Arizona State Football Suddenly Dangerous In Pac-12 Picture

After four rocky games and what seemed like a disaster of a season, the Arizona State Sun Devils woke up in a very big way. It took five games, but the Sun Devils were able to finally put it all together and complete something they hadn’t done in 13 seasons: beat a top-10 opponent on the road. They did just that as the Sun Devils stormed into Pasadena and defeated the UCLA Bruins in a very powerful statement game.

The team fought adversity and themselves and held on to defeat the No. 7 ranked Bruins in the Rose Bowl 38-23 to give them their first Pac-12 win of the season, and more importantly keeping themselves in the picture for a Pac-12 championship.

The Bruins had been electric to start the season and were even coming off a road victory where they demolished the University of Arizona Wildcats 56-30. A week prior, the Sun Devils were also handed a brutal defeat at home in which they surrendered 42 points to the USC Trojans. The same Sun Devils that allowed 10 of 16 third down conversions to the Trojans held the Bruins to 3-14 and forced nine punts.

They stuffed the run and held Paul Perkins, one of the country’s premier backs, to only 63 yards. They swarmed quarterback Josh Rosen and forced an early safety, and after a perfect punt, forced another in the fourth quarter to nearly seal the game.

Finally, the Sun Devils put together a complete game. The offense pounded the Bruins for 465 total yards, led by running back Demario Richard’s 134 all-purpose yards. Mike Bercovici looked poised and determined. He even kept the ball on QB reads and even scampered for a 34-yard score, the longest touchdown run of the season for the Sun Devils.

D.J. Foster finally was able to do what he’s made to do and score touchdowns and Kalen Ballage, with a lot of help from the monsters on the offensive line, moonwalked into the endzone to officially put to the Bruins to bed. (If you haven’t seen the play, look it up. It’s unlike any touchdown run I’ve ever seen).

There were still miscues, of course. Too many dropped passes and the lack of red zone touchdowns nearly let the Bruins back into the ball game. Another Zane Gonzalez missed field goal almost came back to bite. The secondary was even a little sketchy at times, allowing for a few big touchdowns. But what’s important is that the Devils didn’t give up.

They overcame the struggles and fought off adversity, giving them their biggest win of the season. With the College Football Playoffs most likely out of reach, this win was a staple to move back into the Pa-12 South picture. Still, with tough matches against the Oregon Ducks and Wildcats at home, along with what should be a ferocious battle on the road against the surging Utah Utes, the Sun Devils needed a massive boost. They got it in a big way.