Fireworks and field storming cap off biggest win for ASU football in a decade

TEMPE, Ariz. — Just a year removed from a 3-9 season, Kenny Dillingham and ASU football rose from the ashes like a Phoenix. The Sun Devils, sitting at 8-2 entering Saturday, woke up this morning with the chance to play in the type of game kids dream about. With a sold-out crowd, senior night, and a matchup with No. 14 BYU, a win would give them over a 70% chance of reaching the Big 12 Championship Game (ESPN).

The Sun Devils jumped out to a 21-3 halftime lead behind three rushing touchdowns from superstar senior running back Cam Skattebo. However, as the clock ticked forward, the lead diminished in the second half. A sea of blue BYU fans on the east side of Mountain America Stadium roared and the Cougars clawed back to within five points late in the fourth.

The cheers from the BYU faithful peaked when linebacker Isaiah Glasker brought down ASU QB Sam Leavitt short of the line of gain on a fourth and short with just 2:34 remaining.

After being down three scores, BYU had a chance to take the lead, trailing 28-23. Cougar QB Jake Retzlaff looked sharp, dicing up ASU’s zone defense. BYU moved the ball 50 yards in just over a minute before a cataclysmic error. Retzlaff overthrew his receiver by a few inches. But football is a game of inches, and those inches allowed Arizona State cornerback Javan Robinson to jump the route and intercept the pass.

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Robinson returned it 64 yards to BYU’s seven-yard line. The game was surely over… right?

Late-game clock management

Many Sun Devil fans are familiar with the sentiment ‘Nothing is easy’. The last 64 seconds of Saturday’s game exemplified that.

First and 10, Leavitt handed the rock off to Skattebo, who averaged 5.3 yards per carry on the game. The Sacramento native gained four, setting ASU up on BYU’s three. Timeout BYU, their second of the half. 56 seconds left.

This is where things became unorthodox for Dillingham and the Sun Devils.

On second and three, Leavitt takes the snap and runs backward, killing as much time as possible before being brought down.  A loss of 26 yards and six seconds came off the clock. Timeout BYU, their final of the game.

Third and forever, with just 52 seconds left. Leavitt runs a similar play, but this time goes down much sooner, only for a loss of 10. Five seconds come off the clock, and ASU is able to let it tick all the way down to just seven seconds remaining since BYU is out of timeouts.

On fourth and 44 following two delays of game penalties, and with seven seconds left, the entire stadium is holding its breath. Leavitt is back on the field, and ASU isn’t punting. The redshirt freshman takes the snap and holds the ball for a couple of seconds before launching it in the air and out of bounds. At first, it appears like this took just enough time off the clock, and zeros hit the scoreboard.

Game over? Wrong.

Students storm

The clock rolls to zero and students immediately burst onto the field like “Running of the Bulls” in Spain. Their excitement and energy are met with claims from the officials that the previous play is still under review. Despite that, the students continued and the stadium was immediately flooded while the officials went to the replay board to see if time still remained.

The referees after a handful of minutes came to the conclusion that there was still a single second on the clock, and BYU would take over the ball on ASU’s 49-yard line. One play, and over 1,000 students to clear.

“After further review there is one second on the clock. Fans please exit the field,” a referee said multiple times over the PA system.

ASU security, staff, and even Cam Skattebo took to try and clear the field of students. After a 13-minute long process, the area of play was finally cleared, still with hundreds of students crowding the sidelines, waiting for a second chance to storm Frank Kush Field.

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What were those students going to do if BYU’s midfield prayer was answered? We’ll never know.

Retzlaff’s pass didn’t reach the endzone and fell incomplete. For the second time, Arizona State had won. Fireworks lit up the sky, and fans returned to the field for a final celebration.

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Looking ahead for ASU football

The Sun Devils move to 9-2, their first time winning nine games since 2014. After NCAA sanctions and back-to-back 3-9 seasons, Arizona State has flipped the script and is alive in both the Big 12 Championship race and the race for a spot in the College Football Playoffs.

Next week ASU football will head south to Tucson for the Territorial Cup against Arizona. The Wildcats are currently 4-7 after a 49-28 loss to TCU on Saturday.

If Arizona State wins against Arizona, the Sun Devils will clinch a spot in the Big 12 Championship Game.

The script has flipped in Tempe.

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