ASU football scored 14 points against UA less than a minute into the game as part of a 70-7 win in the 94th Territorial Cup in Tucson Friday night, the most points the team has scored in a single game in the series' history.
The Sun Devils' defense kept the Wildcats' offense out of sync the entire game, forcing seven turnovers. Eight different ASU players scored touchdowns in the rout.
Freshman defensive back D.J. Taylor began the scoring by taking the opening kickoff eight yards deep in his own end zone for a touchdown to open the game.
The Sun Devils then forced and recovered a fumble on the Wildcats' second play of their ensuing drive on their four-yard line. Freshman running back Chip Trayanum ran in for a touchdown one play later, extending the lead to 14-0 before one minute bled off the clock.
ASU's coaching staff harped on the team to stay intense, with head coach Herm Edwards telling his team “don’t relax.”
"This was the hardest I've ever coached on a sideline since I've been here, when we had that lead," Edwards said. "It was really telling players do not get comfortable."
He said he didn't even want anybody smiling. After ASU lost a 13-point lead in the fourth quarter to USC in Week 1, he didn't want to take any chances.
ASU didn’t let up, continuing to force turnovers and run over UA through the final whistle.
The Sun Devils forced four fumbles and three interceptions from UA, resulting in 35 points. The Wildcats also turned the ball over on downs four other times, leading to 14 more points.
The first six Wildcat possessions ended in either a turnover on downs or a takeaway, leading ASU to take a 42-0 lead with 5:25 left in the first half.
"The score was shocking," co-defensive coordinator Antonio Pierce said. "We felt like we were the better team going in, and our guys played accordingly."
Offensively, the Sun Devils' ground game continued its success from the first two games of the season, running for 259 yards and seven touchdowns from five different ball carriers.
Junior running back Rachaad White led the way on the ground, rushing for 133 yards on 10 carries including a 93-yard touchdown run, which is now tied for the fifth-longest rush in school history. He won the Bob Moran MVP of the Territorial Cup.
"It's an award that goes to me, but it's a team award," White said.
Sophomore quarterback Jayden Daniels scored a touchdown on the ground, as did freshmen running backs Daniyel Ngata and Trayanum, along with redshirt junior running back Jackson He.
He made his debut at running back Friday. White got out of bounds in the third quarter in hopes that He would get put in to score. He didn’t get the chance then but would find the end zone in the fourth quarter to cap the scoring in Friday's affair, the first by a Chinese-born player in FBS history.
"I am blessed to have this opportunity to be the first one," He said. "I am the first one but not the last one."
Daniels put up big numbers as a passer despite limited attempts with 203 yards and two touchdown passes. ASU only threw the ball 13 times all night, with Daniels connecting on nine of his 11 throws.
Friday was the fourth straight Territorial Cup win for ASU football, its longest winning streak over UA since 1975-78.
In a season that spiraled due to an outbreak of COVID-19 among the team after Week 1, the Sun Devils finally got in the win column and find themselves with a 1-2 record. This was their first victory since the Sun Bowl on Dec. 31, 2019, and Edwards noted that.
"What they've gone through in the last year, you have no idea," Edwards said. "I was just happy to finally see these guys win a football game."
As the Sun Devils return the Territorial Cup back to Tempe, they will have one more matchup to prepare for. The opponent is currently to be determined, as the Pac-12 Championship Game is next week and all other teams will play other conference opponents.
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