If there was a Cam Skattebo-sized hole in the ASU backfield on Saturday night, it wasn’t apparent during the Sun Devils’ 38-19 win over Northern Arizona University in a sold-out Mountain America Stadium.
The running back depth was on display, and a dynamic performance from dual-threat redshirt sophomore quarterback Sam Leavitt helped ASU control the game from the initial snaps.
It is difficult to replace the impact of a Heisman hopeful like Skattebo, but ASU’s offense consistently created chunk plays on the ground and through the air.
The Sun Devils rushed for 201 yards and three touchdowns, averaging over nine yards a carry. Junior Army transfer Kanye Udoh only toted the rock twice for 19 yards, but junior Kyson Brown and redshirt junior Raleek Brown combined for 111 yards and a TD.
Head coach Kenny Dillingham used his backs in the receiving game early and often, setting up swing passes that allowed them to get the ball in space. Kyson, in particular, was a focus in the passing game, snatching six balls for 72 yards.
But the star of the show was clear. Leavitt was explosive with his arm, compiling 257 yards and two TDs through the air, and his legs, scampering for 73 yards and two more TDs.
Perhaps no moment was bigger than Leavitt’s 52-yard TD sprint on the Sun Devils’ first drive after halftime. ASU had scored just three points on its previous five drives, and the redshirt sophomore injected life back into his side, moving up in the pocket to escape pressure and bolting away from NAU’s defenders at the second level.
“Really extended the lead there, and we needed some momentum, so it was absolutely huge,” Dillingham said after the game.
The QB’s connection with redshirt junior wide receiver Jordyn Tyson, who finished with 12 receptions for 141 yards and two touchdowns, was automatic as well, constantly searching for his star wideout when flushed out of the pocket.
Tyson’s first TD was a simple screen in the first quarter that he took to the house, and he hit paydirt for the second time on an over-the-shoulder catch in the fourth quarter that Leavitt declared “one of the best catches (he’s) seen in a while”.
While ASU might have seemed overly reliant on Tyson, who had 17 targets and nearly a 46% target share, NAU’s defensive scheme played a large role in that production.
“When you’re an exotic team like (NAU), you don’t double players,” Dillingham said. “If that’s not their plan to double our best guy, then we should probably just keep getting him the ball.”
It wasn’t all smooth sailing for the Sun Devils offense, however. Leavitt had a poor interception late, and ASU committed nine offensive penalties that resulted in 60 yards, but more importantly, rescinded multiple huge plays.
A holding call nullified a 75-yard TD catch-and-run by Raleek, and an ineligible man downfield penalty wiped out a 64-yard bomb from Leavitt to redshirt senior Malik McClain.
“Obviously got to go back and address the holdings and take care of the ball a little bit on my end as well,” Leavitt said. “But … the accountability we have as a team, I’m not worried about it.”
Edited by Jack McCarthy, Henry Smardo and Ellis Preston.
Reach the reporter at pvallur2@asu.edu and follow @PrathamValluri on X.
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Pratham Valluri is a sports reporter at The State Press. He is a junior majoring in sports journalism with a business minor. He’s in his 5th semester with The State Press working previously as an opinion writer.
