TEMPE, AZ (AZFamily) -- After fielding a few questions in the postgame press conference, Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo got up and left, telling the media, “Gonna go get some pizza.”

He definitely earned a few slices.

Skattebo rushed for 262 yards on Saturday, the second-highest single-game total in program history, in powering the Sun Devils to a 30-23 victory over Mississippi State.

“That’s the most fun I’ve had on a football field in a long time,” Skattebo said. “Bullying dudes, grown men that are 300 pounds, that’s fun to us.”

ASU ran out to a 30-3 lead midway through the third quarter, but Mississippi State managed to close it to a one-score game late in the fourth quarter. It was then that Skattebo and the the offensive line were able to run out the clock on the game’s final to seal the Sun Devils’ first-ever win over a SEC opponent and improve to 2-0 on the season.

“For us to get hit in the back in the mouth, and then have to get back up, that’s what I was proud of,” said ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham. “And we got up with a vengeance.”

The Activation

The Game Flow

In a repeat of last week’s season opening win over Wyoming , the Sun Devils wasted no jumping out to a lead.

After forcing a Bulldog three-and-out to open the game, the Sun Devil ground attack went to work. Skattebo and Leavitt each reeled off big runs, with Leavitt capping the drive with a 17-yard touchdown run.

“We all felt disrespected with (the Bulldog defense) in a 3-down front,” Skattebo said. “You can’t come in here and put five guys in the box and expect to stop six. We took that as disrespectful, and we rushed for over 300 yards.”

Another three-and-out followed for Mississippi State, with defensive tackle Jacob Kongaika notching a sack to end the drive. The same formula followed, with the rushing offense marching the Sun Devils down the field. However, a false start penalty by Max Iheanachor stalled the drive, forcing ASU to settle for a 27-yard field goal by Ian Hershey to extend the lead to 10-0.

Mississippi State finally showed signs of life on their third drive. Quarterback Blake Shapen—a one-time ASU commit—connected with Jordan Mosley for 27 yards to jumpstart the drive. The Bulldogs drove deep into ASU territory, but the Sun Devils made a late stand, forcing a short Kyle Ferrie field goal to get Mississippi State on the board.

ASU looked to answer back thanks again to the legs of Skattebo and Leavitt. After driving into Bulldog territory, a pair of Leavitt passes fell incomplete, but Hershey’s 47-yard field goal was good to regain a 10-point advantage.

The Bulldogs appeared to finally get a break with a 61-yard completion from Shapen to Mario Craver on third-and-9, but the play was called back for offensive pass interference. On the next snap, ASU defensive end Clayton Smith hit Shapen, forcing a fumble that C.J. Fite recovered and ran in for the Sun Devil touchdown.

“I saw the ball and just went and got it,” Fite said. “I just saw the ball, and I was close to the endzone, so I tried to stick it inside the pylon. I stared at the ref. He called touchdown. I got happy.”

Down 20-3, the Bulldogs used short passes from Shapen and a defensive pass interference penalty on Keith Abney to move into scoring range. Facing a fourth-and-1 from the Sun Devil 31-yard line, a quick screen was sniffed out by ASU safety Shamari Simmons, who raced over to make a tackle-for-loss and force a turnover on downs.

Skattebo then led the Sun Devils down the field, with four runs of over 10 yards. Leavitt then punched it in from one yard to end a dominant half with his Sun Devils leading 27-3.

“He has so much passion, and our guys feed off that passion,” Dillingham said of Skattebo. “He loves to compete. He’s the ultimate competitor.”

ASU kept the same script to open the second half. Over a 14-play drive, ASU ran the ball on all but one play. However, receiver Jordyn Tyson was called for a block in the back that derailed the drive’s momentum. Hershey’s third field goal of the game—this one from 47 yards—extended the lead to 30-3.

“(Hershey’s) kick at the beginning of the third quarter was crucial,” Dillingham said.

Perhaps more crucially, the drive ate up 8:27 of game time. Factoring in their final drive of the first half, the Sun Devils held the ball for nearly 14 consecutive minutes of game clock.

“That 14 minutes straight of our offense on the field, that’s the difference in the football game,” said Dillingham.

On the ensuing drive, Shapen and the Bulldogs marched steadily down the field with a mix of run and pass plays. Facing a fourth down from the Sun Devil 6-yard line, Keyvone Lee was able to punch it in for the Bulldog’s first touchdown of the night.

