3 takeaways from Utah’s blowout victory over No. 21 Arizona State

Utah played smash mouth football in handing No. 21 Arizona State a humbling 42-10 beatdown at Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday.

On a night that started with droves of rain and plenty of lightning, the Utes rolled past the defending Big 12 champion.

Here are three takeaways from a win that improved Utah’s record to 5-1 overall and 2-1 in Big 12 play:

Utah ran away with a win

ASU entered the game giving up an average of 78.2 rushing yards per game. Utah, though, had more than that — 86 — in the first quarter alone.

The Utes rode their ground attack to the win, putting up 276 rushing yards against the Sun Devils and 412 yards of total offense.

Quarterback Devon Dampier scored Utah’s first two touchdowns, on runs of 12 and 24 yards, as Arizona State rarely had an answer for his rushing ability.

Dampier ended up with a season-high 120 rushing yards on 10 carries, for a 12.0-per carry average, and three rushing scores on the night.

He became the first Utah quarterback to run for 100 yards in a game since Travis Wilson did it against Oregon in 2015, and also had 104 passing yards.

Several Utes had big nights in the rushing game. NaQuari Rogers scored his fifth touchdown of the season on a 22-yarder late in the second quarter, then added a 2-yard score in the third as he ended up with 48 rushing yards.

Wayshawn Parker led all Utah running backs with 55 rushing yards, while Daniel Bray had 41.

Backup quarterback Byrd Ficklin also scored a rushing touchdown, as Utah had six on the night.

ASU’s passing attack was no bueno under backup quarterback Jeff Sims

Late in the week, a surprise on the Big 12 availability report ended up being a major storyline going into the matchup.

ASU star quarterback Sam Leavitt missed the contest due to a lingering injury, and his backup, Jeff Sims, couldn’t get the job done.

Sims, a sixth-year senior who transferred to Arizona State in 2024, struggled all night against a swarming Utah defense. He completed 18 of 38 passes for 124 yards, a far cry from what the Sun Devils needed to beat Utah.

Sims, a dual-threat quarterback, ran for 52 yards as well.

Utah shut down Arizona State’s star wide receiver Jordyn Tyson, one of the nation’s top receivers.

While he had eight receptions for 40 yards and scored on a 3-yard run for the Sun Devils’ lone touchdown, Tyson never got going and was never a serious threat.

Arizona State was able to put up 135 rushing yards and had that part of its offensive attack going relatively well in the first half. The Sun Devils, though, never had the horses to keep up with the Utes.

Arizona State finished with 259 yards of total offense and were 1 of 3 scoring in the red zone. That included a no-point drive late in the first half when Jackson Bennee blocked a 29-yard field goal attempt that could have made it a 14-6 game.

Utah’s Big 12 stock improved on a wild weekend for the conference

Arizona State was one of four Big 12 teams with a perfect 2-0 league record going into the weekend, but by beating the Sun Devils — along with some other favorable results — the Utes moved into a better position in the conference standings.

Iowa State, which not too long ago was the highest ranked Big 12 team, lost its second straight game as the Cyclones fell to 2-2 in league action after Colorado earned its first Big 12 win with a 24-17 victory.

TCU also lost to Kansas State. That gave the Horned Frogs a 1-2 league record, while bumping Kansas State up to 2-2.

The Utes almost caught rival BYU in the standings but the Cougars rallied to beat Arizona 33-27 in double overtime. BYU, Cincinnati and Texas Tech are all 3-0 in Big 12 action.

Utah (5-1) isn’t far behind, though, as it is one of four teams tied at 2-1 in league play.

That sets the tone for an interesting rivalry week, when Utah plays at BYU next Saturday.