ASU @ Kansas St Saturday 11/16 5p

[SeattleCardinal]

I'm waiting for Chris Karpman to do an analysis, however, this is what Arizona Sports was reporting this morning.

There is an audio.

ASU football controls its own destiny in Big 12 title hunt

Next week's matchup between ASU football and BYU at Mountain America Stadium will leave the winner in position to make the Big 12 title game.

arizonasports.com

I think that the Arizona Sports story is actually saying the same thing.

Arizona State’s loss to Cincinnati without Sam Leavitt is the key tiebreaker with the Cyclones, who beat the Bearcats in their matchup. That is the one that would matter because of common conference opponents, should the above scenario play out with BYU losing out preventing a three-way tie.

ASU controls if there is a three-way tie, but in a two-way tie, the common conference opponent tiebreaker would kick in, and Iowa State would get the nod over ASU, even if the Sun Devils win out.

ASU needs to take care of business either way, to make this relevant.

 

[Mainstreet]

I think that the Arizona Sports story is actually saying the same thing.

Arizona State’s loss to Cincinnati without Sam Leavitt is the key tiebreaker with the Cyclones, who beat the Bearcats in their matchup. That is the one that would matter because of common conference opponents, should the above scenario play out with BYU losing out preventing a three-way tie.

ASU controls if there is a three-way tie, but in a two-way tie, the common conference opponent tiebreaker would kick in, and Iowa State would get the nod over ASU, even if the Sun Devils win out.

ASU needs to take care of business either way, to make this relevant.

I think the title of the headline has now been changed by the addition of the word "nearly" as contrasted with the one I posted earlier.

See below:

"ASU football nearly controls its own destiny in Big 12 title hunt after BYU loses to Kansas"​

ASU football controls its own destiny in Big 12 title hunt

Next week's matchup between ASU football and BYU at Mountain America Stadium will leave the winner in position to make the Big 12 title game.

arizonasports.com

 

[Raindog]

ASU is #21 in AP poll. BYU (14) and Colorado (16), and Iowa St (22) are the only other B12 teams in the poll this week.

 

[AZCB34]

That was a poorly played second half. K-State played so bad and missed a ton of plays that better teams would make.
Cam is still hurt and I’m certain most guys wouldn’t have played tonight, but he’s such a beast….

Leavitt continues to impress. But both our d-line and o-line are a problem.

Tyson is a fantastic WR…

I get what you are saying but, at the risk of being a homer, I’m going to quibble a bit with your take.

Yes, they didn’t play as well in the 2nd half as they did in the 1st half. Everything was fine right up to the Tyson fumble. It gave KSU life and they were able to translate that life into success. If that drive continues I think we all believe that basically would have clinched the game. Didn’t happen that way and we got a much closer win than any of us expected in real time.

KSU was awful most of the game but ASU was also making plays that made KSU look even worse. That’s also what winning teams do is they make plays and stymie their opponent.

That quick KSU TD drive, I think, was ASU lost focus, they didn’t make tackles like they had been all game long, KSU made a few plays. It felt to me like the play calls changed from the game plan up to that point.

OL is still a concern. I’m not sure I agree with your assessment of the DL although I readily admit they can be inconsistent at times.

 

[SeattleCardinal]

For a little while, I was getting flashbacks to that epic second half collapse in Salt Lake City a few seasons ago. That earlier team was certainly talented, but this one is smarter and better coached.

 

[82CardsGrad]

I get what you are saying but, at the risk of being a homer, I’m going to quibble a bit with your take.

Yes, they didn’t play as well in the 2nd half as they did in the 1st half. Everything was fine right up to the Tyson fumble. It gave KSU life and they were able to translate that life into success. If that drive continues I think we all believe that basically would have clinched the game. Didn’t happen that way and we got a much closer win than any of us expected in real time.

KSU was awful most of the game but ASU was also making plays that made KSU look even worse. That’s also what winning teams do is they make plays and stymie their opponent.

