Tag: Arizona State Sun Devils

Dec 7, 2024; Arlington, TX, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils running back Cam Skattebo (4) scores a rushing touchdown against the Iowa State Cyclones during the second half at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

No. 15 Arizona State owns Big 12 title game with rout of No. 16 Iowa State

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Bo Skattebo rushed for 170 yards and accounted for three touchdowns as No. 15 Arizona State clinched a College Football Playoff spot with a 45-19 rout of No. 16 Iowa State on Saturday in the Big 12 title game at Arlington, Texas.

Skattebo rushed for two scores and also had a receiving touchdown for the Sun Devils (11-2), who won their sixth consecutive game. Sam Leavitt completed 12 of 17 passes for 219 yards and three touchdowns and also ran for a score for Arizona State.

Sun Devils star receiver Jordyn Tyson (left arm) missed the game but Xavier Guillory stepped up to make two touchdown catches.

The Sun Devils, who were picked to finish last as a newcomer in the 16-team Big 12, are hoping to land a first-round bye in the 12-team playoff. The conference was on the outside of the four byes as of Tuesday’s unveiling but the Atlantic Coast Conference title game result could provide an opening if Clemson defeats SMU.

Rocco Becht completed 21 of 35 passes for 214 yards, two touchdowns and one interception for the Cyclones (10-3), who saw their chances from a playoff spot come to an end. Jaylin Noel and Carson Hansen caught touchdown passes and Jayden Higgins had seven catches for 115 yards.

Skattebo ripped off a 28-yard gain on the first offensive play to set the tone. He later had runs of 42 and 53 yards and also scored on a 33-yard reception.

Skattebo scored on a 3-yard run to give the Sun Devils a 17-10 lead with 10:49 left in the first half. He had the 42-yard run on that drive.

Late in the half, the Sun Devils were back in their own end when Skattebo broke loose on the 53-yard scamper. He also ended the drive by scoring from the 2 to give Arizona State a 14-point lead with 27 seconds to go.

Iowa State’s chances of rallying disintegrated in the third quarter as Abu Sama twice lost fumbles and Becht was intercepted by Keith Abney II.

The Sun Devils scored on short drives of 43, 26 and 38 yards to put the game away.

Leavitt tossed touchdown passes of 8 and 21 yards to Guillory in a span of 71 seconds to make it 38-10. And Skattebo caught the short pass from Leavitt and turned it into a 33-yard score with 2:57 left in the third quarter.

Becht tossed a 25-yard touchdown pass to Noel with 7:27 left in the contest.

–Field Level Media

Nov 30, 2024; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils running back Cam Skattebo (4) celebrates with quarterback Sam Leavitt (10) after scoring a touchdown against the Arizona Wildcats in the first half during the Territorial Cup at Arizona Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Big 12 championship game capsule: Arizona State vs. Iowa State

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Big 12 championship game
Arizona State (10-2) vs. Iowa State (10-2)
Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024, at Noon ET
Arlington, Texas, AT&T Stadium
TV: ABC
Early line: Arizona State -1.5 (FanDuel)

What’s at stake:
Where Arizona State is in the standings on Tuesday will determine if the Sun Devils are facing a must-win situation as the Big 12 very well could be a one-bid league. Arizona State has been a scorching-hot team down the stretch and probably doesn’t want to leave its fate to the committee in hopes of getting an at-large bid.

Iowa State has recorded the first 10-win season in school history and didn’t secure its spot until BYU defeated Houston late Saturday night in Provo, Utah. The Cyclones badly want to win this game to ensure they are part of the field as they clearly will get passed over if they are a three-loss squad.

How they got here:
Big 12 newcomer Arizona State was picked to finish last in the 16-team league, proving that those involved in the balloting aren’t a group of geniuses. The Sun Devils lost to Texas Tech in Week 4 and their only other setback (to Cincinnati) came when quarterback Sam Leavitt (rib) was sidelined. Arizona State roared to the finish with five straight wins, including a 49-7 road trampling over Arizona on Saturday.

Iowa State beat rival Iowa on Sept. 7 and shut out Houston three weeks later as part of a 7-0 start. But consecutive losses to Texas Tech and Kansas knocked the Cyclones out of the CFP Top 25, making a berth feel like a long shot. Yet Iowa State recovered with three straight victories, including a must-win affair with Kansas State on Saturday before receiving the help it needed from BYU to gain the conference title game berth over Colorado.

Names to know:
–Arizona State
QB Sam Leavitt
Has put together a surprisingly good season with 2,444 yards and 21 touchdowns against five interceptions. He has three passing scores in four of his five games since returning from the injury.

