Morgan State Is Arizona State’s First Test to Put It All Together

Arizona State faces Morgan State this week with heavy expectations to take care of business.

Cutter Boley has officially been named the starting quarterback, and with that comes expectations. Morgan State should be one of the easier games on Arizona State’s schedule, which makes Saturday an important opportunity for this offense to show what it can be. If the game ends up being much closer than expected, there could be some legitimate concerns heading into the tougher part of the schedule.

After Morgan State, things get difficult quickly. The Sun Devils travel to Texas A&M in Week 2 before heading to London in Week 3. Many of Arizona State’s biggest games this season will come away from home, which means this team will have to mature quickly.

Boley brings SEC experience from his time at Kentucky, and Arizona State also added transfers such as Omarion Miller, Raiden Vines Bright and Jalen Thompson. Each player brings a different level of experience to this offense. Saturday will be our first real opportunity to see whether all of those pieces can come together.

Cutter Boley during passing drill. Jonathan Olden/Bamboo Sports Media

Throughout fall camp, there were inconsistencies on offense. There were flashes of what this unit could become, but there were also mistakes that need to be cleaned up. Now the question is whether Arizona State can put together a complete performance when the games actually count.

Coach Kenny Dillingham has already set a high bar for the offense, calling for 90 percent mistake free football against Morgan State.

For that to happen, it starts with the offensive line.

Arizona State has talent in the running back room. It has talent at wide receiver. It has its starting quarterback. Now Boley needs time in the pocket to operate. If the offensive line can protect him and allow the offense to play with precision, we should get a much better idea of what this group is capable of.

Morgan State is a game Arizona State is expected to win, but it is also an opportunity to establish what kind of team the Sun Devils want to be this season.

After Saturday, the schedule becomes much less forgiving.

Arizona State needs to keep the underdog mentality that has fueled this program before. There is plenty of potential on this roster to have a great season.

Now we need to see it click.