A collective sense of dissatisfaction was felt around Mountain America Stadium after No. 24 ASU football fell to Houston 24-16 in a sloppy, mistake-filled affair Saturday night.
The Sun Devils' miscues and self-inflicted wounds were felt all night. They matched their season high in penalties with 12 for 76 yards, redshirt senior Jesus Gomez missed two field goals and the offense was held scoreless through the first three quarters. Saturday marked the first time ASU has lost at home since Nov. 25, 2023, against Arizona.
"We couldn't stay in a good enough rhythm," head coach Kenny Dillingham said. "We weren't, obviously, efficient when we actually were moving the ball. We didn't get points, which is the goal of the game."
After redshirt sophomore Sam Leavitt battled injuries all night, he was unable to go late in the fourth. Redshirt senior Jeff Sims created a spark in Leavitt's absence, connecting with redshirt senior Chamon Metayer for a 27-yard touchdown, closing the game to one score. In the end, the comeback fell short after Houston defense forced a stop with too little time left.
"Jeff did a really nice job moving the ball down the field," Dillingham said. "Moved all the way down the field, scored a touchdown."
After punting woes last week, ASU’s special teams continued to be an issue in this game. Gomez’s two missed field goals, two penalties on returns backed up the offense and a penalty on Houston’s late field goal summed up a frustrating phase of the Sun Devils’ game.
ASU’s defense struggled to contain Houston quarterback Conner Weigman. He rushed for 111 yards and two touchdowns and threw for 201 yards and a touchdown, only taking one sack in the process.
"It's a tough run game," senior linebacker Keyshaun Elliott said. "You have to have your free safety or one of your extra fitters to come down … their stout offensive line do well getting up to the second level."
Offensively, it was the first time all season the Sun Devils were held scoreless through the first three quarters.
The fourth quarter saw the offense regain its footing, with the tight end room getting the scores. Redshirt senior Cameron Harpole picked up his first touchdown as a Sun Devil on a three-yard reception, and Metayer grabbed the other.
Nine different receivers caught passes after redshirt junior Jordyn Tyson was unable to play due to an injury. Redshirt senior Malik McClain led the way receiving, finishing with seven receptions for 159 yards in the best game of his career.
"I was blessed to just be in the game and contribute," McClain said. "With (Tyson) going down, we had to change some things around. I just had to play my part and just make the plays when they came."
The Sun Devils fell to 5-3 on the season with a 3-2 Big 12 record, a similar conference record to what they had at this time last season. The loss sees ASU’s chances to play in the Big 12 Championship drop significantly, but with the parity of the Big 12, nothing is impossible.
With the frustrating loss, the Sun Devils now look to travel to play Iowa State in a rematch of the 2024 Big 12 Championship game. Dillingham knows his team must play a better game to finish the season strong.
"We just got to go get better," Dillingham said. "Everybody's got to look themselves in the mirror; coaches, players, everybody, and we got to go improve. And that's all you can do."
Edited by Jack McCarthy and Ellis Preston.
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Niall Rosenberg is a lead Sports Reporter at the State Press. He has previously worked with sports teams such as the Rockford Rivets of the Northwoods League. He is in his 2nd semester with the State Press with the chance to cover football and other sports.
