASU has plenty of talent returning and, with the right mix of good bounces and good performances, should easily be back in the postseason in 2017. What would the Sun Devils have to do to actually challenge for the Pac-12 South this season?