To prevail against a physical Utah team, the equation is a simple one but also serves as a proposition that isn’t often attainable. Controlling the line of scrimmage is the most banal prerequisite to victory, but when facing the Utes, it accurately sums up your approach to this opponent.
With nine minutes left in the contest, Arizona State held a 20-16 lead when faced with a 4th-and-1 opportunity on its 29-yard-line. Senior running back Cam Skattebo pleaded his case to offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo and head coach Kenny Dillingham to stay on the field and try to move the chains. Consequently, the offense loaded the line of scrimmage with extra blockers, and despite exhausting their full force, the Utes halted the ball carrier, turning Arizona State over on downs deep in enemy territory.
With the trust and commitment to winning the war at the line of scrimmage, there was no doubt the Sun Devils would feed Skattebo up the middle time and time again, so when he saw his opportunity, he didn’t hesitate to execute rushing for the go-ahead 47-yard touchdown putting his team up 27-19 with 2:41 to play.
“Coach Dillingham says big-time players make big-time plays,” Skattebo said. “I tell [the coaches] to give me the ball every play, Sam trusted me we called a play I knew was going to work at that time. The offensive line did a great job moving sideways, and I was able to find a hole and get loose.
“He wanted to punt the football, and I said give it to me. I’ll get the first down and we got stopped. It won’t happen every time it might happen once every ten times I do it. He trusted me I didn’t make it work, and then he kept handing me the ball. We’re going to keep winning football games.”
The running back’s confidence is a byproduct of his consistent electric performances, which have placed him statically as the best running back in a talent-rich Big 12. Yet his motivation stems from his head coach, who confronted him early in the week regarding his mindset and focus and reminded him how games like these stack up on an NFL prospect’s resume.
“I always challenge Skattebo, he needs to be challenged,” Dillingham said. “Most people say they coach their best player the hardest, but you don’t. He wasn’t on a kickoff, he’s been on kickoff for us, and I said, What happened? You wonder why we’re falling off, it’s because our mindsets changed. These are the games that people are going to watch, and he rose to the challenge.”
If Skattebo continues to dominate against exceptional competition and, the sky might be the limit. Arizona State's ‘running back by committee’ philosophy has quickly resorted back to feeding their bell cow due to his body of work and the knack of sealing victories or having a great hand in it. At halftime, he was struggling to find consistency against a potent Utah front line, averaging thus 3.4 yards per carry, with his longest rush being a mere six yards.
His confidence never wavered, though, posting 121 yards in the last two quarters. Skattebo ultimately tallied 158 yards, scoring two touchdowns, a 50-yarder in the third quarter, breaking roughly four tackles on his way to the endzone, and a 47-yarder that represented the last points scored on Friday night. Skattebo's priorities have always centered on winning, as he has a conversation with sophomore wide receiver Jordan Tyson about sacrificing all that is needed for the good of the team.
“He was just saying we need to do everything to win,” Tyson described. “Regardless of who’s doing it, If I have the ball he’s going to block for me if he has the ball I’m going to block for him, and finish every play hard.”
The battle in the trenches was a powerful and balanced matchup on both sides of the ball. The Sun Devil offense was able to rush for 176 yards on the day, the fifth game this season Arizona State has rushed for over the century mark, the one exception was just 94 yards in their lone loss to date in a road game at Texas Tech. Having success in the most vital organ of their offensive scheme comes down to trusting something this team seems to have in abundance.
“Every snap, we got guys that trust me, the defense, Sam [Leavitt], trust the offensive line, everybody trusts each other,” Skattebo remarked. “It’s incredible, we got our fire back since Texas Tech, and guys are playing for each other. It’s a completely different team from last year.”
From 2023's 55-3 loss against Utah to being picked to finish dead last in the Big 12 Media Preseason Poll, a poll in which Utah was projected to be the conference champion, the players have prevailed despite the lowly outside expectations. For many, those figures and ranking seem significant, but for the Sun Devils, it's all about getting in between the lines and letting their game dictate the ranking.
“Who cares about the media when we got ourselves?” Skattebo asked. “We know what's going on in our locker room, and at the end of the day, it comes down to us playing football. At the end of the day, now we’re 5-1, and they’re 4-2.”
Utah did provide context to their No.16 ranking on the ground as running back Micah Bernard wasted no time making his impact felt during Friday's contest. Registering 129 yards on the ground and, scoring two touchdowns, and adding 61 yards in the air the senior proved to be a thorn in Arizona State’s side. Through three quarters, he posted 106 yards rushing while finding the endzone, beating down the Sun Devils with methodical plays consecutively. On the Utes' sole touchdown drive in the third quarter, Bernard ran for 37 yards on six carries and two first downs.
In a physical back-and-forth affair, Arizona State was able to dig deep when their backs were against the wall on defense. Once the Utes encroached on their end zone, the defensive front wouldn’t budge, stopping Utah in the red zone on multiple occasions and overall forcing four field goal tries, with the longest one having the line of scrimmage at ASU’s 31-yard line.
“Our defense played really, really well, especially in the low red zone,” Dillingham said. “We talked about if you want to beat Utah you have to win the margins. They usually shorten the game; they get you frustrated because you’re on the sideline with your offense. So, in order to prevent that, you have to run the ball. You have to win the turnover battle, and you have to win the margins.
“The margins are low redzone the margins are third and fourth down, you have to win those if you want to beat Utah. We won the margins when it comes to the low red zone, that was really the difference in the football game. Kudos to our guys that has been an Achilles heel for us we made an emphasis to get better at it, and we’ve been better at it since.”
The fourth quarter once again displayed the Sun Devils' dictation abilities, outsourcing opponents in that frame 28-17 in their last two games. Seemingly, as the lights get brighter, ASU saves its best for last.
“The one thing that’s awesome for our guys is, we’re playing our best football in the fourth quarter,” Dillingham noted. “In the fourth quarter of two games, we find a way.”
Arizona State's practice structure has been valuable in more ways than one to its success. Despite numerous programs lightening the workload during game weeks, Dillingham has made it a point to rigorously work on Tuesday and Wednesday practice all season. He views this as a necessity for his team to collect their second wind and perform at a high level late in any contest.
“I think that’s a testament to our workload in practice and how people think we’re crazy,” Dillingham commented. “That kudos to the guys believing in the work, because a lot of people could be calling their buddies and saying ‘they aren’t doing this why are we,’ and our guys are just bought in they believe in the process.”
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