RB Cam Skattebo
Tough guy is the face of Arizona State’s rise with 1,398 yards and 17 TDs on the ground along with 35 catches for 468 yards and two scores.

WR Jordyn Tyson
Collected 75 receptions for 1,101 yards and 10 scores, accumulating 444 of the yards over the past three games.

–Iowa State
QB Rocco Becht
Has 20 touchdowns against eight interceptions while throwing for 3,021 yards, joining Brock Purdy — the former Mr. Irrelevant — as the lone Iowa State quarterbacks to throw for more than 3,000 yards in a season twice.

WR Jayden Higgins
Has 80 catches for 1,068 yards and nine touchdowns while he and teammate Jaylin Noel (1,013) are the first duo to top 1,000 receiving yards in the same season in school history.

CB Jontez Williams
Those four interceptions lead a unit that allowed 21 or fewer points on eight occasions.

Xs and Os:
Arizona State has taken to smashing the not-any-good label and has been the best team in the Big 12 in November. Second-year coach Kenny Dillingham had just three wins in his first season and now has the Sun Devils being that team others don’t want to face.

Iowa State had won nine games in a season on just three occasions prior to this season but now has a chance to win 11 or more this season. The Cyclones won’t scare anyone on the overall talent spectrum but the late-season exploits point to a team that is about to play itself into the playoffs.

Prediction:
Iowa State 19, Arizona State 17

–Field Level Media

Nov 9, 2024; Tempe, Arizona, USA; UCF Knights quarterback Jacurri Brown (11) dives for a touchdown against the Arizona State Sun Devils during the first half at Mountain America Stadium, Home of the ASU Sun Devils. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

Arizona State scores late to win seesaw affair vs. UCF

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Sam Leavitt completed three touchdown passes, two of them to Jordyn Tyson, in Arizona State’s 35-31 victory over UCF on Saturday in a Big 12 game at Tempe, Ariz.

Arizona State (7-2, 4-2 Big 12) improved to 5-0 at home this season.

The Sun Devils played without leading rusher Cam Skattebo, who suffered a shoulder injury last week at Oklahoma State. Skattebo entering this weekend’s games third in the Big 12 with 1,001 yards on 173 carries. Kyson Brown started in Skattebo’s place and rushed 18 times for a career-high 73 yards.

Leavitt completed 16 of 25 pass attempts for 161 yards, and Tyson finished with seven catches for 99 yards.

RJ Harvey, the Big 12’s leading rusher, finished with 127 yards on 25 carries with three touchdowns for the Knights (4-6, 2-5).

Redshirt freshman Dylan Rizk, UCF’s fourth starting quarterback this season, made his first start on the road and was 24-of-34 for 229 yards with no touchdowns and one interception.

The game had five lead changes, four in the second half. The scoring alternated between Harvey’s two rushing touchdowns and Leavitt connecting with Tyson twice.

Leavitt’s 13-yard completion to Tyson provided the final score with 4:55 left in the game.

UCF was stopped on a loss of downs on its 33 with 3:24 left when Harvey was taken down one yard short of a first down.

Arizona State was able to wind the clock down to just 5 seconds before turning the ball over on downs at the UCF 22. The game ended on an 11-yard pass from Rizk to Jarrad Baker.

Rizk completed all eight of his passes for 54 yards in UCF’s opening drive, capped with an 8-yard touchdown run.

The Sun Devils tied the game at 7 when Montana Warren returned a blocked punt by Martell Hughes 48 yards.

It was Arizona State’s first blocked-punt return for a score since 2017.

UCF increased the lead to 17-7 lead on a 6-yard run by backup quarterback Jacurri Brown on a designed run play.

Arizona State scored two touchdowns within 9 seconds of each other to take a 21-17 lead into halftime. A 4-yard scoring strike from Leavitt to Chamon Metayer was followed by an interception returned 9 yards for a touchdown by Laterrance Welch with 47 seconds left before halftime.

–Field Level Media

Sep 21, 2024; Lubbock, Texas, USA; Texas Tech Red Raiders defensive back Ben Roberts (13) pressures Arizona State Sun Devils quarterback Sam Leavitt (10) in the second half at Jones AT&T Stadium and Cody Campbell Field. Mandatory Credit: Michael C. Johnson-Imagn Images

Arizona State home, determined to deal Kansas fifth straight loss

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Kansas and Arizona State bid for their first Big 12 victory of the season at the other’s expense when the teams meet in Tempe, Ariz.

It is also the first time the programs will play each other.

The Jayhawks (1-4, 0-2 Big 12) dropped their fourth straight decision with a 38-27 setback to TCU at home last Saturday.

