(Photo: Marina Williams/WCSN)
ATLANTA — Walking off the field at the conclusion of the first half of the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt had a message for his No. 4 Arizona State’s defense, which held No. 5 Texas to 133 yards through two quarters. Trailing 17-3, the Sun Devils’ offense struggled mightily in the opening 30 minutes, and he promised his unit would come through once it returned to the field.
“(Defense), we got y’all,” he said. “We got y’all on the back end.”
The change wasn’t immediate, but his offense eventually kept its word.
Even when they were down 24-8 with 10 minutes to play in the fourth quarter — the largest deficit they faced all afternoon — the Sun Devils still had a belief they could win. A little over five minutes later, that belief nearly became reality as ASU improbably tied the game at 24, all against a vaunted Longhorns’ defense known for giving up little daylight.
It took two overtime periods, but Texas (13-2) dashed ASU’s (11-3) hopes of a storybook finish, winning 39-31 to advance to the College Football Playoff Semifinal and end their opponents’ magical 2024 campaign. But, as it’s been all season, the Sun Devils’ fight during difficult times was on full display, a clear indication of the culture head coach Kenny Dillingham has established at his alma mater in just two years.
“That’s one of the best teams in the country, if not the best team in the country, we faced today,” Dillingham said. “We started off not-so-great, and the way the guys battled back is remarkable. Like I told them, if they could rewind in the locker room, I hate to lose more than anybody, but now that it’s over, you can reflect. Where these guys have come is an incredible testament to the team.”
Over the last six months, many players have said the Sun Devils thrive off of adversity, something they faced almost as quickly as possible on Wednesday. After kicking a field goal on its first drive to take an early lead, ASU gave up two explosive plays almost in succession.
On Texas’ snap from scrimmage, junior quarterback Quinn Ewers unleashed a bomb that junior wideout Matthew Golden grabbed for a 54-yard gain, setting up a touchdown pass on the next play. The Sun Devils next offensive drive ended in a punt, which senior wideout Silas Bolden took to the end zone on a 75-yard house call. At the end of the first half, ASU led in time of possession by over ten minutes yet had only three points to show for that effort.
It may sound like a broken record at this point in the year, but guess what? They battled back.
Not long into the second half, graduate defensive back Shamari Simmons, who sat out the first half due to a suspension, forced a fumble and brought down Ewers in his own end zone for a safety. When ASU was in a 16-point hole, Skattebo, seen vomiting on the sidelines in the fourth quarter per Taylor McGregor of ESPN, returned to the game and played an instrumental role in the comeback bid.
He contributed three total touchdowns and 242 yards from scrimmage, becoming the first player on a losing team to win Peach Bowl Offensive MVP since 2007. The comeback wouldn’t have been possible without redshirt sophomore corner Javan Robinson’s clutch interception to set up the game-tying drive. In total, ASU outgained Texas, 510-375, showing fight the entire time but falling short at the end.
Whether it was before the season began, when the Sun Devils were picked by the media to finish last in the Big 12, or early in the game when trailing to a Texas squad that was rolling, many may have thought there was no chance they could recover. ASU defied all of the expectations and labels placed on it.
“Undeniable,” Skattebo said when asked to describe this year’s team. “We fought through everything all season. We let them hang the whole year. We gave everything we had and you see it in that game. We never stopped. I bet (the media), nobody in this room thought we were going to even be close when we went down 17-3 in that first quarter. We believed in ourselves, believed in what we had going and undeniable is what this team is about.”
An identity based on fighting adversity, never giving up and relentlessly believing in oneself stems from one thing: a head coach who preaches that “culture wins.”
In 2023, when the Sun Devils went 3-9 and had a postseason ban looming over them for the entire year, there were few positive moments to look back on. However, it was easy to see that ASU was willing to win at all costs, even if it meant using the “swinging gate” formation or having Skattebo throw touchdowns on offense to pick up a gutsy 17-7 win at UCLA.
A year later, there were even more examples of that toughness. Orchestrating dramatic game-winning drives on mutliple occasions. Bending, but never breaking to hold off a second-half comeback from then-No. 14 BYU over a month later. That unwavering belief and desire to play for something bigger than yourself has been embodied so many times in 2024, and the Peach Bowl was no exception.
When asked about Texas’ final two touchdowns in overtime that won it the game, Dillingham took responsibility for the shaky first half and defensive breakdown on Texas’ game-tying play in overtime, embodying another key piece of his program’s identity — accountability. While it may start with the coach, building a room with the right players makes such an appealing culture spread rapidly.
“Our culture is great,” sophomore defensive lineman C.J. Fite said. “Coach Dillingham brought players that bought into it. Nobody questions what we’re doing over here. When moments happen like this, you just go back to those training moments in the spring and the winter. It was just the men you’ve been with this whole time working, you know that they have your back, so you’re just going to keep playing for them as hard as you can.”
Fortunately for the Sun Devils, many of the pillars of this year’s success will be back when the team begins prepping for the 2025 campaign. In the weeks leading up to the Peach Bowl, several starters announced they intended to return to the program next season. Almost immediately after Wednesday’s game, Leavitt confirmed he’ll be back via his Instagram story.
The biggest news of all, however, is Dillingham agreeing to a five-year contract extension with ASU, which was announced late on New Year’s Eve, Dillingham wanting to avoid the attention. With a strong foundation and a head coach with love for the program and is in for the long haul, there’s plenty of reason to believe the Sun Devils’ culture will result in even more success in the future.
“I’m fired up that we can continue to build this thing,” Dillingham said.
