BYU's 2nd loss to No. 21 Arizona State inches Big 12 title race towards potential chaos

TEMPE, Ariz. — After opening the 2024 season 9-0, Mountain America Stadium was where BYU football's College Football Playoff bid likely Skatte-burst.

Cam Skattebo ran for 143 yards and three touchdowns, and Sam Leavitt threw for 247 yards and a score as No. 21 Arizona State handed No. 14 BYU a second-straight loss, a 28-23 result, in front of a sold-out crowd of 55,400 fans at the ASU campus stadium.

Tyson Jordyn added 125 receiving yards for Arizona State (9-2, 6-2 Big 12), the team picked No. 16 in the Big 12 preseason media poll that gave itself a key leg up for the conference championship game in Arlington, Texas.

Jake Retzlaff threw for 297 yards and a touchdown with two interceptions, and Keelan Marion ran for two scores to lead BYU (9-2, 6-2 Big 12).

But even after all that, Retzlaff had a chance.

That's because Leavitt turned the ball over on downs on fourth-and-49 from the BYU 49-yard line, and after a 15-minute delay due to a premature field storming by the Arizona State student section, the Cougars got the ball back with one second on the clock for a Hail Mary attempt.

Retzlaff connected with Chase Roberts, but the redshirt junior pass catcher out of American Fork had to come back on his route and ended up about 3 yards short of the end zone — and lying on top of two Sun Devil defenders as throngs of fans sprinted onto the field for a second time while stadium security and local police tried to contain it.

"It was wild," said Roberts, who caught five passes for 59 yards but was not credited with a catch on the final play before the officials blew it dead. "Wish I was about 4 yards further to get in the end zone. Unfortunately, we just came up short. It all just goes back to the slow start for the offense.

"If we had started faster and played like we did in the second half, we could have blown this team out. It's unfortunate, but we'll come out with some fire next week against Houston — and hopefully see these guys in the Big 12 championship."

Darius Lassiter led BYU with five catches for 103 yards.

Arizona State won its fourth straight game to improve to its best record since 2014 and could be knocking on the door of a Big 12 title game appearance — and potential College Football Playoff berth, with a win at AT&T Stadium — with a Territorial Cup win next week over in-state rival Arizona.

That's a clean scenario for the Sun Devils. But because of imbalanced scheduling in the 16-team Big 12 and tiebreakers, that may not be the case.

If BYU, Arizona State, Colorado — which lost 37-21 to unranked Kansas — and No. 22 Iowa State all win next week, then all four teams will be tied atop the league standings with two losses (if Iowa State beats Utah).

In a situation that includes a four-way tie at 7-2, Arizona State would face Iowa State in Arlington, Texas, the Big 12 said Saturday night. The Sun Devils would get the top seeding for being 4-0 vs. common opponents, while Iowa State would beat out BYU with a stronger conference strength-of-schedule.

Of course, that all changes if one, two or more teams lose in the regular-season finale.

"All I know is we have two games left, for sure," BYU coach Kalani Sitake said. "How many games other than that, I don't know. ... But we've got to win that one next week at home (against Houston) for our seniors. There's still a lot more to play for."

Skattebo ran the ball on seven of Arizona State's first 10 plays, including a 3-yard touchdown on the opening drive, and virtually didn't stop running until he scored his second touchdown from 4 yards out to give the Sun Devils a 14-0 lead with 4:29 left in the half.

Adding insult to injury, Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham reached into his bag and called an onside kick after the Sun Devils went up 14-0.

Parker Lewis, who famously can't lose, executed the 15-yard squib to perfection, and the Sun Devils cruised 50 yards on six plays before Skattebo broke a tackle and danced into the end zone for his third score.

BYU mustered just 114 yards of offense in the first half, as Arizona State held the Cougars to 25 rushing yards before Will Ferrin's 49-yard field goal to lead 21-3 at halftime.

Leavitt, the son of former BYU defensive back Jared Leavitt who grew up a BYU fan and spent a year at Pleasant Grove High before playing collegiately at Michigan State, threw for just 96 yards in the first half, with five of his six completions going to Tyson for 81 yards.

But neither needed to do much more. The first half belonged to Skattebo, who paced the Sun Devils' 112-25 yard rushing advantage that may have put him in pole position for the Doak Walker Award if Boise State's Ashton Jeanty didn't exist.

BYU outscored the Sun Devils 14-7 in the third quarter, including Marion's 10-yard touchdown run and Jake Retzlaff's 21-yard strike to Jojo Phillips that cut the deficit to 28-17.

Mata'ava Ta'ase sprung Marion's second touchdown for a 1-yard score on a jet sweep to pull the Cougars within 28-23 with 8:44 remaining.

But the visitors could get no closer, and now must rely on a win over Houston and a loss by either Arizona State or Iowa State to either Utah or Kansas State (in the final week of the regular season) to earn a spot in the conference title game.

"Obviously, it hurts. You had chances to win, and it sucks for us an offense to play the first half that way," BYU center Connor Pay said. "We're going to need some chips to fall for us. But in a very real way, we're still in the hunt for a bid for the conference championship game. We've got to take care against Houston and let the chips fall where they may."

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