Tweet #BirdsUp
TEMPE, Ariz. — Arizona State stormed out to a 28-0 halftime lead and never looked back in a 49-7 victory against UTSA in the season opener for both teams on Saturday night in front of 50,188 fans at Sun Devil Stadium.
The Sun Devils accumulated 503 yards of offense, including 266 on the ground, and held the Roadrunners to 220 total yards, 218 of which came through the air.
Kirk Johnson Jr. paced the UTSA offense with five catches for 57 yards, while Greg Campbell Jr. caught four passes for 34 yards and Tariq Woolen added 51 yards on three receptions.
Cordale Grundy completed 16 passes for 187 yards, while B.J. Daniels rushed for 24 yards on nine carries and the Roadrunners' only touchdown of the night when he found paydirt from four yards out with just over six minutes left to play in the game.
Josiah Tauaefa led UTSA's defense with 10 tackles, including eight solo stops and a tackle for loss. C.J. Levine and Darryl Godfrey added five tackles apiece.
The Sun Devils struck on the game's opening possession when N'Keal Harry hauled in a short pass from Manny Wilkins on third down and three, broke a tackle and raced 58 yards up the middle for a touchdown.
On UTSA's first drive of the night, Shannon Forman stepped in front of a slant pass and returned it 25 yards for a score, helping put the home side up by 14 just two minutes into the game.
After a scoreless stretch of more than 21 minutes, Arizona State found the end zone two more times late in the second quarter to extend its lead to 28-0 at the break. Eno Benjamin had a 3-yard touchdown run and Terrell Chatman was on the receiving end of an 11-yard TD pass from Wilkins with 32 seconds remaining in the half.
The Sun Devils tacked on two more scores in the third quarter on passing touchdowns from Wilkins to Benjamin for seven yards and to Harry for 31 yards. Harry finished with 140 yards on six catches, while Benjamin rushed for 131 yards on 16 totes.
Isaiah Floyd's 5-yard TD dash in the fourth quarter made it 49-0.
The Roadrunners will return home to host Baylor (1-0) next Saturday, Sept. 8. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at the Alamodome and the game will air on CBS Sports Network on Facebook. Tickets are on sale by calling or texting 210-458-UTSA (8872) or visiting http://goUTSA.com.
-UTSA-
