Morgan State Overwhelmed by Arizona State in 70-7 Road Loss
Morgan State’s first trip to face Arizona State quickly turned into a difficult night in the desert, as the Sun Devils defeated the Bears 70-7 Saturday night at Mountain America Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. Arizona State scored 28 points in the opening quarter, built a 49-7 halftime advantage and added another 21 points in the third quarter. The loss dropped Morgan State to 1-1 after the Bears opened their season with a 17-7 road victory over North Carolina A&T. Arizona State improved to 1-0 in its 2026 season opener.
Arizona State wasted virtually no time establishing control. Kyson Brown broke free for a 46-yard touchdown on the Sun Devils’ second offensive play, and Arizona State followed by successfully executing an onside kick recovered by Cory Butler Jr. Cutter Boley then connected with Omarion Miller for a 10-yard touchdown, giving Arizona State a 14-0 advantage before Morgan State had much of an opportunity to settle into the game. The Sun Devils eventually finished the first quarter with four touchdowns and a 28-7 lead.
Morgan State’s lone touchdown came late in the opening quarter and briefly cut Arizona State’s advantage to 21-7. Jordan Barnett finished the possession with a two-yard touchdown run, giving the Bears their only points of the night. Morgan State could not build on the drive, however, as Arizona State scored the final 49 points of the game. The Sun Devils added three touchdowns during the second quarter to take a commanding 49-7 advantage into halftime.
Boley Has Huge Arizona State Debut
Boley was the biggest problem for the Morgan State defense. The Kentucky transfer completed 21 of 27 passes for 387 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions in his Arizona State debut. His six touchdown passes were the most by an Arizona State quarterback since Andrew Walter threw six in 2004, and Boley accomplished the feat despite leaving after one series in the third quarter. Arizona State finished with 432 passing yards while completing 26 of 36 attempts without throwing an interception.
Reed Harris led the Sun Devils with six receptions for 137 yards and two touchdowns, while Grayson Rigdon turned just two catches into 110 yards and two scores. Miller caught eight passes for 102 yards and a touchdown, giving Arizona State three different 100-yard receivers. AJ Ia added two catches for 19 yards and another touchdown. Morgan State simply could not prevent Arizona State from producing explosive plays through the air, with Boley connecting with Rigdon on touchdowns covering 54 and 56 yards.
Arizona State was equally dangerous on the ground. Brown carried six times for 80 yards and a touchdown, while Jason Brown Jr. added 60 yards and a score on five attempts. Marquis Gillis rushed for 27 yards and a touchdown, David Avit added another rushing score and the Sun Devils finished with 249 yards and four touchdowns on 35 carries. Combined with their passing production, Arizona State accumulated 681 yards of total offense and averaged an enormous 9.6 yards per play.
Morgan State Offense Struggles to Find Rhythm
Morgan State was held to 188 total yards on 49 offensive plays, including 102 rushing yards and 86 passing yards. Cameron Edge completed six of 15 passes for 54 yards, while Ade Olanegan went 4-for-8 for 25 yards. Tahj Smith completed his only attempt for seven yards, and none of Morgan State’s three passers threw an interception. The Bears surrendered two sacks and averaged only 3.8 yards per offensive play.
One of Morgan State’s biggest offensive plays came from Marquez Spells, who gained 39 yards on his only rushing attempt. Keith Jenkins Jr. carried seven times for 25 yards, while Dorian Harris finished with 24 yards on six attempts. Barnett scored Morgan State’s touchdown but managed three yards on three carries. Despite the lopsided score, the Bears finished with 102 rushing yards and averaged 4.1 yards per attempt.
Justin Perry led Morgan State’s receivers with three catches for 21 yards. Joseph Kennerly Jr. had a 19-yard reception, which was Morgan State’s longest completed pass of the night, while Dante Archie caught one pass for 10 yards. The Bears completed 11 passes to eight different receivers, but they were unable to generate the explosive passing plays necessary to keep pace with Arizona State. Morgan State finished with only three passing first downs compared with Arizona State’s 18.
Numbers Show Arizona State’s Control
The difference in offensive production was substantial. Arizona State outgained Morgan State 681-188, produced 32 first downs to Morgan State’s 11 and averaged 9.6 yards per play compared with 3.8 for the Bears. The Sun Devils never punted and converted four of five fourth-down opportunities while scoring on all five of their trips into the red zone. Morgan State punted eight times and converted only three of 12 third downs.
Interestingly, possession was virtually even, with Morgan State holding the football for 30:12 compared with 29:48 for Arizona State. Morgan State also did not commit a turnover, while Arizona State lost one of its two fumbles. Those numbers demonstrate how quickly the Sun Devils generated points when they possessed the football. Arizona State ran 71 plays and produced 10 touchdowns while averaging nearly a first down every time it snapped the ball.
The 70 points were among the largest offensive outputs in Arizona State history. The Sun Devils came close to the program record of 79 points against Colorado State in 1969 and matched the 70 they scored against Arizona in 2020. The crowd of 54,004 represented Arizona State’s ninth consecutive sellout at Mountain America Stadium. For Morgan State, it was an unforgiving environment against a Big 12 opponent capable of exploiting virtually every defensive mistake.
MSB Take
This is obviously a game Morgan State will want to put behind it quickly, but it also needs to be viewed in the proper context. The Bears went across the country to play a Big 12 program in its home opener and ran into an Arizona State offense operating at an exceptionally high level. Morgan State did not turn the football over and showed some ability to run the ball, but the Bears could not overcome the enormous difference in explosive plays and overall offensive production. The most important thing now is making sure one difficult night does not carry over into the remainder of the season.
Morgan State already showed what it can do against a more comparable opponent when it defeated North Carolina A&T 17-7 in the opener. Games against FBS opponents can provide valuable experience, but the Bears’ larger goals will ultimately be determined by how they perform against the teams on the rest of their schedule and in MEAC competition. There will be plenty for the coaching staff to correct after allowing 681 yards and 70 points, particularly in the secondary and in limiting explosive plays. Morgan State leaves Tempe 1-1, and how the Bears respond to this loss will tell us considerably more about the 2026 team than the final score from Saturday night.
