EAST LANSING, MI - SEPTEMBER 14: Michigan State defensive end Kenny Willekes (48) gets around his block to strip the ball from Arizona State quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) during in the football game between the Arizona State Sun Devils and the Michigan State Spartans September 14, 2019 at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, MI. (Photo by Allan Dranberg/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Arizona State football is off to a 3-0 start in Year 2 under Herm Edwards. Is it time to say the Sun Devils are for real?

If you aren’t on the train yet, you might want to board before Herm Edwards takes ASU to new heights. On the heels of a successful first season that was above expectations in Tempe, Edwards has guided to his program to yet another hot start in 2019.

Arizona State is coming off a 10-7 road win in East Lansing over ranked Michigan State. It’s a game that saw true freshman Jayden Daniels lead the Sun Devils 75 yards for the game-winning drive that was capped off by an Eno Benjamin touchdown.

It took a bit of help from the Spartans having 12 men on the field and officials looking the other way at ASU leveraging itself over the line on the missed field goal, but nonetheless it was an impressive win and yet another big step forward for Edwards’ program.

At 3-0, Edwards has bested his 2-1 start from 2018. It’s also the second year that the Sun Devils have taken down Michigan State. Wearing out the Spartans in the sweltering heat of the desert was one thing in 2018, but to go on the road and win in East Lansing was a huge deal.

That begs the question, is ASU the real deal?

The metric for real in this situation is can they compete in the Pac-12 South. Will the Sun Devils be able to put themselves among the likes of Utah and USC and compete for division supremacy?

After a 3-0 start, Arizona State has to feel good about themselves as they enter Pac-12 play. Well, at least on one side of the ball. The Sun Devils have only given up 21 points total through three games and opponents are just averaging seven points a game on them.

The foundation that defensive coordinator Danny Gonzales has built through a season and just three games of a second has to be one of the most impressive jobs by any coordinator in the country.

For those that weren’t following along with the program pre-Gonzales, the defense wasn’t pretty and missed tackles plagued Arizona State in the waning days of the Todd Graham era.

Now, the Devils have built a defense with standouts like D.J. Davidson, Merlin Robertson and Chase Lucas. As long as the defense is doing its thing each week and continues to grow, Arizona State is going to be in every single game they play.

The talent defensively is the reason for their success thus far and if the offense can start to pick up, then ASU will indeed firmly plant itself in the discussion for the Pac-12 South.

While the defense has proven itself elite and has shown that it can stifle a big-name program like Michigan State, the offense still has a long way to go.

What’s encouraging is the way that Daniels led the game-winning drive in his first college start on the road. Needing 75 yards with time winding down at Michigan State is a daunting task for any quarterback around the country.

Yet, Daniels showed the composure to get it done and Benjamin finished off the rest. Still, the Sun Devils are averaging just under 20 points a game and that’s not going to get the job done this season if they want to succeed.

A lot of attention is going to be paid toward offensive coordinator Rob Likens and rightfully so. The offense had its ups and downs during the first season under Edwards and Likens is a holdover from the Graham era.

With a young quarterback that came in highly recruited, Likens is tasked with developing him to his fullest and the program certainly doesn’t want to make their young quarterback have to go through change with multiple coordinators unless necessary.

A hot-shot coordinator could be the key to pushing Arizona State to that next level, but that’s a bridge that will be crossed if and only if Likens proves incapable of allowing this offense to reach its full potential.

The aforementioned likes of Utah and USC will be the measuring stick for Arizona State in the South. The Utes came in as a preseason favorite to not just win the South but also the Pac-12 in its entirety.

The expectations weren’t high for the Trojans coming into the season, but Kedon Slovis taking over at the quarterback spot has sparked USC. The Trojans’ blowout win over Stanford showed there is a strong possibility of them factoring into the South discussion as they could very well have the best quarterback in the division.

The road ahead for Arizona State is conference play. A home tilt with Colorado is followed by battles against ranked Cal, Washington State and a trip to Salt Lake City to take on Utah. ASU will play host to USC to kick off November.

The Sun Devils will identify themselves in short order about what type of program they’re going to be in the Pac-12 this upcoming season. They have a golden opportunity to collect wins over ranked opponents ahead of them, which would further highlight the progress being made.

After losing a senior quarterback in Manny Wilkins and a first-round talent in wide receiver N’Keal Harry, it was natural to expect Arizona State to maybe come out of the gate slowly.

The offense certainly has but there have been some signs that point to things potentially trending up for that side of the ball. However, the defense has shown right away that they’re not going to roll over and wins will be hard to come by.

While a freshman continues to grow as a quarterback and an offensive line that also is playing freshman continues to develop, the Sun Devils are going to have their bumps in the road. Yet, they are finding ways to win and making plays when they have to.

Herm Edwards wasn’t the popular hire right when it was announced, but through 16 games in his tenure at Arizona State, he’s certainly delivered.