Arizona State gets bad news on Heisman Trophy candidate
At 6-2, Arizona State is in a position to make a run at a berth in the Big 12 football championship game.
But to accomplish that, they need Cam Skattebo.
Skattebo vaulted himself into the Heisman Trophy conversation on Saturday with one of the best individual performances of the 2024 college football season. The 5-foot-11, 215-pound senior running back finished with 274 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns in Arizona State's 42-21 Big 12 road victory over Oklahoma State.
But on his last play of the game — a 19-yard run early in the fourth quarter — Skattebo suffered an undisclosed injury and left the game. On the play, he lowered his shoulder and took on an Oklahoma State defender at the 1-yard line.
In light of Kenny Dillingham listing Cam Skattebo as "doubtful to questionable" to play against UCF, here is the last play he was on the field against Oklahoma State where he appeared visibly shaken up afterward.@SunDevilSource pic.twitter.com/mXPwrylcZy
— Blake Niemann (@Blakes_Take2) November 4, 2024
On Monday, Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham said Skattebo will not practice this week and is "doubtful to questionable" for Saturday's home game vs. UCF.
"He's actually doubtful to questionable for the game this week," Dillingham said during his press conference. "Whether he plays or not in the football game, he's gonna make an impact on our football team."
Skattebo is an irreplaceable football player.
He is fourth in the nation in all-purpose yards with 1,405 and seventh in the nation in rushing yards with 1,001. Among Power 4 running backs he's the leading receiver with 27 reception for 404 yards. He has four 150-plus yard rushing performances this season, and two 100-plus yard receiving performances.
Skattebo has picked up Heisman Trophy buzz the past few days, and Arizona State launched a Heisman marketing campaign for him on Monday.
Skatt 4 #Heism4n ‼️ https://t.co/Ctwzp0ADcp pic.twitter.com/25QedV5VF0
— Sun Devil Football (@ASUFootball) November 4, 2024
Hopefully the Sun Devils will have their leader on the field Saturday. Stay tuned.
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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.