That quick KSU TD drive, I think, was ASU lost focus, they didn’t make tackles like they had been all game long, KSU made a few plays. It felt to me like the play calls changed from the game plan up to that point.

OL is still a concern. I’m not sure I agree with your assessment of the DL although I readily admit they can be inconsistent at times.

I dunno… we lost the second half 14 - 3. K-State had more than a few chances for big, consequential plays and they simply didn’t execute. Their QB Johnson had an extremely bad game, and it wasn’t because our defense was putting him under constant pressure… he simply choked on a few critical downs.

I LOVE where this team is at and can’t believe we are playing next week for a Big 12 Championship Game berth!
But, let’s be real. There’s a reason why this team was picked to finish last in the Big 12 this season. We just don’t have the talent and the depth that other teams - including K-State have. But so far, that hasn’t seemed to matter much thanks to Dillingham and his coaching staff, Leavitt, Skattebo, Tyson and one or two guys on defense.
We lost Wodtley in the second half - he’s one of our most consistent d-lineman. Not sure if he’ll be ready come Saturday.
And Cam was nowhere near healthy, and we still pulled out the W. I hope another week of rehab and rest will have Cam closer to 100% this Saturday!

 

[AZ Native]

That was a poorly played second half. K-State played so bad and missed a ton of plays that better teams would make.
Cam is still hurt and I’m certain most guys wouldn’t have played tonight, but he’s such a beast….

Leavitt continues to impress. But both our d-line and o-line are a problem.

Tyson is a fantastic WR…

Who made them play bad? I’ll take the win and move on. No apologies.

I dunno… we lost the second half 14 - 3. K-State had more than a few chances for big, consequential plays and they simply didn’t execute. Their QB Johnson had an extremely bad game, and it wasn’t because our defense was putting him under constant pressure… he simply choked on a few critical downs.

I LOVE where this team is at and can’t believe we are playing next week for a Big 12 Championship Game berth!
But, let’s be real. There’s a reason why this team was picked to finish last in the Big 12 this season. We just don’t have the talent and the depth that other teams - including K-State have. But so far, that hasn’t seemed to matter much thanks to Dillingham and his coaching staff, Leavitt, Skattebo, Tyson and one or two guys on defense.
We lost Wodtley in the second half - he’s one of our most consistent d-lineman. Not sure if he’ll be ready come Saturday.
And Cam was nowhere near healthy, and we still pulled out the W. I hope another week of rehab and rest will have Cam closer to 100% this Saturday!

We didn’t lose the game. That was our goal, win the game. 82 is a good guy but he seems like a coach pointing out the negatives to keep his team motivated.

 

[Mainstreet]

I dunno… we lost the second half 14 - 3. K-State had more than a few chances for big, consequential plays and they simply didn’t execute. Their QB Johnson had an extremely bad game, and it wasn’t because our defense was putting him under constant pressure… he simply choked on a few critical downs.

I LOVE where this team is at and can’t believe we are playing next week for a Big 12 Championship Game berth!
But, let’s be real. There’s a reason why this team was picked to finish last in the Big 12 this season. We just don’t have the talent and the depth that other teams - including K-State have. But so far, that hasn’t seemed to matter much thanks to Dillingham and his coaching staff, Leavitt, Skattebo, Tyson and one or two guys on defense.
We lost Wodtley in the second half - he’s one of our most consistent d-lineman. Not sure if he’ll be ready come Saturday.
And Cam was nowhere near healthy, and we still pulled out the W. I hope another week of rehab and rest will have Cam closer to 100% this Saturday!

ASU won the 1st half and led the game 24-0 at one point. They won the game 24-14.

If the score was reversed we wouldn't be questioning Kansas State.

ASU has proved the prognosticators wrong. They were simply regurgitating last season's record.

The Sun Devils have an 8-2 record. That didn't happen by accident.

Also, ASU has an outstanding freshman quarterback, top running back and a quality receiver, plus loads of young talent for next season. Let's not diminish what they have done.

