With one minute and 40 seconds left in the game, on a got-to-have-it fourth down for West Virginia, ASU junior defensive back Keith Abney II made eye contact with West Virginia freshman quarterback Scotty Fox Jr.
He knew the ball was coming his way.
Abney made a diving grab to intercept Fox's pass and seal the deal for a Sun Devils win at a final score of 25-23, in front of a homecoming weekend crowd Saturday afternoon at Mountain America Stadium.
"Yeah, it's coming," Abney thought after making eye contact with Fox.
The junior had a shutdown presence all game long, recording three solo tackles, two pass breakups, a forced fumble and the game-clinching interception.
Abney contributed to a stout ASU defense in the run game, limiting West Virginia to 68 yards on 39 carries.
"We let the first few drives go by to get a gist of what they had going on, and once we got the deal on that then we started speeding up and playing a lot faster," senior linebacker Jordan Crook said.
ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham praised Abney not only for his physical skills but his football IQ.
"Keith's a guy who's in the Barrett Honors program ... and when you see smart players make smart plays, it starts in the classroom," Dillingham said.
The Barrett, The Honors College student extended his team-leading pass breakups to 11 in a rare game where he saw many targets coming his way.
"I usually don't get that many targets, but it was good to finally get some," Abney said.
Abney is the highest-ranked cornerback in the Big 12 with a rating of 91.3 as of Nov. 11, according to PFSNcollege on X.
The Sun Devil defense continued to show the strong resilience they've had all season after allowing a 75-yard touchdown reception and a 90-yard touchdown reception, the latter of which Dillingham referred to as the second-worst play he's ever been a part of.
"For our guys to bounce back and stop a two-point conversion, which allowed us to kick a field goal for a win and instead of a tie, (that's) winning football," Dillingham said.
ASU's fortitude was tested when redshirt freshman defensive back Rodney Bimage Jr. made an explosive stop on third down but lay limp on the grass for a few worrisome minutes.
Bimage was able to get back up to his feet and give his teammates a quick dance before walking off the field with support.
"That gave the team a little more juice to come out there and make more plays," Crook said.
Abney's veteran presence has been crucial for a Maroon and Gold team that has been marred by injuries all season.
"It's nothing new; we have one guy go down and another guy come back in, that guy's been taking reps with us too," Crook said. "We execute, play fast and trust each other."
ASU's defense looks to maintain its momentum as it heads into the final two weeks of the regular season, still clinging to hope of returning to the Big 12 championship game to defend its title.
Abney and the Sun Devils travel to Boulder, Colorado next week to take on the struggling Buffaloes.
Edited by Alan Deutschendorf, Senna James and Pippa Fung.
Reach the reporter at eapache3@asu.edu.
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