Arizona State (3-1, 0-1) did not play last week after losing 30-22 at Texas Tech on Sept. 21.

The Sun Devils play their first Big 12 game in front of their home crowd against a Kansas team that has lost its four games by a combined 24 points.

The Jayhawks held a lead in the fourth quarter of three of those defeats.

“They’re the same team that was predicted to potentially win the league to start the season,” Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham said. “They’ve had two end of the first halves where they’ve turned the football over and the opponent has gotten seven points to essentially end the first half, which is the difference in two of their games (against) Illinois and UNLV.”

Dillingham noted that Kansas’ turnover margin of minus-0.8 — including minus-1.5 on the road — as a significant reason for the Jayhawks’ struggles.

Kansas coach Lance Leipold said the Jayhawks are “extremely, extremely down” after their difficult start to the season.

“Why wouldn’t you be?” Leipold said. “I mean, if they’re not, you’re not a competitor. You put all this time in, we talk about emphasis and things, and we’re not making it happen.

“It starts with the head coach. I’m not getting it up for this program and for this fan base.”

Kansas’ strength is its running game, which averages 226.0 rushing yards per game, ranking third in the Big 12 and 15th nationally.

The Jayhawks are led by senior Devin Neal, who has rushed 86 times for 513 yards and four touchdowns.

Daniel Hishaw Jr., another experienced back who is a fourth-year junior, has 38 rushes for 262 yards and three touchdowns.

Arizona State quarterback Sam Leavitt, a transfer from Michigan State, has completed 65 of 110 passes for 855 yards and three touchdowns and two interceptions. He also has rushed 39 times for 180 yards and four scores.

–Field Level Media

ASU quarterback Sam Leavitt (10) looks for a receiver during a game against Wyoming at Mountain America Stadium on Aug. 31, 2024, in Tempe.

Transfer QBs clash as Mississippi State visits Arizona State

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Arizona State and Mississippi State are both coming off impressive season-opening home victories and productive performances by their starting quarterbacks.

The Sun Devils and Bulldogs will meet for the first time on Saturday in Tempe, Ariz.

Arizona State’s Sam Leavitt, a Michigan State transfer, completed 14 of 22 passes for 258 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions in a 48-7 rout of Wyoming.

Mississippi State’s Blake Shapen, who transferred from Baylor, passed for 247 yards while completing 15 of 20 pass attempts with three touchdowns and no interceptions in a 56-7 victory over Eastern Kentucky.

Leavitt, a redshirt freshman, did not throw deep often against Wyoming in his first collegiate start. He averaged 11.7 yards per completion.

The Sun Devils ran the ball 49 times compared to Leavitt’s 22 attempts.

Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham told reporters Monday that he is not “playing scared” with Leavitt despite the limited number of passes, including very few of long distance.

“On the second possession, we chucked it deep and he threw a great ball, so we’re not playing scared with him,” Dillingham said. “Moral of the story, we’re going to be aggressive with him.”

Leavitt (47 yards on eight carries) was part of a balanced rushing attack that included Cam Skattebo’s 49 yards on 11 rushes and DeCarlos Brooks’ 47 yards on six carries.

The performance of Shapen, a senior, against Eastern Kentucky helped Jeff Lebby to win his first game as a head coach after he served as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at UCF (2019), Ole Miss (2020-21) and Oklahoma (2022-23).

“I’m just thankful for this opportunity at a new place at Mississippi State, and I know a lot of other guys feel that way,” said Shapen, who threw for more than 5,500 yards in three seasons at Baylor.

Mississippi State’s defense had four takeaways against Eastern Kentucky, including a 51-yard interception return for a touchdown by Elijah Cannon.

Arizona State’s defense returned an interception and a fumble recovery for touchdowns against the Cowboys.

“What I see is a group from Arizona State that played with a ton of confidence, a ton of energy,” Lebby said. “There was great excitement inside their stadium, and we’ve got a great challenge on our hands.”

–Field Level Media

ASU Sun Devils running back Cam Skattebo (4) carries the ball against the Colorado Buffaloes at Mountain America Stadium in Tempe on October 7, 2023.

Arizona State kicks off first Big 12 season vs. Wyoming

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Arizona State struggled through consecutive 3-9 seasons before entering its first season in the Big 12.

The Sun Devils will look to get this campaign off to a good start when they play host to Wyoming on Saturday night in Tempe, Ariz.

Kenny Dillingham resided over the second three-win season in his first campaign. The Arizona State coach wants to see improvement everywhere in the program.

“We want to get better,” he said. “We want to grow every single day. There’s not a win total. There’s not a goal like that. It’s just be the very best we can be at everything we do.”

