Bowl games are still a relatively novel idea to the Sun Devils. Saturday's appearance in the Aloha Bowl is only the school's third bowl game since 1987, and ASU coach Bruce Snyder got a little excited when the team plane landed at the Honolulu airport.

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He actually started doing a hula dance on the tarmac. ''I'm not quite as graceful as the lady (who was teaching me),'' he said.

Playing Wake Forest on Christmas Day pales next to, say, the Wisconsin-Stanford Rose bowl on New Year's Day, but the Sun Devils are delighted to be playing anyone after a bumpy season that saw them lose to New Mexico State, Cal, Oregon, Stanford and Notre Dame.

The intrigue of Saturday's game is that, inconceivably, this will be the second consecutive bowl game that the Sun Devils won't have their starting quarterback available.

As in 1997 when ASU went to the Sun Bowl (and defeated Iowa 17-7), quarterback Ryan Kealy suffered a season-ending knee injury against rival Arizona and will not be available. Kealy did accompany the team to Honolulu -- as he did to El Paso two years ago -- but he is on crutches and couldn't accompany the Sun Devils to the Pearl Harbor Memorial because his knee is still sore and painful.

In '97, ASU started junior Steve Campbell against Iowa. In a conservative game plan, Campbell threw just 11 passes. This week, the Sun Devils are undecided about their QB plans. Quarterbacks coach John Pettas said he is likely to platoon JC transfers Griffin Goodman and John Leonard.

Although it was presumed that the sophomore Leonard would start -- he has attempted twice as many passes as Goodman, and finished the season-ending victory over Arizona -- keeping Goodman, a non-scholarship junior, in the mix suggests the Sun Devils might play it relatively safe against Wake Forest.

''Griff has come to a point where he has a clear understanding of the game,'' Pettas said. ''We kind of expected that coming in. He has a maturity, because he's older.''

Leonard is considered more of a big-play QB, who has a stronger arm and can throw accurately on deeper routes. Goodman is considered to be more instinctive, a no-mistakes type who does all the little things right.

One negative: combined, Leonard and Griffin completed just 41 passes this year.

It's more likely the Sun Devils will do as Snyder loves to do: run, run, run. Few teams in college football have a deeper stable of tailbacks than Arizona State. J.R. Redmond and Delvon Flowers are outstanding. Gerald Green and Davaren Hightower -- who will see most of his time at receiver -- had their moments during the season.

One bonus is that ASU's best wide receiver, Tariq McDonald, is expected to return after missing most of the November schedule with an ankle injury.

The Personnel File

WALLIN, WILLIAMS DOUBTFUL: Defensive tackle Kurt Wallin, who injured his right knee in a mid-December practice, probably won't play, and if he does it will be in a limited role. His absence is notable because Junior Ioane, perhaps the club's top interior lineman, is also out with a knee injury. Cornerback Kenny Williams is also doubtful for the game. He pulled a hamstring two weeks ago and hasn't responded well to treatment. ''If he plays,'' said defensive coordinator Phil Snow, ''it will be a bonus.''

KEALY WILL RETURN: Despite warnings that five knee surgeries should be a hint that he should quit football, Kealy said he'll be back for his senior year in 2000. ''People have told me that I'm not going to be able to walk in 20 years,'' he said. ''That just can't sink in yet. I'm still young. I still think I'm invincible, even though I've been wounded a couple of times. I've just got to get to a place mentally where I can overcome this. I've learned all about perseverance.''

Noteworthy

FIGURE THIS ONE OUT: Snyder said that a 6-5 record doesn't mean a team should be belittled for accepting a bowl bid, and that, according to him, there aren't a glut of bowl games. ''If someone told me before the season that you're going to win in Seattle, you're going to beat both L.A. schools and you're going to win over Arizona, I would have said, 'We're going to the BCS,' '' said Snyder. ''But we did what we did. We earned what we earned.''

TROTTING OUT THE LEGEND: The Sun Devils didn't leave home without their ranking football legend, ex-coach Frank Kush. He is in Honolulu to help assemble an alumni party. One of the first things Kush did was to meet with Junior Ah You, a star defensive lineman at ASU from 1969-71. ASU has about 700 alumni living in Hawaii and most of them are expected to receive tickets to Saturday's game.

Starters to replace

OFFENSE: Two. Tailback J.R. Redmond and fullback Terrelle Smith are the only seniors scheduled to start Saturday, although junior left tackle Marvel Smith is likely to take early entry into the NFL draft. Marvel would difficult to replace. As good as Redmond is, junior Delvon Flowers is an able replacement.

DEFENSE: Five. All-conference cornerback Courtney Jackson and standout rush-end Erik Flowers carried the team on defense and will be hard to replace. Journeyman tackle Ryan Reilly, cornerback Kareem Clark and tackle Che' Britton are at positions stocked with talented underclassmen.

SPECIAL TEAMS: One. Redmond is perhaps the top return man in the Pac-10, a threat of the first order. But both kickers, punter Nick Murphy and field-goal man Stephan Baker are sophomores.

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