Arizona State Football: Top 3 breakout candidates for 2020 season

1. Jayden Daniels, Quarterback

I know Jayden Daniels technically broke out in 2019, but he has just scratched the surface.

Daniels was very impressive as a freshman last season, throwing for 2,943 yards, 17 touchdowns and only two interceptions. He struggled with accuracy with only a 61 percent completion rate which was 63rd in the nation. He was extremely smart with the ball and had limited mistakes compared to a lot of freshmen.

The freshman quarterback absolutely showed out against Oregon in the Sun Devils’ biggest win of the year. He was 22-for-32 for 408 yards and threw three touchdowns against the eventual conference champions. On a third-and-long with a 24-21 lead and about four minutes to go, Daniels threw a near-perfect deep ball and found Brandon Aiyuk for an 80-yard touchdown to secure the win.

In another strong performance, he showed his poise in a comeback win over Washington State earlier in the year. He was 26-for-36 for 363 yards and three touchdowns and led a game-winning 75-yard drive with two mins left. He was 5-for-7 on the drive and scored the game-winning touchdown on a 15-yard scramble with 30 seconds left.

Head coach Herm Edwards looks like he’s giving the keys to the offense over to Daniels, on Arizona Sports radio show Burns and Gambo, Edwards said, “I told him when the season was over, ‘OK, it’s your offense. We’re gonna build it around you now.’”

Daniels has the tools and talent to take that next step and could become one of the top quarterbacks in the country.