The Sun Devils took a lot of severe hits last season. Fresno State of the Mountain West pounded them 29-0 and they lost Pac-12 games by 52 points to Utah and 36 apiece to Oregon and Arizona.

Promising quarterback Jaden Rashada opened the season as the starter but sustained a knee injury and played in just three games. He then underwent thumb surgery on his throwing hand and missed spring drills.

Then in late April, Rashada transferred to Georgia.

Before the departure, Sam Leavitt had transferred in from Michigan State. Leavitt outdueled Jeff Sims — a former starter at Georgia Tech and Nebraska — for the starting gig despite throwing just 23 collegiate passes.

Arizona State will look to take pressure off Leavitt by depending on Cam Skattebo, who rushed for 788 yards and nine touchdowns last season.

Defensively, free safety Shamari Simmons is back after leading the Sun Devils with 73 tackles last season.

Arizona State and Wyoming are playing for the first time since 1977 when both schools were members of the Western Athletic Conference. The Sun Devils hold a 9-6 edge in a series that began in 1951.

The Cowboys went 9-4 last season under now-retired coach Craig Bohl. One of their victories was over Texas Tech of the Big 12.

Wyoming promoted defensive coordinator Jay Sawvel to head coach. Sawvel said he’s unsure what to make of the Sun Devils.

“Opening games are really hard when you don’t know how people are going to use their players,” Sawvel said. “And that’s in traditional opening games. Now you add all the transfer elements to it.”

Quarterback Evan Svoboda, who started one game last season, is now the main man. He once starred at Red Mountain High in Mesa, Ariz., which is located approximately 20 miles east of the site of Saturday’s game in the Phoenix suburbs.

“If Evan Svoboda plays the way we hope that he can and that his potential could allow, we could become extremely good,” Sawvel said

Linebacker Shea Suiaunoa is Wyoming’s top defender. He ranked second on the squad with 93 tackles last season.

–Field Level Media

Nov 25, 2023; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Noah Fifita (11) against the Arizona State Sun Devils in the first half of the Territorial Cup at Mountain America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Noah Fifita sets passing record as No. 15 Arizona crushes Arizona State

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Noah Fifita passed for a school-record 527 yards and five touchdowns, and Tetairoa McMillan had 266 yards receiving, as No. 15 Arizona poured it on against rival Arizona State to retain the Territorial Cup trophy with a 59-23 victory on Saturday in Tempe, Ariz.

The Wildcats (9-3, 7-2 Pac-12) won their sixth consecutive game as Fifita completed 30 of 41 passes with one interception, also setting a record for most passing yards in the history of the 97-game series. McMillan caught 11 passes, including a 50-yard touchdown, and set a Territorial Cup record for receiving yards.

The previous Arizona record for passing yards was 520 by Anu Solomon against Cal in 2014.

ASU (3-9, 2-7) ended the first season of coach Kenny Dillingham by giving most of the quarterback snaps to true freshman Jaden Rashada, who had been out since the second game of the season due to injury. He was 10 of 22 for 82 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.

Arizona, which still has 13 players left from the team that lost 70-7 to Arizona State in 2020, couldn’t quite reverse that score. But the Wildcats were headed in the direction after an interception led to an 8-yard touchdown pass to Tanner McLachlan and a 45-7 lead just 91 seconds after halftime.

The 50-yard TD pass to McMillan made it 52-7 six minutes into the half to cap a 49-0 run before Arizona State responded with two touchdowns, plus a pair of two-point conversions.

Michael Wiley scored three first-half touchdowns for Arizona. Jacob Cowing caught nine passes for 157 yards and a touchdown.

The Sun Devils’ Trenton Bourguet, who has started the majority of games at quarterback, was out with a stomach virus, although Rashada was slated to take over in the finale. To start the game, Arizona State used 270-pound Jalin Conyers as a wildcat quarterback, who led a ground-based touchdown drive, but its 7-3 lead was short-lived.

The Wildcats scored touchdowns on their next five possessions, with Wiley getting into the end zone on a 22-yard run, a 1-yard run and a 21-yard reception. Arizona had 410 yards at halftime and led 38-7 at the break.

Fifita had 357 first-half passing yards. McMillan outgained ASU by himself in the first half, with 162 receiving yards to the Sun Devils’ 150 total yards.

