UNLV shocks ASU in OT

No that’s not a typo. Arizona State stumbled, bumbled and stunk up the joint at Sun Devil Stadium on Saturday night and UNLV walked away with a 23-20 overtime upset win.

Malo Taumua blocked a 35-yard field goal attempt by Thomas Weber in overtime to lift UNLV to the win. The Rebels took the lead in o.t. when Kyle Watson kicked a 20-yard field goal on UNLV’s first possession. Taumua absolutely pancaked Adam Tello to break through the line and make the play. That was the difference in the ballgame. UNLV’s players made plays when they counted, like Phillip Payne’s one-handed catch in the end zone with :18 left. ASU’s players didn’t. On the Rebels’ possession in overtime, quarterback Omar Clayton threw a pass to the goal line which was deflected twice, and a handful of ASU players had a chance to knock it down or intercept it. Instead, Ryan Wolfe made a catch in traffic.

The Sun Devils, knowing they needed a touchdown to win in overtime, were very cautious with their play calling. ASU ran on first and second down, threw on third down, and Rudy Carpenter was flushed out of the pocket and launched the ball out of the back of the endzone. They settled for a 35-yard field goal attempt, and we know how that turned out. In fact, the Sun Devils, who were nearly unstoppable in their passing game through the first two weeks of the season, and average at best running the football. Saturday night, without starting tailback Keegan Herring, the Devils persistently tried to establish their running game. ASU ran the ball 36 times, and only threw it 23 times. I’m all for trying to crank up your running game against inferior talent as a glorified practice. But when it becomes evident that the running game just isn’t working, the focus needs to shift to winning the football game. The quarterback and the receiving corps are the strengths of this football team, not the 2nd and 3rd string tailbacks and offensive line. That became a lot more evident tonight.

The Sun Devils were favored by 24 points in this ballgame, against a team that has 6 wins in the last 3 years combined. ASU can tip their caps to UNLV and give them all the credit for winning this ball game. UNLV deserves credit. They played hard, and actually made plays. But in reality, the Sun Devils should have won this game by 4 touchdowns. They have superior talent at every position.

Everyone will say that the Sun Devils were looking past UNLV, and ahead to Georgia. Of course everyone in maroon and gold will deny that. So that leaves the other option–ASU just isn’t that good.

If anyone was looking ahead to Georgia, be careful what you wish for. The Bulldogs are coming to town, and ASU is staring a 2-2 record right in the face.

This is the worst ASU loss on the gridiron since 1999, when New Mexico State embarassed ASU 35-7 at Sun Devil Stadium. The Devils finished 6-6 that season.

And by the way, has their ever been a worse weekend in football for the Pac-10? Washington State blown out by Baylor, UCLA utterly destroyed by BYU, Arizona coming down to earth at New Mexico, Cal losing to a mediocre Maryland team, Oklahoma toying with Washington, and Arizona State losing to a bad UNLV team. The critics appear to be right. The Pac-10 is actually the Pac-1. The conference championship is nothing more than a formality at this point.

So ASU may still finish 2nd or 3rd in the conference. What I’m saying is that really doesn’t mean that much. Not this year.

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  • http://www.echofromthebuttes.com/ Echo from the Buttes

    That was easily one of the five or so most stunning losses in Arizona State’s admittedly breif football history. We wrote extensively about it at Echo from the Buttes the last couple days.

    http://www.echofromthebuttes.com

  • RebCam

    “But in reality, the Sun Devils should have won this game by 4 touchdowns. They have superior talent at every position.”,….. “Arizona State losing to a bad UNLV team.”

    Superior talent? You mean like WR Philip Payne who smacked your supposed best (CB) defensive player twice for touchdowns, including that awesome catch to tie the game. Or what about your beloved Carpenter who threw for the same amount of touchdowns as Clayton but more interceptions and didn’t lead his team down the field twice during crunch time. As a matter of fact, I didn’t see anyone on the field from ASU that impressed me a bit.

    And when you say that UNLV is bad, what you mean to say is that they WERE bad in previous seasons and that in fact you are not as good as you or ESPN say/think you are.

  • http://azsportshub.com Vince Marotta

    I guess you missed this part…”ASU can tip their caps to UNLV and give them all the credit for winning this ball game. UNLV deserves credit. They played hard, and actually made plays.”

    Better players end up at better programs. Players, for the most part, end up at football programs like UNLV because they aren’t recruited by the larger schools from power conferences. Payne is a good player who made a fantastic play. He deserves all the credit in the world. The corner he beat, Omar Boldin, has been mentioned as a potential star, but he’s not there yet, as evidenced by his performance on Saturday, and his collection of pass interference calls against Stanford.

    I’m not buying the fact that ASU overlooked UNLV. I just don’t think they are that good. You’re exactly right about that.

    I wish UNLV luck. Maybe they have turned the corner. It would look better for ASU if the Rebels don’t return to their previous form.