TEMPE, Ariz. -- Arizona State learned a painful lesson six weeks ago when it opted to let UCLA quarterback Brett Hundley have the time he needed to throw. Sixty-two points later, the Sun Devils adjusted. Passive does not suit this group.
Bigger and blitzier, the Sun Devils since worked their way back into the ever-thinning national championship picture, one of 10 remaining FBS teams with one or no losses in the first year of the College Football Playoff format.
The No. 9 Sun Devils' 55-31 victory over No. 10 Notre Dame on Saturday was built on a four-minute, five-second stretch of the late first and early second quarters when their aggressive defense forced Fighting Irish quarterback Everett Golson into three turnovers in a nine-play sequence.
Fumble.
Interception.
Pick-six.
ASU turned all three takeaways into touchdowns, enough of a cushion to weather a late Notre Dame comeback when the Fighting Irish found a temporary antidote to the Sun Devils' disguised blitzes and bump-and-run coverage.
"We knew that we had to get a lot of pressure on him because he's very, very mobile," safety Damarious Randall said. "Getting pressure on a mobile quarterback is kind of like their kryptonite, because they just want to sit back in the pocket and run whenever stuff is not open. So just pressure them a lot. We just forced him to play for us."
Randall's 59-yard interception return for a touchdown ended the game-changing sequence in which the score went from 3-3 to 24-3.
Freshman defensive end Tashon Smallwood sacked and stripped Golson, then recovered a fumble; defensive tackle Demetrius Cherry tipped Golson's next pass straight up and Marcus Hardison intercepted it; Hardison tipped a pass on the Irish's next possession that Randall turned into a touchdown.
Some turnovers are forced, some only are said to be. Those three were all the defense's doing.
"We knew in their last five games that they turned the ball over twelve times. We just went and took advantage of that," Randall said.
ASU cornerback Lloyd Carrington returned an interception 58 yards with 3:41 left for a 48-31 lead that ended all doubt.
Notre Dame had 487 yards and Golson had 446 passing, but many of them came after the Sun Devils played it closer to the vest offensively after taking their 34-3 lead.
ASU made its big defensive adjustments after its Hail Mary, 38-34 victory at USC on Oct. 4. Graham moved another big body onto the front line against Stanford, linebackers and safeties were given more freedom to blitz, and the corners were placed into more one-on-one coverage. ASU stifled Stanford's normally potent ground game before beating Washington and Utah, limiting all three opponents to four touchdowns combined.
"We stopped making critical errors," Graham said of the improvement. "I really don't think it was our players, it was us (coaches) figuring it out. Our No. 1 pressure that we ran with Carl (Bradford) and Will (Sutton) is our worst pressure this year. For some reason, I wouldn't quit calling it.
GALLERY: ASU vs. NOTRE DAME >>
"We adapted to them. We're big. We were quick last year, and smaller. We've adapted our techniques to fit them a little bit better, and that's been beneficial. And we've played a lot more people."
Golson was the best two-way quarterback the Sun Devils had played this season, so the plan Saturday was to force him to move up in the pocket to limit his scrambling while being alert to the low trajectory of his passes. ASU mixed up its blitzers to make it harder for Notre Dame to check its protection.
"People look at what we do and think it is a hodgepodge," Graham said. "It is not. It is very strategic, trying for minimal risk."
It has yielded maximum reward.
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