Sun Devils Take Advantage of UCF Mistakes, Win 35-31

Video by Eliav Gabay

“When your enemy’s making a mistake, don’t interrupt them.”

It’s a quote from Billy Beane in Moneyball that rang true on Saturday for Arizona State. 

ASU first got on the board with a blocked punt by Martell Hughes that was recovered by Montana Warren and returned for a touchdown.

#ASU BLOCKS #UCF’s PUNT & MONTANA WARREN RETURNS IT FOR A TOUCHDOWN 🙌🙌@Sports360AZ pic.twitter.com/t9zTXntksr

— Eliav Gabay (@eliavgabay) November 10, 2024

It was the first time a Sun Devil punt block led to a touchdown since 2017. 

With 4:56 left in the first half, the Sun Devils found themselves down 17-7 to UCF. They were without their star running back Cam Skattebo, who was sidelined with an injury. 

The Sun Devil offense manufactured its first scoring drive with a touchdown from quarterback Sam Leavitt to tight end Chamon Metayer. It was a nice response and put the Sun Devils in striking distance to take the lead when they got the ball at half.

But UCF was feeling generous and ASU didn’t have to wait. 

On the ensuing kickoff with 56 seconds left in the half, Parker Lewis kicked the ball off and UCF’s Christian Peterson swatted at the ball in the end zone and picked it up, seemingly and obviously content with a touchback, right? 

But he ran out of the end zone.

What resulted was Arizona State tackling him at his own 1-yard line. Kenny Dillingham argued it was a safety.

While Dillingham didn’t get what he argued for, one play later, he got something better. While the Sun Devils had no timeouts remaining and UCF could have run out the clock, Knights quarterback Dylan Rizk threw an interception to LT Welch, who waltzed into the end zone for a touchdown. 

#ASU LATERRANCE WELCH PICK SIX FOR THE LEAD 🔥@Sports360AZ @LaterranceWelch #CFB #CollegeFootball pic.twitter.com/VsTK7kXzAe

— Eliav Gabay (@eliavgabay) November 10, 2024

It’s the domination that this team has hung their hat on in the last four minutes of the first half and first four of the second half, known as “the middle eight.”

Dillingham mentioned after the Sun Devils’ Week 1 win that he wasn’t happy with how his team played in that frame. Since then, key wins including Mississippi State, Kansas and Texas State were dictated in the middle eight. 

Add UCF to that list.

In that timeframe, ASU has outscored opponents 63-13. On Saturday, they were +14 in that category. 

But there’s plenty of game beyond that middle eight, and that’s when ASU’s best players made plays. 

Jordyn Tyson hauled in two touchdowns and had a third down conversion that may have been his best catch as a Sun Devil. Sam Leavitt was forced to improvise and scramble at times. He took a few sacks, but he also manufactured some first downs out of thin air. Most importantly, he never turned the ball over. 

The linebacker group was without Keyshaun Elliott, the alpha in a room full of werewolves. 

In his absence, Jordan Crook and Caleb McCullough helped shoulder the load and were tied for first and second in tackles on Saturday. 

The Sun Devils are a stubborn group that has learned to resist a loss if the game is close. For a group that did not have the ball bounce their way much last year, they rarely squander the opportunities that come when it does. 

Now, the Sun Devils sit at 7-2 and in the top half of the Big 12. Not bad for a group that was picked dead last in the conference before the season. 

They’ll be tested next week, when they have to go on the road to Manhattan and play a Kansas State team with the same record who are coming off a loss and a bye week. 

But if the Wildcats do drop the ball at some point in the game, the Sun Devils have shown they’re ready and looking to take advantage.