By Adam Beadle
Multimedia Specialist
Expectations.
The word that has stood beside the Arizona State football program for quite some time. Coming off a 3-9 season last year, the expectation—at least around the media—was that the Sun Devils would win six games and clinch bowl eligibility.
With a 49-7 win over their in-state rivals, Arizona, the Sun Devils have clinched their first 10-win season since 2014 and first trip to the conference championship since 2013.
Head coach Kenny Dilingham’s answer about what he would have said if someone asked him before the season if that was a feat ASU could accomplish was short and straightforward.
“I don’t know, to be honest,” Dillingham said. “Like, I don’t think that’s a real question because I don’t think one person would have ever asked it. So I have no clue what I would’ve said to that question.”
After getting hammered by the Wildcats last season, 59-23, the Sun Devils got their bounce back. Thanks to three first-half touchdowns by senior running back Cam Skattebo and a pair of touchdown passes from redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt, ASU put together a remarkable first-half performance in which the Sun Devils led 35-0 and had 390 total yards of offense.
“Walk in yo trap, take over yo trap,” Leavitt said.
The journey for ASU from 2014 to now came full circle when senior quarterback Trenton Bourguet entered the game and connected with his brother, senior wide receiver Coben Bourguet, for his first collegiate reception.
To cap off an outstanding overall team performance, Trenton connected with redshirt freshman walk-on Derek Eusebio on a 64-yard touchdown pass.
After TCU beat Cincinatti Saturday night, the Sun Devils will officially be playing in the Big 12 Championship next Saturday.
“I’m excited for what’s next and what can become in this program,” Dillingham said. “Like I said this is year two. We were built to continue to get better, and hopefully that continues to happen, and we continue to get better. Are we better than I anticipated? Yeah. But hopefully we can continue to build, and build, and build, and create something sustainable here.”
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