Sun Devils deliver in much-needed bounce back game against UCLA

(Photo via Spencer Barnes/WCSN)

LOS ANGELES — In a season of firsts under rookie head coach Kenny Dillingham, ASU football has also experienced many lasts with impending conference realignment preceding the downfall of the Pac-12 Conference. One of the most significant of these moments was the Sun Devils’ final road trip – for the foreseeable future – to one of the most iconic stadiums in college football.

Despite this season’s struggles, in its Rose Bowl finale, ASU’s innovation and stalwart defensive front prevailed, and the Sun Devils (3-7, 2-5 Pac-12) came away with the 17-7 victory over the Bruins (6-4, 3-4) for their final farewell.

“Our players, they didn’t waver when we have weird ideas,” Dillingham said. “That’s what I’m most proud of. They went out there. They executed. They worked hard on defense. We battled. We competed. We won the moments. We responded to a butt whooping we got the other day, and we responded, and that’s what culture is, is response, response, response, and we did that today.”

In a swift turnaround from a 55-3 blowout loss the week prior, ASU saw considerable improvements on both sides of the ball.

On the offensive side of the ball the elevated level of play was ignited by a combination of unique formations and rotating personnel. Redshirt junior tight end Jalin Conyers started the game at quarterback. Although redshirt junior quarterback Trenton Bourguet threw the majority of pass attempts – completing 19-of-34 for 149 yards and one interception – the Sun Devils’ lone passing touchdown came from the arm of junior running back Cam Skattebo. The 25-yard pass was a laser to redshirt junior receiver Elijhah Badger on the goal line.

“We worked on it all week,” Skattebo said. “That wasn’t the throw I threw all week, but I knew that was an option. I knew that we didn’t have very much field. That was supposed to be a lot deeper throw, but we had 30 yards of field, so (Badger) improvised, and I saw him, so I just got it to him.”

In addition to his receiving score, Badger finished the game with 116 receiving yards on 12 catches. Meanwhile, Skattebo was a jack of all trades, finishing with three receptions and 61 rushing yards, including a 17-yard score to put the Sun Devils up by 10 to ice the game in the final minutes of the fourth quarter.

“(Skattebo’s) super important,” Dillingham said. “His versatility, his work ethic, his will to win, his will to compete, and that’s really what separates (Skattebo) from most people, is he’s just an ultimate competitor.”

And although ASU’s defense still allowed 183 yards on the ground, the Sun Devils front seven delivered when their names were called.

On its third drive of the first half, UCLA methodically worked the ball up the field from its own 29-yard line inside ASU’s 5-yard line. Trailing by three, the Bruins ran the ball on all four downs and failed to find the end zone. ASU’s defensive line stuffed junior running back Carson Steele twice inside the 2-yard line to put the Sun Devils back on offense.

On the very next drive, the Bruins’ redshirt junior quarterback Collin Schlee picked up nine yards on a first-down pass. Again, UCLA tried to convert on the ground three times, and each play, the Bruins were stuffed by the Sun Devils, forcing the turnover on downs.

“I thought one, we had a good plan, and then two, Dashaun Mallory, and our guys, they executed,” Dillingham said. “Moments. We talk to our guys all the time. Great teams win moments. Good teams win moments. You win plays. You have to win plays. Every play matters, but there’s going to be moments in a game that separate winners from losers. Fourth downs are those moments. … On defense, we made the plays in the critical moments, and that’s what I’m proud of.”

In total, the Sun Devils turned the Bruins over on downs four times. In addition to stellar play in high-pressure situations, the Sun Devils’ defense also recorded three sacks and recovered a fumble to further limit the Bruins scoring opportunities.

After Bourguet threw an interception in the end zone late in the first quarter, redshirt junior linebacker Caleb McCullough stripped the ball inside the 25 on UCLA’s ensuing drive. The loose ball was picked up by redshirt senior safety Shamari Simmons, sending the Bruins offense back to the bench empty-handed once again. The following drive from ASU resulted in the first three points of the game.

Mallory, a leader on the defensive side, was instrumental in creating the pressure that resulted in the Bruins’ offensive failures.

“I think the biggest emphasis that we wanted to have this week was, honestly, keep an edge,” Mallory said. “Honestly, we know that we got embarrassed last week, and we definitely didn’t want that to happen this week, so in those certain situations, sudden change in short yardage, I mean, defense has some pride to them.”

With Saturday night’s win ASU earned its first road win of the season. The Sun Devils also matched their Pac-12 and overall season win totals from last year. ASU will have two more chances to outperform its 2022 season under Dillingham in his debut season.

Through a season filled with more downs than ups, Saturday’s win illustrates the progress this team is making toward becoming the program it hoped to be in the future. ASU’s matchup against UCLA wasn’t pretty at times, but the Sun Devils’ grit and effort allowed them to push through.

“We’ve been here a long time and to finally see us come out with the game and come victorious away from it, we’re right there,” Bourguet said. “We know we’re right there. We’re a couple plays here and there. There’s probably 10 plays from this whole season that could flip this whole year around, but for us, we’re gonna keep continuing to do our job. We’re gonna celebrate tonight, but once we get home tomorrow, we’re gonna recover. We have a big game next week, but we’re gonna celebrate this one for sure.”