With some momentum, Mississippi State forced ASU’s first three-and-out on the night. They then moved into ASU territory where they faced a fourth-and-9 from the 25. Shapen’s pass fell incomplete, but ASU linebacker Keyshaun Elliott was called for a holding call, giving the Bulldogs a fresh set of downs. They didn’t need them all, as on the next play, Shapen found Davon Booth open for a 15-yard touchdown. Ferrie missed the extra point to make it 30-16.

“We got a little comfortable,” ASU center Leif Fautanu admitted. “We’re up 20-something points. By human nature, people get comfortable a little bit. In that phase of the game, we have to continue to lock back in.”

Things continued to look dire for the Devils as the quarter went on. Another Sun Devil punt quickly followed, and the Bulldogs were soon nearing midfield. That’s when Elliott and defensive end Elijah O’Neal made back-to-back sacks on Shapen to force a third-and-17. O’Neal then ended the threat by knocking Shapen’s pass down to force a Bulldog punt.

Clinging to a 14-point lead, ASU managed just a single first down before punting it away to Mississippi State. On the first play of the drive, Shapen hit Kevin Coleman with a short pass, and Coleman raced 80 yards for the touchdown.

Just like that, with 5:27 left, it was 30-23. Despite the wild swing in momentum, Skattebo felt confident that the offense could pick up a few first downs to ice the game.

“Going into that (possession), I didn’t think anybody was going to stop us, no matter who it was,” Skattebo said. “I put my belief in those guys, and I know I’m going to do my job behind them.”

An incomplete pass on first down gave the Bulldogs a key clock stoppage. But then Skattebo ran for eight yards. Then one. Facing a critical fourth-and-1 from their 34, Dillingham stayed aggressive.

“No hesitation,” Dillingham said of his decision. “Go get it.”

Skattebo needed one yard. He got five as the clock continued to tick down. Three plays later, on a third-and-5, he picked up 10. On the next play, after Mississippi State’s second timeout, he delivered the dagger.

“(The ASU offensive line) made a beautiful hole,” he said.

Skattebo took the ball, ran to the right side, and raced into the open field. Smartly, instead of running into the endzone for the score, he finished his 39-yard run by sliding at the 12-yard line to close the door on the Bulldogs.

Three kneel downs later, Skattebo was ringing ASU’s Victory Bell.

“We won the (expletive) football game,” said Skattebo. “I’m happy.”

The Critical Moment

Mississippi State had just closed a once-massive lead to just seven points. Five-and-a-half minutes remained in the game. ASU was reeling. It was gut-check time.

Before the drive, the offense met on the sidelines. They knew that their moment was here. The team leaders hammered home the message: This is the drive. This is it to put them away.

Dillingham showed confidence in his group with the decision to go for it on fourth down. And when Skattebo broke the 39-yard run to clinch it, he was pleased with the growth his playmaker had shown.

Last year against UCLA, Skattebo scored a late touchdown that gave the Bruins a chance to mount a comeback. On Saturday, he played it differently.

“(Skattebo) ran as far as he could, he could have scored a touchdown, and he slid,” said Dillingham. “That’s the growth that he had.”

The Offense

Late in the first half, Dillingham looked up and saw that the team had rushed for over 150 yards, with Skattebo already over the 100-yard mark.

Let’s keep doing that, please , he thought to himself. So he continued to lean on his rushing attack, and for the most part, it worked. ASU ran for 346 yards, the most since the Sun Devils had 375 against Oregon State in 2020. Through all those yards, it was Skattebo’s power and swagger that provided the spark.

“Blocking for (Skattebo) gives us the advantage,” Fautanu said. “All we got to do is get in the way, and he’ll do the rest. Especially in short yardage. He can run someone over and get the first down. It makes our job that much easier.”

Saturday provided the most glaring example of Skattebo’s offseason growth. After last season, Dillingham—who has put six running backs he’s coached into the NFL—told Skattebo that he is not yet a pro-caliber back. He challenged him to lose weight, get in better shape, improve his speed, and channel his emotions better.

Consider the message received.

“He’s done everything I’ve asked him,” Dillingham said. “Right now, that looked like a Sunday player.”

After a sterling performance in his first career start last week, Leavitt had an uneven showing against Mississippi State. He rushed for 68 yards and two touchdowns, but he was just 10-of-20 for 69 yards passing.

