Texas holds on, tops Arizona State in 2OT thriller: ‘Our fight was pretty incredible’

Laken Litman

College Football & Soccer Analyst

There was plenty of chatter heading into this game. Arizona State players weren’t afraid to sound off in the days leading up to the matchup, with quarterback Sam Leavitt saying he wanted to prove he was a better quarterback than Quinn Ewers and running back Cam Skattebo saying nobody could stop him.

For most of the day, they were right. Leavitt and Skattebo put together a tough and scrappy performance, but in the end, Texas prevailed with a thrilling 39-31 double-overtime win in the Peach Bowl on New Year’s Day. Now the Longhorns will move on to the College Football Playoff semifinals, where they will face Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl on Jan. 10.

Despite the win, Texas struggled to run the ball against the Sun Devils, something they did so successfully against Clemson in the opening round of the CFP. The Longhorns managed just 53 yards on the ground vs. ASU, their third-worst rushing total this season. Ewers was up and down, making several jaw-dropping throws, but also some questionable ones.

Texas has struggled with putting opponents away this season, which plagued the Longhorns again in this game. The Horns squandered a 24-8 lead with 10:17 remaining, and at one point, Arizona State scored 16 unanswered points to force overtime. Texas had a chance to win in regulation with a walk-off field goal, but Bert Auburn’s 38-yard attempt hit the left upright as time expired.

The Sun Devils scored first in overtime when a Leavitt 16-yard scramble was followed by a bulldozing touchdown run from Skattebo. Ewers leveled the score with a 28-yard dart to receiver Matthew Golden, and then Texas took the lead on the next possession when Ewers hit tight end Gunnar Helm on the first play and Golden made the two-point conversion. Arizona State had to score a touchdown on its next drive, but Leavitt’s pass was intercepted by Andrew Mukuba to end the game.

“What a swing of emotions throughout this entire game,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian told the broadcast after the final whistle. “One thing that’s been true about our team all year has been resiliency. We continue to fight back, regardless of what odds we’re up against. Some great plays there in overtime.

“We stubbed our toe a little. We need to play better football than we played today. But surely, our fight was pretty incredible.”

Here are several takeaways from Texas’ win over Arizona State:

Early difference

After Arizona State opened the game with a 12-play drive that ended in a field goal, Texas responded by showing off its speed and explosiveness. Ewers connected with Golden – who led all receivers with 149 yards and a touchdown – for 54 yards and then found DeAndre Moore for a 23-yard touchdown pass on the next play to take a quick 7-3 lead. The Longhorns’ defense forced ASU to go three-and-out on the next possession and then Silas Bolden took a punt 75 yards to the house.

Texas scored 14 points in 66 seconds on just two offensive plays.

The whirlwind start stunned the Sun Devils. Leavitt was getting visibly frustrated with his teammates and TV cameras caught players jawing at each other. After Skattebo was stopped on fourth-and-2 to start the second quarter, the running back threw his helmet in anger on the sideline.

However, the vibe changed coming out of halftime as Arizona State settled down. The Sun Devils found some confidence, but initially struggled to score points as Texas’ top-rated defense made countless plays, including its third goal-line stand in four games in the third quarter. The Sun Devils found a way to come back with a fake punt on fourth down and heroics from Skattebo, which ultimately forced overtime.

Plays of the game

After a slow start, Skattebo provided a spark in the fourth quarter.

Texas took a 24-8 lead on a touchdown run to start the fourth quarter, but everything changed on the next drive. Facing fourth-and-2 from the UT 42-yard line, Skattebo took a pitch from Leavitt and heaved a 42-yard touchdown pass to Malik McClain, which was followed by a successful two-point conversion.

Ewers was intercepted on the next drive, and when ASU got the ball back, Leavitt threw a 62-yard bomb to Skattebo. The Sun Devils found themselves on the 8-yard line thanks to a Texas penalty, and then three plays later, Skattebo rushed up the middle for a touchdown and then tied the game 24-24 with a two-point conversion.

Key stat

How effective was Skattebo? Between running, catching and passing, the Sun Devils’ senior running back accounted for 284 yards, which was equivalent to 75% of Texas’ total offensive output (375 yards) in the game.

Even in the loss, perhaps Skattebo was right when he said before the game that “there’s nobody who can stop me.” He played the majority of snaps and, according to the broadcast, at one point he was “vomiting profusely” on the sideline, presumably due to exhaustion.

But he rallied in a massive way and Arizona State wouldn’t have had a chance without him.

What’s next for Texas?

The Longhorns will face Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl on Jan. 10. The Buckeyes defeated Oregon, 41-21, in the Rose Bowl.

Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of “Strong Like a Woman,” published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her at @LakenLitman.

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