Takeaways as Arizona State loses ugly to Arizona in Territorial Cup

Not even the presence of Cam Skattebo could save the Arizona State Sun Devils.

Skattebo, the spirited leader of last year's Big 12 championship team, was in attendance as an honorary captain as the Sun Devils hosted state rival Arizona with the Territorial Cup game in the regular season finale for both squads on Friday, Nov., 28.

There was more on the line, too, as ASU entered with a No. 20 ranking in the CFP and faint hopes of a conference title game berth. Arizona broke into the CFP rankings last week at No. 25.

It was Arizona coming away with a 23-7 victory at Mountain America Stadium. ASU (8-4, 7-3) managed just 214 yards of offense and turned the ball over five times (three INTs, two fumbles), leaving the defense in a precarious position all night. The outcome ended the Sun Devils' hopes for a return to the Big 12 title game.

Let's review:

What went right

Defense held its ground in first half: What do you need when your offense isn't moving the ball? You need your defense to rise to the occasion. That happened again. Arizona got to the red zone three times and had zero points to show for it early in the game. The Wildcats fumbled once at the ASU 6-yard line, and missed two field goals after drives stalled at the 18 and 13, respectively.

What went wrong

Got off to a slow start . . . again: This has been an ASU pattern. ASU went the first three possessions without getting a first down. The Sun Devils didn't get a first down until the opening minute of the second quarter, when Jeff Sims hit Jordyn Tyson for a 17-yard gain. ASU only managed 15 yards in the first quarter and 118 yards in the first half and was lucky to be up 7-3 at the half.

Turnovers: This is an area in which ASU has struggled in recent weeks. It had four turnovers last week and was lucky to yield only three points against Colorado as a result. ASU had five in this one, giving it 13 in the last four games. You get away with it against lesser teams, not against a quality one, much less the rival. Arizona (9-3) came into the contest as one of the top teams in the country in turnover margin.

Offense put defense in bad position: When the offense struggles, as ASU's did all night, it puts your defense in a bad position. The Wildcats finished with a time of possession advantage of 40:05 to 19:55. The defense was on the field for 89 plays. That is far too many and can weigh on even a team that does have depth.

More injuries: Tyson appeared to aggravate the hamstring injury that sidelined him for three games. He caught a 17-yard pass in the opening seconds of the second quarter and looked in discomfort when he was tackled. He came to the sideline and rode a stationary bike for a few minutes. He went back in the game briefly but left again and did not return after that.

Safety Adrian "Boogie" Wilson, also left the game in the first half after he was slow to get up after a big hit. He did not return. He was already playing for starter Xavion Alford, who has been out since Week 2 with a back injury, so the Sun Devils were down to the third player at that position, sophomore Kyan McDonald.

Personnel notes

Players listed as out in the last availability report included: DB Rodney Bimage, RB Kyson Brown, WR Boble Johnson, DL Joshua Shanklin, DB Adam Fall, TE Coleson Arends, LB Isaiah Iosefa, TE Jayden Fortier, DL Zac Swanson. That was in addition to those already declared out for the season in QB Sam Leavitt, LB Zyrus Fiaseu, S Xavion Alford. and DL My'Keil Gardner.

Up next

The Sun Devils now will await their bowl announcement. The assignments most likely in play are the Las Vegas Bowl, Alamo Bowl or the Holiday Bowl. Selection day is Sunday, Dec. 7.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: ASU loses Territorial Cup game to Arizona in ugly fashion