Dillingham took the blame after the game for leaning too far on the run at the expense of keeping his young quarterback in a rhythm.

“I probably got a little stubborn with (Offensive coordinator Marcus) Arroyo,” Dillingham said. “I probably put too many handcuffs on him in terms of, ‘I want to run the ball.’ I got to do a better job, because I feel like that’s why our offense stalled.”

Mississippi State also made some second-half adjustments, moving away from a three-man front to a larger personnel groups to stop the ASU ground game.

“They came out and made a couple of adjustments, brought a couple of pressures, played a couple of new coverages behind it that I got to see,” Leavitt said. “I have to get the ball to my playmakers and make protection checks.”

Despite the passing struggles, Leavitt came close to connecting on a few deep passes.

“We were super close to a couple of them,” said Leavitt. “Should have had them. A couple of pre-game jitters, had too much juice.”

Skattebo led the team with three catches for 35 yards, while ASU’s starting receiver trio of Jordyn Tyson, Melquan Stovall, and Xavier Guillory combined for five receptions for 30 yards.

The coaching staff knows that to continue their winning ways, greater balance will be needed. But tonight belonged to Skattebo.

“We want to be balanced like we were last week,” Dillingham said, “but at the end of the day, we were running the ball well.”

The Defense

For 42 minutes, the Sun Devil defense was dominant. They swarmed to the ball, kept up with the tempo of Mississippi State’s offense, and even scored a touchdown.

“The plan was to limit the explosives,” said Dillingham. “I felt like we had an advantage up front. Dominate up front, limit the explosives.”

In the last 18 minutes, the plan faltered. The Sun Devils surrendered consecutive touchdowns on 12- and 8-play drives, before getting gashed on Coleman’s 80-yard score.

Even with the late struggles, it was another step forward for a defense that played without several key players in their two-deep.

Elijah O’Neal, starting for the injured Prince Dorbah, registered a sack for the second straight week. Safety Myles “Ghost” Rowser led the way with 10 tackles. Five players had a pass breakup. The improved depth of the unit was on full display.

ASU held MSU to under 300 total yards, including just 24 on the ground. They notched three sacks and seven tackles for loss, and scored their third defensive touchdown of the season.

“We want to be the pitcher on defense. We don’t want be the batter,” Dillingham said. “We want to pitch. We want to be the aggressor. We want to throw the pitches.”

The Top 3

Here are three Sun Devil players who stood out against Mississippi State.

RB Cam Skattebo: When your name goes into the record book, you know you had a good night.

DB Shamari Simmons : The reigning team MVP played like it on Saturday. He made seven tackles, including a key fourth-down tackle for loss.

LB Keyshaun Elliott: The leader of the defense posted five tackles on the night, including a key sack in the second half.

The Question: How does this impact the direction of the rebuild?

ASU needed this.

“Even though it probably lost three months off my life, our team needed that,” Dillingham said. “We needed to get hit in the face. We needed to get back up.”

Mississippi State is not among the best teams in the SEC. But they are a team with SEC talent, providing the Sun Devils a key early-season test. For the second week in a row, ASU came out on fire and built up a big lead.

But unlike last week, there was no cruising to a win. Saturday’s adversity, and they way the Sun Devils managed to overcome it, may mean more in the long-term rebuild of the program than the notch in the win column.

“You have to be able to handle the lows better,” said Dillingham. “I got to handle the lows better. Our team has to handle the lows better. But the fact that we could get out of the low was something that we couldn’t do last year. Winning games is all about managing the highs and the lows and the waves of the game. The fact that we had too many lows in the middle, but the fact that we figured it out was something that we needed.”

With a daunting slate of a Big 12 Conference schedule looming, and improved prospects of a bowl berth, this young ASU team needed to learn how to deal with setbacks. More often than not, those hard lessons come with a loss. To get that experience while also notching a Power 4 win was an encouraging step.

“We’re going to be in some dogfights,” Dillingham said. “We gotta be able to go back-and-forth with counterpunches, and I think today we had to punch back.”

The Next Step

It’s a short week for the Devils. ASU hits the road for the first time this season for a road game against Texas State.

The Bobcats improved to 2-0 on the season with a decisive 49-7 win over UTSA on Saturday.

The Extra Points