Cardae Mack gives Arizona State a running answer worth keeping

Cardae Mack gives Arizona State a running answer worth keeping

The Hawaii victory restored a productive ground game; the test is how much survives against tighter fronts.

Arizona State beat Hawaii 30–12 in Tempe on October 10, improving to 3–2. The official Hawaii recap lists 231 Sun Devil rushing yards on 30 carries. Cardae Mack supplied 154 yards and two touchdowns on 13 attempts, including a 67-yard scoring run. Cutter Boley completed 21 of 31 passes for 189 yards and two touchdowns without an interception.

The win followed Arizona State’s 55–19 loss to Baylor on October 3, a result confirmed in Baylor’s current game notes. Hawaii matched the Sun Devils with 21 first downs, but Arizona State gained 420 total yards and finished the game with a long scoring possession.

The run can change the whole menu

Our view is that Mack’s contribution matters beyond the final rushing total. A productive back forces linebackers to respect their first assignment. That can create cleaner throwing windows and reduce the burden on a quarterback to manufacture offense after protection begins to break down. The offense does not need to choose between establishing the run and using its receivers; the useful objective is to make each phase harder to defend because the other exists.

The caution is that a long touchdown can flatter the average. Arizona State’s film review should distinguish runs that consistently created manageable downs from the single carry that broke the game open. Repeating the blocking relationships behind the ordinary gains would be a firmer foundation than expecting another 67-yard escape. We would also watch whether Mack’s opportunities develop naturally or require the offense to reveal its intention before the snap.

A useful recovery, with work still visible

Hawaii’s first-down total prevents an overly tidy reading of the result. Arizona State did enough defensively to limit the score, but an opponent able to move the chains can still challenge field position and shorten the offense’s available possessions. That makes finishing drives especially important. Boley’s turnover-free passing and the closing touchdown drive offer concrete positives on that front.

The Baylor loss and Hawaii win should be evaluated together without treating either as the permanent identity of the team. A better running game is a mechanism for improving performance, not proof that every earlier problem has disappeared. For the Sun Devils, the next meaningful evidence will be how they handle a defense that attacks the run early and asks Boley to answer. Keeping Mack central while developing those answers gives this recovery a chance to last.