Following Arizona State’s 24-14 loss at Cincinnati, Sun Devils head coach Kenny Dillingham said in the post-game that the team will be holding open try outs for a kicker, according to SunDevilSource.com‘s Chris Karpman.
On Saturday, Arizona State elected to send out the field goal unit twice at crucial moments in the game and came up empty. Sophomore kicker Ian Hershey struggled mightily vs. Cincinnati, going 0-2 on the day with kicks from 48 and 41 yards out.
Hershey’s first kick came with less than four minutes remaining, down ten points to Cincinnati. A field goal on the possession would have put the Sun Devils in position to tie on their next drive, which ended up getting near the Bearcats’ red zone. With 1:23 left in regulation, Dillingham elected to trot Hershey out again for a 41-yarder in hopes of making the kick and lining up for an onside kick. Hershey missed wide left yet again, and the game was finished.
Arizona State’s season is still one of the biggest surprises of the early college football season, but Saturday’s loss at Cincinnati put a spotlight on arguably the weakest part of the team: The kicking game.
Hershey is 0 for his last 3 field goal attempts during the last three games, with his last make coming at Texas Tech (34 yards) in Week 4. His longest field goal of the season came in Week 2 vs. Mississippi State when he hit a 47-yarder and went 3 for 3.
Arizona State Students are Already Applying
Following the news on Saturday, there are already students who are showcasing their kicking abilities on their own social media accounts, like this from Noah Krinsky.
Arizona State is heading into a bye week during Week 9, which gives the program two weeks to figure out if there is a kicker that they can rely on who is already on campus.
The Sun Devils hit the road in Week 10 to take on the Oklahoma State Cowboys.
