(Photo: Connor Gleason/WCSN)
TEMPE — Some of football’s best stories begin with a backup quarterback. On Saturday, Arizona State and Kansas State each gave one the chance to write his own.
By the fourth quarter, the story had four authors.
Midway through ASU’s 53-25 loss to Texas Tech, head coach Kenny Dillingham benched third-year quarterback Cutter Boley in favor of sixth-year veteran Mikey Keene. It was a move fans had clamored for and hoped would stick.
Dillingham granted their wish.
Through the Sun Devils’ first six drives, Keene led two scoring possessions. But on the sixth, he went down with a right knee injury and needed assistance reaching the medical tent.
As he limped off on Saturday afternoon, Mountain America Stadium’s student section erupted with chants of “We Want Fette.” The calls were for first-year quarterback Jake Fette, a four-star recruit. When Boley’s name came over the loudspeaker, the boos could probably be heard in Manzanita Hall roughly a half-mile away.
In the third quarter, Dillingham once again gave fans what they wanted, putting Fette in for a struggling Boley as ASU stared at a 17-14 deficit. The move helped write a different ending as the Sun Devils (4-3, 2-2 Big 12) defeated the Wildcats (4-3, 1-3) 28-17 in a battle of four backups.
“Jake’s got that look in his eye, the swagger,” Dillingham said. “At the end of the game, we felt like he gave us the best chance to win because of his confidence.”
While Fette was writing his first chapter, Kansas State’s backup was crafting one of his own.
In a win over Kansas last week, Wildcats fourth-year signal caller Avery Johnson landed awkwardly after a 59-yard run. He briefly left the game before returning, acknowledging shoulder pain afterward.
Reports throughout the week indicated the injury’s effects lingered. Johnson was ruled out ahead of Saturday, leaving fifth-year quarterback Jacob Knuth in line for his first career start.
Knuth had thrown just three passes in his collegiate career. On Saturday, he finished 26-of-41 for 194 yards and an opening-drive touchdown. He rarely tested ASU’s secondary, as his longest completion traveled just 20 yards.
Johnson’s absence, however, was felt most on the ground, where he remains the Wildcats’ leading rusher.
Kansas State entered Saturday with the second-most efficient rushing attack in college football, averaging 6.2 yards per carry.
After rushing for 43 yards on five attempts during their opening drive, the Wildcats managed just 41 yards on their remaining 27 attempts against a Sun Devil defense that had allowed over 200 rushing yards twice in the previous three weeks.
“I thought tonight we tackled together,” Dillingham said. “Even if somebody didn’t make the one-on-one tackle, it was a six-yard gain.”
After Knuth’s touchdown, Keene wasted little time responding, hitting fourth-year wide receiver Reed Harris on a perfectly placed go ball for 51 yards. The Chandler native went back to Harris later in the drive on a 13-yard out route that set up ASU’s first touchdown.
Late in the first quarter, the Sun Devils were handed favorable field position at their own 45-yard line. It appeared ASU might waste the opportunity when it faced third-and-10 at the Kansas State 44. Instead, Keene once again found Harris on a go route, this time for 39 yards.
The Sun Devils capitalized with another touchdown. By the second quarter, Harris had already racked up 116 receiving yards. Keene operated the offense with a level of command that had been missing in recent weeks.
“I thought his leadership was good,” Dillingham said. “He was playing football in his hometown, 20 minutes from where he grew up. He’s out there, he scored 14 points early, we’re moving, we feel the vibe.”
After Harris’ hot start, he didn’t record another reception until Fette entered the game. He found Harris for first downs on each of ASU’s two scoring drives. After the game, Dillingham estimated Fette took only 10 practice reps all week leading up to Saturday.
Excluding the final possession, when Fette kneeled twice to run out the clock, the Sun Devils scored on two of his four drives. The offense totaled 145 yards on 24 plays.
“He made some big-time throws,” Dillingham said. “We put him in there, and I think he created a spark.”
What started as a duel between two backup quarterbacks ultimately became three against one. Keene, Boley and Fette all took turns helping write ASU’s side of the story against Kansas State’s second-stringer.
By the final whistle, only one team got a happy ending.
“They’re all amazing quarterbacks,” Sun Devils first-year running back Cardae Mack said. “They all do their job, they work hard in practice, they’re ready when their time is called.”
