ASU football forced open the Big 12 title game window with win at Iowa State
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Following Arizona State’s 24-16 loss to Houston on Oct. 25, almost all hope for a return trip to the Big 12 championship game seemed gone. The Sun Devils had two conference losses and a slew of teams ahead of them.
A few days later, on Halloween, when coach Kenny Dillingham broke the news that starting quarterback Sam Leavitt would be out for the season, any remaining optimism was seemingly dashed.
Then, Leavitt’s backup, Jeff Sims, delivered a legacy performance, breaking the single-game school record for rushing yards by a quarterback with 228 in a dramatic 24-19 win at Iowa State on Nov. 1. Sims’ jersey is already in the ASU Hall of Fame, and it’s a reason the Sun Devils still have a chance to go back to Arlington, Texas.
“I love the resilience of these guys to bounce back and fight back,” Dillingham said at his media availability on Nov. 3. “When the glass is empty, we fill it back up. Hopefully, we just don’t empty it out again, because we’re good at doing both.”
At 6-3 overall and 4-2 in the conference, Arizona State is essentially at the same spot as it was last season (6-2, 3-2).
BYU currently leads the conference at 5-0. Texas Tech is No. 2 at 5-1, Cincinnati is No. 3 at 5-1, Houston is No. 4 at 5-1 and Utah is just ahead of ASU at No. 5 at 4-2.
While it’s narrow, there’s a path for the Sun Devils — if they win out against West Virginia, Colorado and Arizona to finish with a 7-2 conference record. But a spot in the title game is also contingent on other teams.
Like Dillingham said last year when asked about the Big 12 tiebreakers:
“I have no clue. Somebody was telling me if we win and somebody else loses and then like ranch dressing falls on a wing and I don’t really know. Just play the very best you can play, prepare the very best you can prepare. I told (the) guys last week in another leadership council meeting, ‘Don’t get lost in the sauce.’ Just be the very best we can be over and over again.”
Without getting too deep into the wacky world of tiebreakers, here’s how it could work out.
- BYU and Texas Tech play each other Nov. 8, with ESPN’s “College GameDay” on campus. Because ASU would hold a tiebreaker over Texas Tech due to its head-to-head win, another loss for the Red Raiders would improve the Sun Devils’ chances (but would also almost guarantee BYU makes the title game). Texas Tech has two winnable games left — UCF and at West Virginia — putting it at 7-2 after a loss to BYU.
- BYU finishes with TCU, at Cincinnati and UCF. TCU and Cincinnati will be tough games, but the Cougars are likely to finish 7-1. But dropping two of these games would then create a logjam at the top, and tiebreakers would be in play.
- Cincinnati also has a tough schedule, ending with Arizona, BYU and at TCU. Cincinnati could also end the season at 7-2, creating another tiebreaker scenario. But ASU has a better strength of schedule. A third conference loss would drop Cincinnati out.
- Houston plays at UCF, TCU and at Baylor. One more loss (6-3) would drop it out as well, after falling to West Virginia following its upset win over ASU.
- Utah is the team that could keep ASU out with its head-to-head win if the Utes also win out. Utah has games at Baylor, Kansas State and at Kansas. One more loss (6-3) would also drop it out.
While there’s a lot that needs to happen, the Big 12 has shown this season that any team can win any week.
As Lloyd Christmas would say, “So you’re telling me there’s a chance.”
Logan Stanley is a sports reporter with The Arizona Republic who primarily focuses on high school, college and Olympic sports. To suggest ideas for human-interest stories and other news, reach out to Stanley at logan.stanley@gannett.com or 707-293-7650. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter: @LSscribe.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona State football has a shot at Big 12 title game
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