Cam Skattebo cites croissant for puke-and-rally, says TD pass was called ‘Philly Special’
Jan 2, 2025, 12:12 PM
Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo initially said he felt “sloshy” before he threw up midgame in the Sun Devils’ Peach Bowl loss.
On The Dan Patrick Show Thursday, he gave a little more insight into his puke-and-rally, blaming a croissant breakfast sandwich for tripping him up before the Texas Longhorns couldn’t.
“I think I was drinking a little too much water and Powerade at the same time,” Skattebo said. “I think I ate something bad in the morning. I had a croissant breakfast sandwich and I don’t think it went down very well.
“I wasn’t feeling too good leading up to the game until I threw up. I threw up and I felt like a completely different person. After that throw-up, the game switched for me and how I was playing. It was completely different for me. It was nice. I looked down, took a deep breath, puked, took another deep breath, took another deep breath.”
It was initially a grind for Skattebo to get rolling in the game, something that had been on the radar for declaring himself the best running back in the country heading into the matchup with Texas.
ESPN reported that Skattebo threw up multiple times on the sidelines, and that’s when things began to turn in the game.
Turn it did.
Cam Skattebo hit the gas after a puke-and-rally in the first half
A day after the Sun Devils fell 39-31 in double overtime, Skattebo also revealed his 42-yard touchdown pass to receiver Malik McClain was initially meant to be a toss-back to quarterback Sam Leavitt.
The play-call was a nod to the Philadelphia Eagles’ “Philly Special” catch by quarterback Nick Foles in Super Bowl LII.
“It was actually supposed to be a throw-back to the quarterback,” Skattebo told Patrick. “I checked my receiver to a fade ball and I seen him went inside. Sam told me, ‘The drive before, somebody rolled up on my ankle. I can’t really run, so you’re going to have to make something happen.
“The Philly Special was called. I looked at my receiver and it was one-on-one out there. I knew as soon as I caught the ball from the toss that safety was going to come flying down because he was flying down all game.”
ASU trailed 24-8 with 6:40 left in the game when safety Michael Taaffe shot into the second level attempting to stop the run after the pitch by Leavitt to Skattebo.
It left McClain in single coverage with a corner behind him and without a body in front of him, allowing Skattebo to connect despite an underthrown ball.
CAM SKATTEBO WITH THE 42-YARD TD PASS ON FOURTH DOWN 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/CksEs2NL4K
— ESPN (@espn) January 1, 2025
“As soon as I seen that guy one-on-one, I knew we had the better athlete in that receiver,” Skattebo said. “(McClain) hasn’t played all season but I knew what he was about … As soon as I seen him went inside, I knew I had to put it inside of him. It was a little underthrown but I guess I put it in a spot where only he could get it.”
Skattebo finished the game accounting for 20 points with two rushing touchdowns, one passing touchdown and a two-point conversion.
He piled up 143 rushing yards on 30 carries with eight catches for 99 more yards to lead ASU in that department as well.
Skattebo became the only football player this century in FBS, FCS or the NFL to record at least 100 rushing yards, 75 receiving yards, with a passing touchdown and two-point conversion in a game, according to OptaSTATS. He is the first player in FBS to hit more than 1,500 rushing yards to go with 500 receiving yards since Christian McCaffrey in 2015.
