ASU’s Jake Fette unable to complete comeback in first start as Bear Bachmeier saves BYU late

Arizona State had BYU on the ropes in Provo Saturday, but the Cougars got a trio of clutch plays from quarterback Bear Bachmeier to hand the Sun Devils a 27-20 loss.

ASU trailed 17-3 at the half following a rash of missed opportunities on offense, but wasted no time flipping the script after halftime.

The defense nailed down a three-and-out before a 13-play, 81-yard scoring drive that culminated in Jake Fette’s first career touchdown pass, a 20-yard toss to Omarion Miller on third-and-2.

ASU (4-4, 2-3 in Big 12) kept the pressure on defensively, as linebacker Owen Long punched out a would-be first down for a takeaway, setting the Sun Devils up in BYU (7-1, 4-1) territory. What followed was perhaps the grittiest drive ASU has had on offense this season.

It took the Sun Devils 12 plays to go 39 yards for the score, and two of the plays bordered on unbelievable.

When facing third-and-10, Fette narrowly scrambled out of two sacks and tip-toed the sideline before laying a hit on BYU star linebacker Isaiah Glasker. The ASU sideline couldn’t get enough of the freshman quarterback fighting for yards.

QB JAKE FETTE JUST HIT STICK THE LINEBACKER @ASUFootball pic.twitter.com/9V0tssLegM

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) October 31, 2026

On a fourth-and-2 look a handful of plays later, Fette’s pass was tipped up at the line, but wide receiver Derek Eusebio snagged it just before it hit the ground.

Just a beautiful catch right here pic.twitter.com/QhMhoug5B1

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) October 31, 2026

The Sun Devils were also bailed out by a defensive pass interference when it was third-and-12 inside the red zone, which set up Fette’s second touchdown pass two plays later to tie the game at 17 late in the third quarter.

The closest ASU got to completing the comeback was reaching midfield while down 20-17 with just over eight minutes to go.

Facing fourth-and-4, head coach Kenny Dillingham elected to play the field position game. Punter Nick McLarty gave it a good boot, and freshman Daquwan Dunn downed the ball inside the five-yard line.

That was when Bachmeier gave BYU exactly what it needed, as the drive included:

• Two-yard QB keeper on fourth-and-1
• 53-yard deep pass to get from own 16 to ASU’s 31
• Five-yard completion on fourth-and-4 from ASU’s six

BYU capitalized with a one-yard rushing touchdown that gave the Cougars a 27-17 lead with just over two minutes remaining.

As a last-ditch effort to provide a spark, ASU tried some trickery on the ensuing kick return with one returner throwing it across the end zone to another. It didn’t have much of an impact, as primary kick returner Jaren Hamilton dropped the initial throw across.

The Sun Devils quickly scrambled up the field for a 44-yard field goal to pull within a touchdown with 57 seconds remaining and in need of a converted onside kick. The Cougars recovered and chewed the final seconds.

The game fittingly ended with Bachmeier wasting the final seconds before throwing the ball sky high, eerily similar to how ASU won the matchup in 2024.

It would’ve been ASU’s first time coming back to win after being down at least 14 points since its 2018 win over Arizona. Fette had completed a comeback win in his first FBS action last week against Kansas State, winning 28-17 after entering down 17-14.

Fette was the 10th starting quarterback in the Dillingham era dating to 2023, which is tied with UCF for the most over that span. That includes games where running back Cam Skattebo and tight end Jalin Conyers started at quarterback.

Saturday also marked the first time in program history that ASU started true freshmen at both quarterback and running back, with Cardae Mack alongside Fette.

Mack had 123 rushing yards on 23 carries (averaging 5.3 yards per rush) for his second straight game with at least 100 rushing yards and third in his last four games. Fette was 22 of 42 for 166 yards and two touchdowns. He gained 20 yards on three rushes but was sacked six times.

ASU notably held BYU to just 1.6 yards per carry on 30 rushes, but Bachmeier’s heroic day with 236 yards on 63% passing proved to be the difference.

ASU had early chances it didn’t capitalize on

Mack had it going early, averaging seven yards per carry across 10 first-quarter rushes. However, ASU went away from him at a critical moment. After working into the red zone, a penalty when the Cougars blocked an ASU field goal gave the Sun Devils a second chance with a new set of downs from the four-yard line.

Offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo called back-to-back fade plays to Omarion Miller in the back left corner of the end zone that weren’t completed before Fette was wrangled in the backfield on third down. Mack did not touch the ball across the set of downs.

ASU salvaged the opportunity with a field goal to make it 7-3.

Fette had a freshman moment on the ensuing drive, as he threw the ball away while escaping pressure but did not get the ball to the line of scrimmage. The intentional-grounding penalty set up third-and-17, and he was sacked to bring up fourth down.

The offense continued to look sloppy for the rest of the half, as BYU had six sacks in just the opening 30 minutes for its most sacks in a game since 2015.

That included a strip sack on Fette’s first dropback of the game, setting up a six-play, 29-yard scoring drive for BYU with a short field on its first offensive possession.

The Sun Devils had another opportunity late in the half when Montana Warren intercepted Bachmeier, but the offensive drive went just 15 yards in five plays.

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