ASU closes gap in loss vs. Houston, has to lean on Jeff Sims with Sam Leavitt sidelined

Once down 24-0, Arizona State without quarterback Sam Leavitt for stretches made it a ball game against Houston in the fourth quarter on Saturday night but fell 24-16.

Leavitt led the Sun Devils’ first scoring drive at the beginning of the fourth but when sidelined like he was briefly in the opening quarter, backup Jeff Sims marched down the field 70 yards and threw his first passing touchdown since the 2023 season opener when he was the Nebraska starter.

It came after kicker Jesus Gomez made his first of three attempts on the day from 47 yards out.

However, with the loss that snapped ASU’s 10-game home winning streak, the Sun Devils (5-3, 3-2 Big 12) picked up their second Big 12 loss. With BYU and Cincinnati remaining undefeated with wins over Iowa State and Baylor, respectively, teams with two conferences losses will have a uphill battle and require some help for a shot at making the Big 12 Championship game in early December.

The game at Mountain America Stadium was one of miscues and time of possession, as ASU committed 12 penalties and only had the football for 22:58, unable to sustain any drives until the final 15 minutes.

With just over two minutes left, Arizona State had the ball and one timeout but could not advance it more than seven yards after beginning at its over four-yard line. The eventual nail-in-the-coffin, fourth down play was reviewed for targeting with Derek Eusebio as the intended man, but the ruling didn’t come to pass.

Leavitt finished Saturday 18-of-35 passing for 270 yards and a touchdown whereas Sims stepped in for a 6-of-11 passing performance good enough for 58 yards and a touchdown. Sims also added 11 yards on three rushes.

ASU coach Kenny Dillingham said postgame that Leavitt got imaging done when he first exited in the opening quarter and “tweaked” something in the fourth.

“We sent him in there, got some imaging. He wanted to go back in, and I said ‘No, you’re going to get imaging before you go back in. I don’t care how you feel,'” Dillingham said. “And then he came back and at the end he tweaked himself again, so we held him out.”

Wide receiver Malik McClain, in Jordyn Tyson’s absence, got the bulk of the work with seven receptions and 159 yards.

Both of the Arizona State touchdowns, however, were hauled in by tight ends, as Cameron Harpole got his first of the season and his career and Chamon Metayer had one score on his four catches for 55 yards.

ASU will travel to Iowa State (5-3, 2-3 Big 12) on Saturday with kickoff time TBD.

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