Arizona State football recovers onside kick late in 1st half, keeps BYU at bay

Already with a 14-0 advantage, Kenny Dillingham called a gutsy onside kick and Arizona State football recovered with just over two minutes left in the first half of a Big 12 Championship elimination game on Saturday.

An unsuspecting BYU (9-1) hands team watched a squib kick from Parker Lewis redirect off of their legs and the Sun Devils pounced on the ball. Freshman Plas Johnson came out of a dog pile at midfield with the football for the team’s second takeaway of the critical conference matchup.

SNEAKY SNEAKY DEVILS 🔱

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For a squad that has struggled mightily in the kicking game, Dillingham displayed great trust in the Lewis. The senior nailed all three PATs in the opening half.

“The way (BYU) angled their dude, we said let’s squib it, but we also try to hit him on the way to the squib,” Dillingham explained to reporters after the game. “So, if it hits him, we have a chance to recover it, but if we don’t hit him, we cover the ball around the 30-35-yard line. It was a really low-risk onside kick. It’s like, hey, if it works, wahoo. If it doesn’t work, they get the ball at the 32, 35.”

The proceeding drive looked very similar to the one prior, as Arizona State (8-2) leaned on the smash-mouth running style of Cam Skattebo. The tailback reeled off four carries for 35 yards, capping it off with an explosive 23-yard touchdown run. After breaking through the line of scrimmage, Skattebo saw nothing but green grass on his way to his third score.

The senior running back found the end zone for the 21st time this season, 14 being rushing touchdowns.

HIM HIM HIM 😈

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Going into the break against the No. 14 Cougars, the Sun Devils were outscoring opponents 73-16 in “the middle eight,” or the last four minutes of the first half and first four of the second half.

The Sun Devils will travel to Tucson for the Territorial Cup against Arizona on Nov. 30 at 1:30 p.m. Watch the TV broadcast on FOX and listen live on 98.7, ArizonaSports.com or the Arizona Sports app.

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