ARLINGTON, Tex. – After getting out to a 24-10 lead heading into the locker room, Sun Devil fans were a little hesitant to burst into celebration because of past second-half performances by opposing teams. In previous weeks, the Sun Devils tended not to keep his foot fully on the gas pedal and allowed teams to scratch their way back into the game. ASU has not blown a fourth-quarter lead this year but has certainly kept fans on the edge of their seats at times.
With Iowa State starting the second half with the ball, ASU’s defense shut the door, or ‘twisted the knife’ if you will, on any potential comeback. The Sun Devils (11-2) forced three straight turnovers to start the second half and out-scored the Cyclones (10-3) 21-0 in the third quarter, holding Iowa State to 71 total yards in the third quarter.
The Sun Devils watched the final seconds tick down as they beat Iowa State 45-19 for their first outright conference championship since 1996. After being selected to finish last in the conference in the preseason media polls, the Sun Devils officially flipped the Big 12 on its head in their first year as a member of the conference.
“It's been great to see our guys play better in the second half,” ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham said. “They took it kind of personal after Week 11 when we let another team come back. They've been harping on it, talking about it, and kind of living it. The growth in this team is remarkable. I've never been part of a team that's grown this much.”
The turnaround started and has continued with the Texas-to-Tempe connection as Dillingham and his staff brought in a plethora of talent bred in the Lone Star State. There are currently 22 players on the roster from Texas, the most in program history. With the game at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the players had a chance to put on a show in front of friends and family.
“You're in one of the best, if not the best, stadiums in the country,” Dillingham added. “A lot of our kids are from Texas, and they dreamt of playing in the Big 12 title game. To say there's not going to be a little nerves is delusional. There's going to be a little bit of nerves. It's what they dreamt of. I think they calmed down; I think we made adjustments as a staff, and they went out and executed the rest of the game.”
One of the key Texas-born players in the game was junior safety Xavion Alfor,d who led the team in tackles with seven. Alford couldn’t play last year due to eligibility issues after transferring from USC but earned the respect of his teammates and backed it up on the field this year. Alford played in two state championships in the very building he was crowned a Big 12 champion this weekend, a full-circle moment for him.
“You see this game a lot growing up and dream of playing in it,” Alford commented. “Last time I was in here, confetti was raining down, so I took that as a sign that this time the same thing would happen. The whole year our culture has been a championship culture, and we’ve been building a championship team the whole year. To come out and finish it off like that shows we’re here to work.”
The turnover barrage started with redshirt sophomore Javan Robinson forcing a fumble on Iowa State’s running back, sophomore Abu Sama III. Graduate defensive lineman Jeff Clark jumped on the ball, and 11 plays later, the Sun Devils scored to extend their lead 31-10. Forcing the first turnover put pressure on Iowa State to score quickly and run a hurry-up offense.
“It was huge to get the takeaway and for the offense to score,” Dillingham mentioned. “The exciting thing was the response in the second half to come out fast. It was a few adjustments we made defensively to combat their check-with-me stuff. Our offense then went and capitalized, and that's just really good team football. That's what good teams do. They play off each other.”
On the very first play in the next drive, after a false start pushed Iowa State back five yards, sophomore quarterback Rocco Becht’s pass deflected on his lineman’s helmet and into the air, where sophomore cornerback Keith Abney II came up with the interception. The play sent both sides into pandemonium as the Sun Devils had full control of the game.
In a last-ditch effort to claw their way back into the game, Iowa State picked up a few first downs and got to midfield before graduate nickelback Shamari Simmons forced another fumble on a run play that was recovered by redshirt junior Justin Wodtly. After senior running back Cam Skattebo caught a 33-yard touchdown pass, the final nail was in the coffin for the Cyclones.
The secondary has shown up in big moments throughout the year and thrived on the biggest stage. They not only caused the three turnovers but also limited Iowa State senior receivers Jaylin Noel and Jayden Higgins to 105 combined receiving yards in the first three quarters.
They finished with 179 combined yards after the Sun Devils took out their starters, but the defense limited one of the more electric offenses to just 10 points in three quarters. Noel and Higgins were the first duo in Iowa State’s history to finish the season with at least 1,000 receiving yards each but were quiet when guarded by ASU’s top defenders.
“These guys step up for the challenge each and every week,” Alford remarked. “I made first-team all-conference but I wouldn’t if it weren’t for our guys. They make my job easy with the way they communicate. We’re one of the best secondaries in the country, and we’ll step up to the challenge every week no matter who we play.”
The Sun Devils finished the regular season, forcing a turnover in seven straight games and extending their streak into the postseason. This is the second time they’ve forced three or more turnovers after intercepting Utah quarterback Cam Rising three times in a 27-19 victory, also the game that started the turnover streak.
Redshirt senior Caleb McCullough played in back-to-back 3-9 seasons prior to this year and stuck with the team. After coming up with multiple key plays in games over the course of the season and two tackles for loss in the Big 12 Championship, McCullough saw Dillingham’s vision through and now gets to reap the benefits along with the other players who experienced the lowest of the lows.
“It's pretty cool to watch those guys celebrate today,” Dillingham expressed. “Caleb could be one of the most improved players on our football team from where he was 24 months ago to where he is now. Those guys believed in the vision, though it's hard to believe when you're not very good, and you're 3-9. Not many people believed that. But we had a sense of belief because the leaders on our football team created a sense of belief with the work they put in.”
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