A career-high 262 rushing yards earned senior running back Cam Skattebo the Big 12 Player of the Week award as well as the AP National Player of the Week and Doak Walker National Player of the Week honors. Yet, the senior running back and the Sun Devils have little time to reveal their 30-23 win over Mississippi State as they are in the midst of a rare five-day turnaround, ready to meet Texas State on the road.
“I feel great,” Skattebo said after carrying the ball 33 times in Saturday’s win. “Nobody has blown my head up too much about getting the honors. Everyone congratulated me, and it’s the next day, next game mentality now. I’m excited to play this week, and we’re going to put the past behind us. It was awesome that I got that, and we got another two wins under our belt, but we’re focused on Thursday right now.”
Skattebo is extremely appreciative of ASU’s offensive line performance, a unit that has been instrumental in the nation’s seventh-best 293 rushing yard average. The Sun Devils undoubtedly want to turn in a better effort in the air following a 69-yard output last week, but there’s little doubt that the offense’s identity stays true to the run game.
“Our guys up front realized we were better than them,” Skattebo noted on the Mississippi State contest. “I was behind them with a lot of anger, and I told them this was going to be a long day for them. They trusted me, and that’s what we had our game plan set to be once it started rolling. Last year, we had guys banged up on the line, and I think every team in the country wants to establish the run. That’s what you want your team to be able to do to anybody in the country because it opens up the passing game.”
Skattebo isn’t apprehensive about the condensed game prep and is focused on the recovery side after Saturday’s hefty workload. This will most likely be the senior’s last year in college, and he took this past offseason to work on trying to achieve his NFL dream, carving his weight down 10 pounds while maintaining his brawn, looking quicker and more agile. NFL Teams often have even similar turnaround times between games to what ASU is encountering this week, and this is an opportunity for Skattebo to test his stamina and capability to recover quickly.
“The biggest thing is treatment on my body,” Skattebo explained. “Only having four days until our next game is a hard turnaround, but you see guys in the NFL go from Sunday to Thursday sometimes. They only get three days to get their bodies right, so we know it’s possible. The best guys in the world do it, so I’ve been taking care of my body the best I can with sleep and treatment.
“The days are busier, and I have a little bit less time to myself. But it’s one week out of the year. We have another game on a Friday this year, but that’s still another extra day. I’m not too worried about it, and we’re going to come back on Thursday night and have the weekend to relax. I’m so focused on what’s going on in the huddle and on the field that I don’t pay attention to all the things outside the game.”
This is the Sun Devils’ first 2024 trial on the road, and the game against Texas State is an opportunity to display the camaraderie that has been developed among the players following the time spent with each other during fall camp and the offseason. Skattebo is confident in his teammates’ attitude heading into the matchup, knowing they have to trust the team culture established by head coach Kenny Dillingham and play harmoniously.
“It’s just trusting the process,” Skattebo remarked. “Everyone puts their trust in Coach Arroyo (offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo) and Coach Dillingham on the offensive side of the ball and knows they’re going to put us in the right position to win. It’s nothing crazy this week either, it’s basic stuff. The only way we lose is if we lose to ourselves. I think if we execute the way we want to execute, it’s going to be a good week.”
Texas State can and will present many challenges as one of the better Group of Five programs in the country. The Sun Belt Conference team is riding high after throttling a well-respected University of Texas and San Antonio squad 49-10 last week. Skattebo is familiar with Texas State head coach G.J. Kinne when the running back played at Sacramento State. Kinne, then the head coach of Incarnate Word, got the better of Skattebo two years ago, winning a 66-63 FCS playoff game thriller. Skattebo is acquainted with the identity of Kinne’s teams and understands that facing his team won’t be anything else but a challenging feat.
“They’re physical and they play hard,” Skattebo commented. “I played against their head coach, so I know what he brings to the table and what he teaches his guys. It’s going to be a testimony to who we are, and it’s not going to be an easy game. I’m confident in our guys, but we have to understand that it’s not just a game we can walk all over.”
Skattebo portrayed not only physical growth in the past two weeks but also the strides he has made from a mental standpoint. Dillingham praised him for sliding at the end of the Mississippi State game to run out the clock, as Skattebo, in a similar situation last year versus UCLA, elected to score and gave the Bruins a chance to come back. The running back’s demeanor and mindset have grown exponentially from last season, and that has manifested itself both in games and practices.
“Last year, I was kind of mentally unstable,” Skattebo admitted. “When you’re losing games and you’re banged up, you don’t want to practice as much as you do now. We’re 2-0 now, but I think my mindset has changed a little bit about no matter what whether we win or lose. I need to be on the field practicing. I push myself, and I’m here to win football games for the rest of the year.”
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