Arizona State fans storm field, take down goalposts before game is over
In a wild scene at Mountain America Stadium, Arizona State's fans stormed the field before the Sun Devils' game vs. BYU was over.
On 4th-and-goal from BYU's 44-yard line, with seven seconds left in the game — yes, you read that right — Arizona State quarterback Sam Leavitt dropped back and launched a moonball down the sideline and into the stands in an attempt to kill the clock.
As soon as the ball landed, the fans stormed the field, assuming Arizona State had just defeated BYU 28-23. But after review, the officials determined the ball landed out of bounds with one second remaining.
Meanwhile, with 1 second left in Arizona State vs. BYU…. pic.twitter.com/wtAYtdzhFg
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) November 24, 2024
The officials and players — including Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo — spent the better part of 15 minutes trying to clear the field and put the goalposts back up.
Both teams finally retook the field, and BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff launched a Hail Mary pass from midfield that was caught by Chase Roberts at the 3-yard line with no time on the clock.
Final score: Arizona State 28, BYU 23
The clock-killing strategy from Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham was an interesting one. The Sun Devils had the ball 1st-and-goal from the 7-yard line with 58 seconds left. But after one run by Cam Skattebo, Dillingham elected to take two massive losses — 26 yards and 10 yards — in an attempt to run out the clock.
It almost worked. A better strategy would probably have been to score and take a 35-23 lead with 50 seconds left.
“We won the football game,” Dillingham said after the game. “We beat another ranked team at Mountain America Stadium. So this is all about the guys. These guys battled, these guys fought and found a way to win. Whatever happened at the end, it happened.
“You know what? We got to rush the field twice, how about that?”
Regardless, Arizona State (9-2, 6-2) is now in a great position to earn a berth in the Big 12 championship game. There is currently a four-way tie for first place with BYU, Colorado and Iowa State.
Colorado (8-3, 6-2) was blown out by Kansas, 37-21. Iowa State (8-2, 5-2) plays Utah later Saturday night.
They are putting the goal posts back up at Arizona State after fans rushed the field too early 😅 pic.twitter.com/9KNp8sdmkr
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 24, 2024
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Ben Sherman has been covering the sports world for most of his journalism career, including 17 years with The Oregonian/OregonLive. One of his favorite memories was covering the 1999 Fiesta Bowl - the first BCS National Championship Game - at Sun Devil Stadium.