Associated Press

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Cam Skattebo and Arizona State are having quite a bit of success in their Big 12 debut after being picked to finish last in the conference in the preseason.

Now the Sun Devils will represent their new 16-team league in the 12-team College Football Playoff after earning a 45-19 victory over Iowa State in the Big 12 championship game on Saturday.

The hard-running Skattebo rushed for 170 yards, including a 28-yard gain on the first offensive snap. There were long, tackle-evading runs at the start of the two drives that he ended with short touchdowns, and later he converted a short pass into another score.

“I have the best seat in the house,” said Sam Leavitt, the freshman quarterback who is handing off to Skattebo. “Get ready for a win of 5 or whatever and I just see the guy weaving through traffic… and freaking out.”

The Sun Devils (11-2, No. 15 CFP) with their 34-year-old head coach Kenny Dillingham enter the playoffs with a six-game winning streak.

Iowa State (10-3, No. 16 CFP), already having its first 10-win season in the program’s 133-year history, trailed 24-10 on its first three drives after halftime before turnovers in its own territory . Arizona State benefited from Leavitt throwing touchdowns every time.

“It doesn’t get much more depressing,” Cyclones coach Matt Campbell said. “Their ability to take care of the football and our inability to do so in the third quarter was just crippling.”

Skattebo struck the Heisman Trophy pose several times during the game and wore a Big 12 Championship t-shirt afterward.

“Nobody respects the fact that I’m the best running back in the country. And I will stand by that,” he said. “I will continue to prove people wrong. And whichever NFL team takes me, they’re going to get a gem.”

That can wait until Arizona State clinches a guaranteed playoff spot as one of the five top-seeded conference champions. The Sun Devils will almost certainly finish behind Mountain West champion Boise State (12-1, No. 10).

That would give the Broncos a first-round bye and send the Sun Devils to a first-round game on the road, much to the dismay of Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark, who reiterated his feelings on the matter before the title game.

“Last year they left out a team (then-undefeated Florida State) because of a quarterback. “We are 11-1 with our starting quarterback, beat four ranked teams and won the Big 12 championship,” Dillingham said. “We’ve set the standard that the quarterback is so valuable…I definitely think we should have a game.”

Xavier Guillory had TD catches of 8 and 21 yards in a span of 71 seconds following Iowa State’s turnovers. Skattebo then converted a third-down swing pass into a 33-yard score for a 45-10 lead, which he highlighted with one of his Heisman poses.

Skattebo’s 2,074 yards from scrimmage (1,568 rushing and 506 receiving) is a single-season school record.

Before his 3-yard TD, Skattebo had a 47-yard run as he spun away from defenders at the line and then fended off others. He scored a 2-yard score on a 53-yard run in the final minute of the first half, again after contact at the line, before twisting and turning chasing Cyclones.

“He’s an A player and played an A game today,” Campbell said. “In these moments you need your A players to play A football and he certainly did.”

Great plays

Even without injured lead receiver Jordan Tyson, the Sun Devils had a lot of big plays. Leavitt’s first pass was a 22-yard pass to Melquan Stovall, who later had a 63-yard catch to convert a fourth-and-1.

Arizona State had six plays of more than 20 yards – all in the first half, when Iowa State’s longest play was 19 yards. The Cyclones got a late 25-yard TD pass from Rocco Becht to Jaylin Noel, one of their two 1,000-yard receivers.

Tyson, who had 624 yards receiving in five games in November, injured his left arm in the second half of the regular-season finale against Arizona.

Another play, another TD pass

Becht has thrown TD passes in 17 consecutive games. His 3-yarder to Carson Hansen on the Cyclones’ first drive gave them their only lead, 7-3. Becht completed 21 of 35 passes for 214 yards and two touchdowns.

The takeaway food

Arizona State won its first outright conference title since winning the Pac-10 in 1996. After going 3-9 in their last Pac-12 season, the Sun Devils’ improvement of eight wins is a school record, up from five previously. Arizona State and Indiana (11-1) are the only FBS schools with eight-win improvements over last year.

Iowa State entered November undefeated for the first time since 1938. The Cyclones then lost two straight games before winning three in a row to advance to their second Big 12 title game. They lost to Oklahoma in the 2020 game.

Next

Arizona State will find out who and where the playoffs will begin on Sunday.

Iowa State awaits its bowl destination, likely either the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio or the Pop Tarts Bowl in Orlando.

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