BYU survives Arizona State's freshman-fueled comeback with 95-yard drive to seal 27-20 win

With Arizona State threatening to complete one of the more unlikely comebacks of the college football season, Bear Bachmeier stood at his own 14-yard line, facing fourth-and-1, clinging to a three-point lead. He kept the ball, plowed ahead for the first down, and never looked back.

That gamble ignited a 95-yard, 11-play touchdown drive that put No. 8 BYU away for good Saturday afternoon at LaVell Edwards Stadium, the Cougars defeating Arizona State 27-20 to improve to 7-1 overall and 4-1 in Big 12 play.

Bachmeier finished 19-of-30 for 236 yards and a touchdown. But it was his legs and his nerve on that final drive that defined the afternoon. After converting the fourth-and-1 sneak, he hit Legend Glasker on a 53-yard pass to flip the field, then found a receiver on fourth-and-4 from the ASU 6 to set up Sione Moa's 1-yard touchdown run with 2:09 remaining — Moa's second score of the game.

We're not playing to lose.— Bear Bachmeier, BYU quarterback

The win was far from comfortable. BYU led 17-3 at halftime, backed by a season-high six sacks — all in the first half — and an early turnover that set up the Cougars' opening score. But Arizona State's true freshman quarterback Jake Fette, making his first career start, found his footing in the third quarter and orchestrated a remarkable 14-point rally to tie the game at 17.

Fette threw a pair of third-quarter touchdown passes: a 20-yard back-shoulder fade to Omarion Miller, and a 1-yard strike to tight end Anthony Miller Jr. that capped a drive featuring two fourth-down conversions of Arizona State's own. A fumble forced by Owen Long on a BYU possession gave the Sun Devils the ball in Cougar territory to set up that second scoring drive.

Fellow true freshman Cardae Mack ran for 123 yards and finished with 170 all-purpose yards, and for a stretch in the third quarter, Arizona State looked like a team that had found itself. The Sun Devils held BYU to a season-low 47 rushing yards and just 283 total offensive yards — 95 of which came on that decisive final drive.

That third quarter was tough. A lot of plays for our defense… Third down was not good for our offense, and we could not run the ball for some reason. There's things we need to improve on, but I am really proud of the way the guys played and the belief they have in each other.— Kalani Sitake, BYU head coach

Matthias Dunn's 45-yard field goal three minutes into the fourth quarter put BYU back in front 20-17, and the Cougars' defense held Arizona State near midfield on the ensuing possession. A punt pinned BYU at its own 5-yard line — setting the stage for the 95-yard march that ended the game as a contest.

The team was all for it. That was a good moment for us. There was no hesitation from anyone: offense, defense, special teams, and even the sideline. They were all for it. I can be convinced pretty easily.— Kalani Sitake, BYU head coach

Arizona State added a 44-yard Carson Smith field goal with 57 seconds left to cut it to 27-20, but the Sun Devils could not recover the ensuing onside kick and BYU ran out the clock.

For Arizona State, the loss dropped the Sun Devils to 4-4 overall and 2-3 in Big 12 play. It was the third time this season they lost to a Top-10 opponent on the road, though according to CBS Sports, this one was considerably closer than the previous two. Fette finished 22-of-42 for 166 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions — numbers that looked nothing like his first half, when he was sacked six times and the Sun Devils managed just 93 total yards.

We really simplified in the second half for him and I thought that was a positive. You always want to do that with a young quarterback.— Kenny Dillingham, Arizona State head coach

We can't give up a 95-yard drive at the end of the game with the game on the line.— Kenny Dillingham, Arizona State head coach

One footnote to the scoring: the Big 12 Conference released a statement after the game saying an officiating error gave BYU a touchdown on Moa's first-quarter fumble recovery. According to the statement, the correct ruling should have been BYU ball at the 2-yard line for a third-and-goal attempt rather than a score. The Cougars were awarded the touchdown on the play.

BYU's six sacks in the first half were the most for the Cougars in a game since 2015, according to byucougars.com, and the second-most by any FBS team in any half this season. Receiver Reed Harris, who entered the week as the Big 12 leader in receiving yards (800) and yards per game (114.3), was held to four yards on one catch. Legend Glasker's 53-yard reception Saturday pushed him to 585 career receiving yards, the most by a true BYU freshman since Matt Bushman's 520 in 2017, according to byucougars.com.

BYU faces rival Utah on November 7. Arizona State returns home to host Colorado the same day.

Why it matters — The win keeps No. 8 BYU in the College Football Playoff conversation at 7-1, while Arizona State's path to bowl eligibility narrows to 4-4 with four games remaining.

Sources differ on BYU's first touchdown (Moa fumble recovery): Touchdown awarded on the play after replay review (cbssports.com) vs Big 12 Conference statement: officiating error; correct ruling should have been BYU ball at the 2-yard line, third-and-goal (cbssports.com)

Reported by cbssports.com, byucougars.com, thesundevils.com, azfamily.com