Arizona State (1-0) took on the elements and Southern Utah (0-1) on Thursday night in Tempe. In a game that included a two-and-a-half-hour weather delay, the Sun Devils barely escaped a 24-21 upset bid.
The game was filled with puzzling moments.
First, a haboob and electrical storm engulfed Mountain America Stadium at the end of the second quarter. The sudden change in weather pushed the game into the wee hours of Friday morning.
“It stopped the momentum a little bit. Can’t really make excuses because it happens to other teams in the country,” junior tailback Cam Skattebo said.
ASU appeared to be in control late in the game after a Dario Longhetto field goal gave the Sun Devils a 24-14 lead with just under 14 minutes in the fourth quarter.
However, SUU defensive back Jordan Washington blocked a punt a couple of drives later. It was recovered and returned for a touchdown by fellow corner George Ramirez with just under eight minutes to play.
That score cut ASU’s advantage to just three points, leading 24-21.
When the dust finally settled at around 1:00 A.M., true freshman quarterback Jaden Rashada kneeled down to secure the victory.
It was the Rashada-led offense in the second half which nearly cost ASU the game. In a word, the offense was anemic.
The second half was not beautiful football, which was not unexpected after the delay. The teams traded punts on five straight drives in the third quarter.
The downpour in the second half made the game incredibly sloppy. The officials had already been hard at work in the first half, but the came became a flag festival throughout the second half.
The two teams combined for 15 penalties and over 150 penalty yards. Each team also had a player ejected for targeting.
Despite the ugly offensive performance, head coach Kenny Dillingham had high praise for the defense, which likely saved the Sun Devils from an embarrassing home loss.
“They were the ones who won us the football game, to be brutally honest,” he said.
ASU seemed to be figuring things out in the second quarter, but Mother Nature interrupted the team’s flow in an impressive fashion.
Dillingham was puzzled by the way the game went as well.
“We played really clean in the first half and then you come out in the second half and play the exact opposite,” he said. “How do you let a circumstance affect us like that? That’s something that I have to find a resolution to.”
The dust storm blowing in at the end of the first half overshadowed some promising moments from ASU’s first-half offense.
Rashada took no time to show his upside. In his first collegiate drive, he went three for three with 44 yards, including a chunk coming on a beautiful deep ball to graduate wideout Melquan Stovall for 33 yards.
Junior tailback Cam Skattebo trotted into the endzone for six to give the Sun Devils a one-score lead in the opening quarter.
The offensive line started off well, but struggled to open up holes for the running attack and even allowed Rashada to be sacked on a straight rush in the second quarter.
Already a question mark, the unit did little to soothe nerves throughout the night.
The sole first-half Thunderbird touchdown came as the result of a personal foul penalty. Redshirt sophomore defensive end Clayton Smith was ejected for a targeting penalty on SUU quarterback Justin Miller.
The play extended a long SUU drive which ended in a touchdown to knot the game at seven apiece.
“I just told [Smith] it’s a good learning experience and you’ll be back next week… that’s the hard part because you never hit quarterbacks in practice,” Dillingham said.
Smith’s ejection made ASU’s already thin rotation on the front line even thinner. The Thunderbirds pounded the clearly gassed defense with quick runs and passes throughout the drive.
Rashada showed more flashes in the second quarter. After being flushed out of the pocket under heavy pressure, the freshman rolled right and unleashed a 47-yard bomb to junior wideout Xavier Guillory for a touchdown.
The play call came on on a fourth down around midfield. It was certainly a gamble for Dillingham to take with a quarterback who turned 20 on Thursday.
“No risk it, no biscuit,” the young coach said.
After forcing another three and out, the ASU offense marched down the field. A screen pass to star tight end Jalin Conyers went for 43 yards.
Conyers appeared to injure his shoulder on the play and did not return to the game.
It was on this drive that the bizarre weather began to roll in from the South, with dust sweeping into the stadium. As the lightning began to strike in the distance, Rashada hit junior receiver Troy Omeire on an endzone fade to take a 21-7 lead with two seconds left in the half.
The 6-foot 4-inch X-receiver showcased how valuable in the red zone he could be throughout the season.
It was a different second half for the young quarterback. Rashada’s accuracy problems contributed heavily to a sputtering ASU offense in the second half.
The quarterback also struggled to go through his progressions late in the game, often locking in on one receiver without surveying the field.
Senior nickelback Jordan Clark came to the defense of the young quarterback after the game.
“That’s this kid’s first college start… and he won his first football game under insane circumstances,” Clark said. “I think that the question should be about how he finished and how he found that poise at such a young age.”
The freshman finished the game with 236 yards, two touchdowns, and 18 completions on 31 attempts.
His postgame advocate, Clark, had a pair of pass breakups and five tackles on the night. The veteran nickel provided the team with a “we got y’all” running off the field late in the fourth quarter according to Dillingham.
The escape left the first-year head coach with more questions than answers. He will have a few extra days to address those questions before the Sun Devils face a much tougher test: the Oklahoma State Cowboys.
Nonetheless, the Kenny Dillingham Era has begun with a victory.
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