Arizona State's Emory Jones clears concussion protocol, expected to start vs. Stanford
No quarterback controversy in Tempe. Emory Jones is healthy and he’s the Sun Devils’ starter Saturday against Stanford.
Interim head coach Shaun Aguano met with reporters on Monday and shared that Jones has cleared concussion protocol after a hit to the head in the team’s 45-38 win over Washington on Oct. 8 knocked him out of the game. Trenton Bourguet took over for Jones late in the second quarter and helped lead ASU to victory with three passing touchdowns.
That performance sparked questions about whether Bourguet could push for the full-time starting spot even with a healthy Jones. Aguano said that Jones will get his chance to run the show Saturday and ASU won’t split time. If a quarterback change is to be made, it would be for the usual reasons — necessitated by poor play.
“We’re going to handle it exactly the same way that we prepared all the rest of the games,” Aguano said. “Emory’s fully cleared and he’s back. … My philosophy was we’re never going to penalize an injured player, so it’s Emory’s job back and we’ll see how it all plays out.”
Jones has started each of the team’s first six games. He completed seven of his nine passes for 59 yards before leaving the game. At the time of his exit, ASU trailed 10-3. Bourguet went 15-for-21 for 182 yards and three scores.
Asked for his thoughts on possibly playing both, Aguano was clear.
“I’ve never been a fan of splitting quarterbacks just because the rhythm that somebody goes in,” Aguano said. “Now, if somebody’s not getting the job done, I’m here to win football games too. So, if somebody is not getting the job done, I can make those decisions really quick. But I don’t feel that splitting reps or splitting series — just the continuity of the game doesn’t bode well in my experience. Whoever is going to give me the best chance to win the football game, that’s who I’m going to go with.”
Elsewhere on the injury front, Aguano revealed that LaDarius Henderson “probably” won’t be available. But outside of his status, Aguano expects everyone else who has been battling various injuries to be back and available. “We’re in as good of shape as we’ve been in the past couple weeks.”
Arizona State plays Stanford at 1 p.m. PT on the Pac-12 Network this Saturday.