Cowbells rang, the stands quaked, and between all of it, the Sun Devil offense struggled to get in sync early against Mississippi State as they walked off the field on the bad end of an agonizing last-second 24-20 upset.
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Sam Leavitt didn't look like his usual self against the Bulldogs. He finished 10-22 for 82 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. If it wasn't for ASU's success in the run game, it's likely the final score would have been ugly.
In the first half, junior Kyson Brown, who exploded in the team's home opener with 145 total yards, left his homecoming game for good toward the end of the first quarter with an ankle injury. Redshirt senior Jesus Gomez managed to put points on the board before the end of the second quarter with a 51-yard field goal.
From halftime on, the stars of the show were junior Army transfer Kanye Udoh, redshirt junior Raleek Brown and the Sun Devil offensive line.
Udoh and Brown combined for 215 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown behind an offensive front that only seemed to get better as the game went on. ASU opened up the second half with eight consecutive rushes for 75 yards that ended with Udoh's first touchdown as a Sun Devil. That drive alone came close to matching the team's total offensive yardage for the entire first half.
Two minutes into the fourth quarter, Leavitt connected with redshirt junior wide receiver Jordyn Tyson for a touchdown with a perfectly timed play-action pass.
During the next drive, Udoh found a couple of big gains, and minutes later, Brown broke away for a beautiful 26-yard escape that set the Sun Devils up deep in the red zone with just over two minutes remaining. The squad's final drive on offense consisted of 15 rushing attempts and only one passing attempt.
"That was an incredible drive," head coach Kenny Dillingham said, per Speak of the Devils. "I mean, we're one yard away from it being one that goes down in the history books."
On the other side of the ball, ASU's defense was just one play away from a near-perfect second half.
Despite the last-second heartbreak, Udoh is motivated by the fight the Sun Devils showed as the game progressed.
"I've been on a lot of good teams," Udoh said, per Speak of the Devils. "What we did today, how we responded in that second half, that's what great teams do. So I'm excited for what we do moving forward."
Edited by Alan Deutschendorf, Henry Smardo and Ellis Preston.
Reach the reporter at holtzingerethan@gmail.com and follow @EthanZinger6 on X.
Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on X.
Ethan Holtzinger is a sports reporter for The State Press who has previously worked for Cronkite News and the Arizona Interscholastic Association. He is in his 2nd semester with The State Press and 5th semester at ASU.Â