–Field Level Media

Nov 18, 2023; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Oregon Ducks quarterback Bo Nix (10) throws a touchdown pass with pressure from Arizona State Sun Devils defensive lineman B.J. Green II (35) in the first half at Mountain America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Schumacher-Arizona Republic

Bo Nix throws for career-high 6 TDs, No. 6 Oregon crushes Arizona State

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Bo Nix passed for 404 yards and tied a school record with six touchdown passes in a little over two quarters and No. 6 Oregon rolled over Arizona State 49-13 in a Pac-12 matchup Saturday afternoon in Tempe, Ariz.

Nix completed 24 of 29 passes and matched the school-record of six TD throws shared by Joey Harrington, who did it twice, and Justin Herbert, Vernon Adams, Marcus Mariota, Darron Thomas, and Danny O’Neill. Nix’s bid for a seventh was negated by an offensive pass interference penalty in the end zone on the opening drive of the third quarter.

Ty Thompson then took over for Nix as the Ducks (10-1, 7-1 Pac-12) continued their march to the conference championship game Dec. 1 in Las Vegas. Thompson also threw a touchdown pass, giving the Ducks a team record-tying seven for the game.

Troy Franklin (eight catches, 128 yards) and Patrick Herbert (three, 78) had two touchdown receptions each, while Tez Johnson (six, 80), Gary Bryant Jr. (three, 82) and Casey Kelly (one, 19) each had one touchdown reception.

The Sun Devils (3-8, 2-6) scored on Dario Longhetto’s two second-half field goals and Melquan Stovall’s 15-yard run in the fourth quarter.

Trenton Bourguet was 20-of-37 passing for 142 yards for the Sun Devils, and Cam Skattebo and Jalin Conyers combined to go 5 of 10 for 63 yards. A 270-pound tight end, Conyers gave a brief life to the Sun Devils offense in the second quarter taking snaps in the wildcat formation and rushing six times for 34 yards to go with his 38 receiving yards.

The Ducks finished the game with 603 yards in total offense to 316 for the Sun Devils. The Ducks scored on each of their six drives in the first half, including one that started at their 2-yard line with just 1:06 left in the second quarter.

Herbert and Franklin each had two touchdown receptions in the first half while Bryant had a 71-yard touchdown catch-and-run and Johnson capped that late 98-yard drive with a 16-yard reception.

The Sun Devils wasted two scoring opportunities in the first half. Longhetto’s 43-yard field-goal attempt at the end of their first series was wide right, and Cole Martin intercepted Skattebo’s pass to end a late second-quarter threat.

–Field Level Media

Oct 28, 2023; Pasadena, California, USA; UCLA Bruins quarterback Ethan Garbers (4) throws the ball against the Colorado Buffaloes in the first half at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

UCLA, Arizona State meet amid quarterback scrambles

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UCLA is bowl eligible, although any chance to make the Pac-12 Conference title game is most likely gone as a result of an anemic offense.

The Bruins (6-3, 3-3) get a chance to regroup after a loss to Arizona last Saturday, and play host to Arizona State (2-7, 1-5) Saturday night at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif.

UCLA fell behind 14-0 in the first half against Arizona last Saturday despite its elite defense and couldn’t recover. The Bruins trailed by a touchdown going into the fourth quarter then lost 27-10 as quarterbacks Ethan Garbers and Dante Moore both were injured in the defeat. The Bruins turned to Kent State transfer Collin Schlee, who also appeared to be ailing late in the game.

The painful defeat dropped UCLA from the College Football Playoff rankings this week.

Garbers and Moore were limited early in the week but both participated in practice Wednesday, with Garbers reportedly showing a limp following a right foot injury Saturday. Schlee and fellow QB Chase Griffin each took part in all practices this week.

“It’s definitely hard, especially being an offensive lineman,” UCLA center Duke Clemens said, per the Orange County Register. “You kind of put that on yourself. You wish you could keep these guys (quarterbacks) up and things like that, but I guess that’s the nature of the game.”

The Sun Devils know all about injuries. They have had at least 29 players miss time due to injuries in head coach Kenny Dillingham’s first season, which is a major reason for the struggles for the team on the field.

Arizona State had shown signs of improved play with a 15-7 loss at then-No. 5 Washington on Oct. 21, followed by a 38-27 home win over Washington State, the first conference victory of the season. But last Saturday, ASU was crushed 55-3 at then-No. 18 Utah and lost quarterback Trenton Bourguet to a left leg injury early in the game.

Jacob Conover took over, but the Sun Devils managed just 83 yards of total offense.

With Bourguet still ailing mid-week, Conover could get the start against UCLA. He is the fourth quarterback to play for Arizona State this season.

“Some fluke things happen and we’re not getting muscular issues, we’re getting elbows popping out of a joint. It’s unfortunate but it is what it is,” Dillingham told the Arizona Republic.

–Field Level Media