For the 98th time in the two schools’ history, the heated rivalry between ASU and Arizona was settled down south in Tucson as the Sun Devils won the prestigious Territorial Cup, destroying the Wildcats 49-7.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Sam Leavitt completed 17-of-22 passes for 291 yards and three touchdowns while Cam Skattebo dominated with three touchdowns and 177 yards from 21 carries for Arizona State (10-2, 7-2 Big 12). Noah Fifita was 14-for-29 for 126 yards and had a touchdown pass in Arizona’s (4-8, 2-7) final game of the season.
Here are the key takeaways from ASU annihilating Arizona in the Territorial Cup:
-In the final Territorial Cup matchup of his career, Skattebo silenced Arizona’s crowd early as he jogged his way into the end zone for two two-yard touchdowns twice in the first quarter. Throughout the day, he separated himself from the competition with his aggression, physicality and ability to make something out of nothing.
-Off a short pass by Leavitt, Tyson slipped through the cracks of the Wildcats’ defensive line and ran down the field for a 59-yard reception, setting up Skattebo’s second score. Then courtesy of a massive block by Xavier Guillory, Tyson would then dash to his right for a 13-yard touchdown. He finished with 143 yards and a touchdown from eight receptions.
-Shredding ASU last season in UA’s 59-23 win in Tempe, Arizona superstar Tetairoa McMillan was unable to haul the same high-level production. With 11 catches for 266 yards and a touchdown in the victory a year ago, the projected first-round NFL Draft pick was limited to six receptions and 68 yards.
-Shutting down the Wildcats’ offense, ASU’s defense forced Arizona to punt on each of its first two drives on fourth down. UA would settle for a 50-yard field goal by Tyler Loop in the second quarter but it was negated because of a false start. Backed up five yards from the infraction, Loop’s 55-yard try was way right of the uprights.
-Just when Arizona thought it had to target Skattebo at running back, Kyson Brown was another threat who came to play on Saturday. Using his agility and power, he was able to shrug off multiple Wildcats with giant 27, 31 and 38-yard carries. Brown ended up rushing for 100 yards off eight attempts.
-Leaping up for a catch, Chamon Metayer saw the ball fly over him before he was tackled from behind and struggled to get up. After a couple of minutes laid out on the field, he slowly got up and walked to the sidelines. The Cincinnati transfer then returned later in the second quarter and was wide-open for a 22-yard touchdown.
-Arizona State destroyed Arizona and the Wildcats have had no answer for the mismatch through the first two quarters. Skattebo had more yards (113) than Arizona did as a team (57) in the first half.
-Shutout in the first half, the dynamic duo of McMillan and Fifita connected on a 28-yard touchdown pass. Looking for an option, Fifita pinpointed McMillan on the left until the receiver did the rest, brushing past multiple ASU defenders.
-Setting up for a presumptive easy field goal, Parker Lewis’ 21-yard kick shockingly hit the upright and away, yet another disappointing miss by a Sun Devil kicker this season. As a team, ASU is 50% on field goals, which is the second-worst percentage in all of FBS football. Only Notre Dame (44.4%) is worse.
-Late in the third quarter, ASU was dealt with a significant injury blow as Tyson was tackled by a flurry of Wildcats and was in serious pain. He was then seen with a sling on his left arm and did not return.
-With Tyson out, Guillory was the recipient of a 31-yard deep pass by Leavitt and added to Arizona State’s lead 42-7 on the very first play in the fourth quarter. Guillory accumulated two catches for 41 yards and the touchdown.
-Since this was the final game of Trenton Bourguet’s six-year collegiate career, Dillingham gave the Tucson native his first appearance of the season as a sign of respect for what he has done for the program. On the third play of the first drive with Bourguet under center, he miraculously found freshman Derek Eusebio for his first receiving touchdown of his collegiate career, a 64-yard catch.
-Following two seasons of Arizona winning the Territorial Cup, ASU has regained the trophy and bragging rights over its in-state rival. The Sun Devils put up 643 yards of total offense, including 362 passing and 281 rushing yards.
-Needing a win no matter what, Arizona State went into enemy territory with a clear path to the conference championship if BYU beat Houston, Kansas State won over Iowa State or TCU defeated Cincinnati. By securing the win, ASU just needs one of the other outcomes to happen.
Kenny Dillingham stresses importance of Territorial Cup between heated rivals ASU, Arizona
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Reporter Alec Cipollini covers the Phoenix Mercury, Suns and ASU Athletics for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account, @AlecCipollini
