ARLINGTON, Texas — No. 15 Arizona State made its case for a top-four seed within the College Football Playoff after a 45-19 domination of No. 16 Iowa State to say its first Big 12 championship.
The 11-2 Sun Devils have been projected as a No. 12 seed after final week’s rankings with Boise State, which gained the Mountain West on Friday evening, projected at No. 4. The prime 4 seeds are required to be convention champions. As the highest Group of 5 qualifier, the Broncos would preserve that No. 4 seeding in the event that they ranked increased than the Big 12’s champion within the last CFP rankings.
After the sport, ASU coach Kenny Dillingham stated the precedent the CFP choice committee made final 12 months with Florida State after Jordan Travis’ harm means Arizona State needs to be ranked increased. One of ASU’s two losses got here this 12 months at Cincinnati on Oct. 19 when beginning quarterback Sam Leavitt was out with an harm (the Sun Devils’ different loss was a 30-22 loss at Texas Tech of their first Big 12 recreation).
“Last 12 months they left a crew out due to a quarterback,” Dillingham stated. “We’re 11-1 with our beginning quarterback, having beat 4 ranked groups, having gained the Big 12 championship. So I do suppose as a result of we have made a typical that the quarterback is that useful, I feel there needs to be an actual probability that we get a first-round bye and I positively suppose we should always host a recreation.”
The Sun Devils, picked to complete final within the 16-team Big 12 within the preseason media ballot after a 3-9 end in coach Kenny Dillingham’s first season final 12 months, as an alternative gained the league, the primary energy convention crew to do it in its first season since Virginia Tech gained the ACC in its inaugural season in 2004. Dillingham bluntly stated “no” when requested if he knew he may flip this system round this shortly.
“I do not know if any crew’s ever completed being picked sixteenth out of 16 after which profitable a championship,” Dillingham stated.
Iowa State, searching for its first convention title since 1912, was overpowered by the Sun Devils — and working again Cam Skattebo particularly. The Sun Devils led 24-10 on the half. then pressured three turnovers — two fumbles and an interception — within the third quarter to complete off the Cyclones.
Iowa State coach Matt Campbell stated after the sport that he thought the Big 12 would not be in consideration for a second playoff spot, saying he did not count on an at-large bid from the choice committee.
“Yeah, I do not. That’s the fact of that scenario,” Campbell stated. “The actuality from our finish is we had some alternatives late within the season to place ourselves in the very best scenario. Those are nice classes discovered, and we’ll develop with it.”
Skattebo had a 28-yard run on the primary play of the sport, then added 47- and 53-yard runs within the second quarter to complete the primary half with 10 carries for 140 yards and two touchdowns. He completed with 9 pressured damaged tackles, punctuating his scoring runs with the Heisman Trophy pose. He additionally caught a 33-yard landing from Sam Leavitt within the third quarter.
Dillingham stated he believed Skattebo needs to be a Heisman finalist in New York together with Colorado’s Travis Hunter and Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty.
“Turn on the tape. I imply he is actually good. He’s ok to be there,” Dillingham stated. “I do not know what else you are able to do to place your title within the race. Obviously there’s two different guys which can be actually, actually excessive on that checklist and I do not know if he ought to ever surpass these guys, however ought to he be on that checklist? Should he have the chance to go there? Yes.”
Skattebo completed with 170 yards on 16 carries and Leavitt went 12-of-17 for 219 yards and three touchdowns, the opposite two to Xavier Guillory.
Leavitt and Guillory heaped reward on Skattebo after the sport, with Leavitt calling him “the flat-out most dominant participant” within the nation. Skattebo, who transferred from Sacramento State to ASU earlier than the 2023 season, stated he did the Heisman pose as a result of he deserves to be there.
“I’ve been disrespected my complete life,” Skattebo stated. “I’ve all the time been the underdog and no one respects the truth that I’m the very best working again within the nation and I’m going to face on that. If folks wish to disrespect that, I’m going to maintain going and I’m going to maintain proving folks mistaken … Winning the Heisman or dropping the Heisman, I ought to nonetheless be in that scenario.”
An hour earlier than the sport kicked off, Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark met with reporters days after complaining that the “[CFP selection] committee continues to point out time and time once more that they’re being attentive to logos versus résumés.” He stated 74% of the Big 12’s wins have been in opposition to different energy conferences this 12 months, whereas the Group of 5 went 11-80 in opposition to the identical leagues.
On Saturday, he stated he did not wish to revisit his feedback, however he did proceed to make his case for his champion.
“I do not wish to get into an excessive amount of about how we’re positioned versus different conferences,” Yormark stated. “But I’ll say, the place I sit, there needs to be no comparability between us and any G5 convention champion. I’ll double down on that for positive. Hopefully the choice committee will do what they should do.”
For Dillingham, irrespective of the place the seed is, he has been in a position to show that he can win at his alma mater after claiming the Sun Devils’ first outright convention championship since 1996.
“I feel you may obtain something right here,” Dillingham stated. “I’ve all the time thought that folks have all the time stated this place is a sleeping large. Well, you are not a sleeping large when you by no means get up. You’re a useless large. And it simply hasn’t woken up for therefore lengthy.”
