By Lucas Robbins,
Digital Communications Intern
TEMPE, Ariz. — The No. 14 Arizona State Sun Devils defeated No. 17 Utah Utes 19-16 on Saturday night in an overtime thriller at Sun Devil Stadium to claim the top spot in the Pac-12 South Division.
The Sun Devils (7-1, 5-1) earned their fourth straight win behind sophomore kicker Zane Gonzalez’s game-winning 36-yard field goal in overtime and ASU emerged with a 4-1 record after playing four ranked opponents in their previous five games.
Gonzalez made four-of-five field goal attempts in the win, including a 30-yard field goal that tied the game at 16 with less than six minutes remaining in regulation.
Backup quarterback Mike Bercovici took the field for ASU’s final play of regulation for an attempted Hail Mary pass, but the ball was intercepted by Utah safety Marcus Williams to send the game into overtime at a 16-16 tie. It was the first overtime game under head coach Todd Graham and the first overtime game for ASU since its 37-30 win over then No. 21 Missouri on Friday, Sept. 9, 2011 at Sun Devil Stadium.
ASU held Utah (6-2, 3-2) to a scoreless first possession in overtime after they forced the Utes to a three-and-out and Utah kicker Andy Phillips missed consecutive 35-yard attempts. Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham called a timeout prior to Phillips’ first attempt, which went wide right, and his second try sailed left of the goal posts.
Freshman tailback Demario Richard rushed for consecutive four-yard gains in overtime to set up Gonzalez's winning kick from the 19-yard line. Richard led the Sun Devils’ ground attack as he rushed for 116 yards on 14 attempts for an average of more than eight yards per carry.
Redshirt junior safety Jordan Simone led the defense with 13 tackles, including 10 solo, and redshirt junior linebacker Antonio Longino added 11 tackles and pass breakup. The Sun Devils collected eight tackles for a loss of 34 yards and sacked Utah quarterback Travis Wilson three times as Lloyd Carrington, Marcus Hardison and Armand Perry each picked one up.
Redshirt senior quarterback Taylor Kelly threw one touchdown pass, along with one interception, and finished 18-of-32 for 205 yards in his first start at home since the season-opening win over Weber State. Kelly was sidelined for over a month after suffering a foot injury against Colorado.
Junior tailback D.J. Foster was Kelly’s favorite target as he caught six passes for 28 yards and added 53 yards rushing. Redshirt junior wide receiver Jaelen Strong had five catches for 77 yards and one touchdown.
The Sun Devils marched 72 yards on the first possession of the game and capped their drive with a 20-yard field goal by Gonzalez to open the scoring for the 26th time under head coach Todd Graham.
The Sun Devil defense shut out their opponent in the first quarter for a third consecutive game and they prevented Utah’s offense from crossing the 50-yard-line in the first quarter.
The Utes earned their first score of the game when Phillips made a 50-yard field goal in the second quarter and he made his first field goals of the game before his overtime miss.
The Sun Devils scored the first touchdown of the game when Kelly connected with Strong on a six-yard pass with more than seven minutes remaining in the first half. ASU covered three quarters of the field in five plays, including a 32-yard run by and a 32-yard catch by Strong, on the way to their first trip to the endzone.
Utah tied the game at 13 on the opening possession of the second half when Wilson completed a four-yard pass to running back Devontae Booker to finish a 75-yard drive. Wilson finished the day 12-of-22 for 57 yards and one touchdown.
The Sun Devils’ next game is Saturday, Nov. 8 when they host No. 10 Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The game will be nationally televised on ABC with kickoff set at 1:30 p.m. AZ time.