(Tempe, AZ) The hype was real as the Devils hosted the Colorado Buffaloes in a mid afternoon clash of first year coaches.
Colorado looked to get its first PAC-12 win as they had hit a rut in recent weeks after beating the National Runner-Up TCU in the opening week.
Even though the Buffaloes had fallen out of the Top 25 polls, they were still regarded as a difficult team to beat after coming back against USC and nearly pulling off the upset.
Arizona State on the other hand was seeking its first win since their narrow win over Southern Utah in Week 1. In following weeks, the quarterback position was decimated with injures to the extent that the fourth string and scout team signal caller was pressed into action.
With a healthy Trenton Bourguet at the helm for the second consecutive game, the Sun Devils had every reason to believe they could not only hang with Colorado, but actually come away with a win.
Photo by Peter Vander Stoep
ASU got the ball first and proceeded to march sixty six yard for the game’s first score. Bourguet with an unorthodox formation ran the ball into the end zone from two yards out to put the Devils up 7-0 in less than four and a half minutes. That gave the momentum to the home team first.
Colorado tied up the score 7-7 using most of the remaining time left in the first quarter with a sixteen play seventy five yard drive that took nearly six minutes.
With he fast start by both teams, most thought this would be a high scoring affair.
The second quarter things settled down and for more than eight minutes, both teams went three and out or were limits to just a couple of first downs before having to punt.
Finally, ASU put together a fifty nine yard drive with Cam Skattebo punching it in from a yard out to put the Devils back in the lead 14-7.
With a tad over three minutes left till halftime, Shedeur Sanders with a sense of urgency, took his Buffaloes eighty one yards in most over two minutes to again bring Colorado even at 14-14.
Now, under a minute left, Bourguet swung into action again in seven plays got the ball downfield far enough for Dario Longhetto to boot a thirty three yard field goal on the last play of the first half. The Devils hit the locker room feeling good with a 17-14 lead.
Things were going much better than in the previous two games as Elijah Badger, Bourguet’ s favorite target from last season had eight receptions for seventy yards in he firs half, but more importantly had sixty seven yards after the catch to pace the receiving corps.
On the other side, Sanders was 14-22 for 116 yards, but was also sacked three times.
Photo by Peter Vander Stoep
Neither team ran the ball effectively in the first half as ASU lead that category with only 46 yards to 34 yards for the Buffs.
Colorado had won the coin toss and had chosen to defer, now getting the first possession of the second half. A quick three and out gave the Sun Devil defense a big boost.
Once again, both teams looked stagnant on offense and the entire third quarter went scoreless, but the Buffs were on the move as the quarter ended.
Heading into the final stanza, the game was up for grabs. Which team would catch lightning in a bottle?
Colorado scored just twenty eight seconds into the quarter when Sanders connected with Javon Antonio from the nine yard line and took the lead 21-17.
Four minutes and nineteen seconds later, CU kicked a forty two yard field goal to put them up by a touchdown 24-17.
Arizona State with time running short at 3:26 Bourguet started the drive on his own six yard line. After getting out of the shadow of their own end zone, Badger caught a pass to put the Devils at the forty eight yard line.
After converting a crucial fourth down at the CU thirty yard line, two plays later the Buffaloes were flagged for a pass interference penalty that took the ball to the fifteen yard line.
The following play, Bourguet found Troy Omeire on the right side of the field and finished with a game tying touchdown.
Theres was fifty seconds left in regulation when Colorado got the ball back on their own twenty five yard line.
The first play of the drive, Sanders hooked up with a wide open Antonio for forty three yards down to the ASU thirty two on a poorly defended play and that in itself burst the Devils’ bubble.
Alejandro Mata booted the go ahead field goal with just twelve seconds left to give the Buffs a 27-24 lead and the win.
Arizona State once again played well enough to win, but just couldn’t finish.
The Sun Devils out gained the Buffaloes 392 yards to 295, but Sanders found a way to win and left the desert with a smile.
Things are improving for Dillingham and company, but progress is slow and his decision to start an unproven freshman quarterback to begin the season instead of Bourguet has caused the downward spiral.
Up next for ASU, a trip to Seattle to face the eighth ranked Washington Huskies in only their second road game of the season.
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