4 Takeaways From Arizona State's Last-Second Victory Over Baylor
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TEMPE -- The Arizona State Sun Devils moved to 3-1 on the season with an incredible 27-24 victory over the Baylor Bears - a win which set the team up well to positively navigate conference play moving forward.
Arizona State on SI found four major takeaways from the night that was - most of which are positive.
Arizona State Defense Largely Lives Up to Billing
The Sun Devils were without star safety Xavion Alford and starting nickel Montana Warren on Saturday night - the personnel that needed to step up in the worst of ways did just that.
Purdue transfer Kyndrich Breedlove stood in for Warren in more of a feature role after breaking up two passes in the week three victory over Texas State - he forced a fumble off of Baylor WR Josh Cameron early in which set the tone for the game.
Linebackers Keyshaun Elliott and Jordan Crook were both all over the field once again. Elliott secured 10 tackles, two tackles for loss, a sack, and broke up a pass while defending Baylor TE Michael Trigg.
Rodney Bimage Jr., Keith Abney II, Myles "Ghost" Rowser, and Adrian "Boogie" Wilson excelled for the most part in the moments that mattered - forcing Sawyer Robertson into uncomfortable situations.
C.J. Fite came up with an unbelievable sack on Robertson on second down that forced a third-and-long. Baylor eventually scored to tie up the game, but Fite set up the defense nicely on several occasions - particularly as a run-stopper.
Sam Leavitt Shows Clutch Gene
Leavitt struggled to find a rhythm as a passer for the second time in three weeks, throwing for under 100 yards as late as midway through the third quarter.
The redshirt sophomore came back in the most convincing of ways late in the game - utilizing his athleticism and big arm to generate a massive touchdown drive and the game-winning kick by Jesus Gomez.
The 61-yard connection to rising sophomore Derek Eusebio injected life into the offense - the play led to a 19-yard touchdown to Jordyn Tyson, who once again showed incredible adaptability as a ball-tracker.
Leavitt tends to step up his play when his back is against the wall - now he's seeking to carry the positive momentum into a battle against TCU's Josh Hoover.
Coaching Staff Remains Great Game Managers
Arizona State's coaching staff continues to be a standard for the rest of the nation. Kenny Dillingham navigated the game incredibly well for the most part - especially his management to close both halves.
DC Brian Ward earned special acclaim for how he managed a defense that was minus Alford and Warren. Outside of the 41-yard run by Bryson Washington and the 33-yard touchdown grab by Trigg, the Sun Devils largely contained one of the best offenses in the nation consistently.
Ward was once again able to call his trademark aggressive brand of defense that managed to create three turnovers that turned the tide of the game - and got the most out of personnel at all three levels of the unit.
Arizona State Kicking is Strength in 2025
Kicking was perhaps the most glaring weakness of the 2024 Arizona State team.
The situation got so bleak at one point that Dillingham held open tryouts last October following a loss to Cincinnati.
The Sun Devils only knocked down 55% of field goals last season - frequently forcing Dillingham into going for fourth downs in any given situation.
This isn't the case in 2025.
Jesus Gomez Juarez - a transfer from Eastern Michigan - came into the Baylor game having knocked down five of six kicks to begin the season. He nailed all four field goal attempts and two extra points - including the game-winning 43-yard kick as time expired.
Gomez has the potential to be the difference between repeating as conference champions and winning eight games this season.
Read more on major takeaways from players discussing last week's victory over Texas State in the post-game press conference here, and on how Arizona State fans should be feeling about the team heading into Big 12 play here.
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Kevin Hicks is an Arizona State alumni and now serves as the Arizona State Beat Writer On SI.