Arizona State Football: 3 takeaways from win over Kent State in Week 1

Arizona State football opened the season with a dominating win over Kent State. What’d we learn from Jayden Daniels’ first start?

Like his first season, Herm Edwards’ second campaign as head coach of Arizona State got off to a quick start. The Sun Devils dismantled a lesser foe in Kent State at Sun Devil Stadium, and made it look relatively easy.

While Kent State isn’t exactly the fiercest opponent the Sun Devils will face all year, it was a nice test for Jayden Daniels who got his first-ever live action at the collegiate level and he impressed. He was nowhere near perfect, but the freshman quarterback made Edwards look like a genius for naming him a starter as Arizona State ran away with an easy win.

What else did we learn from the Sun Devils’ big win over Kent State.

3. Brandon Aiyuk can ease loss of N’Keal Harry

No, senior receiver Brandon Aiyuk isn’t N’Keal Harry — that’s not a fair comparison — but he’s surely easing the loss of the star receiver through one week.

It’s early, so he may come back down to earth, but Aiyuk was a monster deep threat for Jayden Daniels and the Sun Devils’ offense in the opener as he finished with four catches for 140 yards and a touchdown, including a 77-yarder.

As a junior Aiyuk caught 33 passes for 474 yards and three touchdowns, but it’s clear early on that him and Daniels have a solid connection. If this continues, the offense won’t miss a beat even with a new quarterback and No. 1 receiver.