Phillip Afia didn’t flinch. Not that he was supposed to.
“There’s never a challenge or anybody in front of us that I’d ever be afraid of and think, ‘Oh no, what are we going to do?’ Never,” said Utah’s sophomore free safety. “No matter who we face.”
A solid, expected response by a member of one of the most-respected defenses in the country. Afia is right, too. This week is no exception. Defenses in the Pac-12 Conference routinely study and prep for whichever star playmakers and talented difference-makers are next on the list.
It just so happens this week showcases two of the Pac-12’s most gifted, eye-catching offensive players. Arizona State wide receiver N’Keal Harry and running back Kalen Ballage are physical prototypes at their respective positions.
Harry, a 6-foot-4, 216-pound sophomore, is a focal point of ASU’s offense, a home-run threat down the field who also lines up in ASU’s “Sparky” formation as a Wildcat quarterback in shotgun formations.
Ballage, a 6-3, 230-pound senior, has been clocked running at 22 mph in full pads and accounted for an NCAA-record eight touchdowns against Texas Tech last season.
Arizona State at Utah<br>Saturday, 1:30 p.m.<br>TV • FS1
There aren’t many breaks for defenses in the conference. Upstart ASU is just another example.
Pac-12 Network analyst Yogi Roth said Harry, who leads the Sun Devils with 43 receptions, 555 yards receiving and three touchdowns is the heartbeat of the ASU offense.
“Harry is perfect in terms of the body type and the physicality and how he uses his body,” Roth said. “He’ll run the ‘Sparky’ formation, he’ll throw the ball out of it, he’ll run out of the backfield, he’ll line up the boundary, he’ll line up in the seam. They’ll move him all over. In my eyes, the offense kind of goes through him a lot.”
Scheming for a receiver who presents matchup problems at nearly every position on the field is made even more difficult when he boasts the physical makeup of Harry, Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said. He said Harry is as “good of a looking receiver as you will see in the country.”
“Without a doubt,” Whittingham added. “If we had a scout team player like him, he wouldn’t be on scout team. He would be playing for us. You do the best you can. You work more on body types and get the big guys to simulate him or whatever the case may be because the guys that are like him are on the travel squad.”
The likelihood of Afia — not to mention all of Utah safeties — needing to help out on covering Harry throughout Saturday’s game is high.
“I don’t consider him anything different than anyone else that we play against,” Afia said. “This conference is filled with amazing athletes, and we’re big, strong and physical and fast, too, so he’s going to have to bring his best.”
ASU’s versatile two-man backfield of Ballage (303 yards, 79 carries, five touchdowns) and Demario Richard (216 yards, 67 carries, four touchdowns) makes game-planning even more strenuous for opposing defenses, Roth said.
“He’s just so imposing physically,” Roth said about Ballage.
The Sun Devils, Roth also noted, can throw off defenses by how apt quarterback Manny Wilkins is in the zone-read option. Roth added that with the rise in play from wide receivers Jalen Harvey, Kyle Williams and tight end Ceejhay French-Love, Utah must be well-versed in whatever offensive groupings ASU rolls in and out of throughout the game.
“What defensive personnel grouping are you going to be in?” Roth said. “Utah plays a lot of nickel defense anyway. The pressure on this game is going to be on guys on the back end.”
Not only to help slow down Harry, but to be ready to try to bring down Ballage barreling downfield.