 

[82CardsGrad]

Who made them play bad? I’ll take the win and move on. No apologies.

We didn’t lose the game. That was our goal, win the game. 82 is a good guy but he seems like a coach pointing out the negatives to keep his team motivated.

I won’t continue a debate about why Johnson played so poorly. Likely, it was a combination of the Devils having some impact, coupled with a serious choke-job.

As I mentioned, ASU is almost always undermanned in every game they play.
So my concern level went way up in the second half as I was concerned our lack of talent and depth was rearing their ugly heads.
It would’ve been validating - at least for me, to have seen ASU score more than a FG in the second half, while at the same time not allowing K-Stare back into the game.

Anyway - I will of course take the W and as I said, I’m blown away that this team has a shot at playing for the Big-12 championship! Massive props to Dillingham and his staff, as well as this team who have clearly bought in and are playing with a serious chip on their shoulders!

 

[82CardsGrad]

ASU won the 1st half and led the game 24-0 at one point. They won the game 24-14.

If the score was reversed we wouldn't be questioning Kansas State.

ASU has proved the prognosticators wrong. They were simply regurgitating last season's record.

The Sun Devils have an 8-2 record. That didn't happen by accident.

Also, ASU has an outstanding freshman quarterback, top running back and a quality receiver, plus loads of young talent for next season. Let's not diminish what they have done.

I’m not diminishing what they’ve done at all! And yes, Leavitt, Skattebo and Tyson are studs! Hard to believe Leavitt is a true freshman!

And while they have a decent amount of young talent, ASU is not on par with other top teams in the Big-12 (yet!) with respect to the top-level talent and quality depth. Which of course makes their 8&2 record all the more amazing.

 

[Mainstreet]

I won’t continue a debate about why Johnson played so poorly. Likely, it was a combination of the Devils having some impact, coupled with a serious choke-job.

As I mentioned, ASU is almost always undermanned in every game they play.
So my concern level went way up in the second half as I was concerned our lack of talent and depth was rearing their ugly heads.
It would’ve been validating - at least for me, to have seen ASU score more than a FG in the second half, while at the same time not allowing K-Stare back into the game.

Anyway - I will of course take the W and as I said, I’m blown away that this team has a shot at playing for the Big-12 championship! Massive props to Dillingham and his staff, as well as this team who have clearly bought in and are playing with a serious chip on their shoulders!

I expected KSU would get their running game going. They are a good running team and set up the pass with the run. Have to give credit to the Sun Devil defense.

That crowd was quiet for over a half of the game for good reason. And without the Tyson fumble, it may not have even been as close as it was.

 

[Mainstreet]

I’m not diminishing what they’ve done at all! And yes, Leavitt, Skattebo and Tyson are studs! Hard to believe Leavitt is a true freshman!

And while they have a decent amount of young talent, ASU is not on par with other top teams in the Big-12 (yet!) with respect to the top-level talent and quality depth. Which of course makes their 8&2 record all the more amazing.

I absolutely loved your first paragraph.

If that second paragraph accidentally got deleted, I wouldn't say a word.

ASU should be a much better team next season if they can keep their top players, but NIL and the transfer portal are the new reality.

Every season should be considered individually, although Kenny Dillingham is laying a strong foundation for the future. This season is already a success.

 

[82CardsGrad]

I absolutely loved your first paragraph.

If that second paragraph accidentally got deleted, I wouldn't say a word.

ASU should be a much better team next season if they can keep their top players, but NIL and the transfer portal are the new reality.

Every season should be considered individually, although Kenny Dillingham is laying a strong foundation for the future. This season is already a success.

ASU has still not figured out the NIL game in ways that can create consistent, high-level success. It’s why Dillingham was literally begging the fans and boosters to get active in the NIL after the Oklahoma State win.

It wouldn’t surprise me at all to see Leavitt and Tyson leave next year, as much as it pains me to say that.

But for now, this is one epic ride to enjoy!