The Arizona Wildcats got off to a hot start in the second half as they tried to make a comeback, but a B.J. Denker pick-six halfway through the third quarter to Damarious Randall basically sealed the deal as Arizona St. went on to win by a score of 58-21.
The Arizona offensive line struggled to contain Will Sutton and company the entire night, leading to a very sketchy performance from B.J. Denker in his final regular season game as a Wildcat. Denker threw three interceptions on the night, just one shy of his season total coming into the game. He ended up completing just 15-of-30 passes for 175 yards and no touchdowns. He did rush for a TD.
The offensive line play didn't keep Ka'Deem Carey from reaching the 100-yard mark for the 15th straight time though. Carey finished the night with 157 rushing yards on 32 carries.
For a look at how the first half went down, you can find it right here.
The second half started out how every game should really start for Arizona. Ka'Deem Carey picked up 59 yards on the ground, including an 8-yard TD run to bring the Cats within 16. That drive was followed up by great jobs by the kick coverage team and the defense, who forced a punt after just one first down.
The Wildcat offense was trucking right along, until Denker was picked off for the second time on the night. This time though, it was taken to the house by Damarious Randall for a 64 yard TD return to make it 37-14.
That pick essentially ended the night for the Wildcats.
Arizona did respond with another nice drive. It ended strangely, with Garic Wharton recovering a Denker fumble in the endzone, but still put Arizona back within 16 again.
But Taylor Kelly showed off his arm with a 61 yard TD pass to Jaelen Strong to give ASU a 44-21 lead late in the third quarter. Daniel Jenkins proceeded to fumble the ensuing kick off, giving the Sun Devils the ball right back.
On the drive that followed, D.J. Foster picked up his second rushing TD of the night, this one a seven yard run. Foster did a great job filling in for the injured Marion Grice, who was on the sidelines on crutches during the game.
Foster earned MVP honors for the game. He rushed for 124 yards with his two touchdowns on the night.
ASU was just too much to handle for Arizona on the night, and it showed up in every way possible. There was no magic like there was for the Oregon game last week, and it resulted in a 37 point loss. There's still a bowl game to look forward too. The Cats will find out their bowl fate next Sunday along with the rest of the country.