Oddsmakers are still grasping for players to confidently label as Heisman Trophy front-runners nearly halfway through the college football season, and Arizona State’s defense is partly to blame.
The Sun Devils have another chance to play spoiler in the Heisman race when they visit Utah and quarterback Devon Dampier Saturday at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City.
First, ASU delivered what was likely the final blow to Baylor quarterback Sawyer Robertson’s chance at collecting Heisman hardware in a 27-24 road win against the Bears.
Following a season-worst performance against Samford when Robertson threw for only 211 yards and was intercepted twice, ASU held the gunslinger to 6.4 passing yards-per-attempt while sacking him three times.
After the loss, Robertson said the Bears offense “sputtered,” crediting ASU cornerback Keith Abney II for picking him off on an out route pass intended for wide receiver Josh Cameron.
Abney caught the takeaway on Cameron’s outside shoulder, a feat that the Baylor signal-caller admitted he’s not sure has ever happened.
Following Robertson’s Heisman fallout, the Sun Devils faced Texas Christian quarterback Josh Hoover who gained national recognition after an electric game against No. 17 Southern Methodist.
Hoover, the TCU single-season passing yards record-holder, threw for 379 yards with a single-game career-high five touchdown passes in a 35-24 win over SMU that moved the Horned Frogs into the Associated Press Top 25 poll.
By then, he was among the top FBS passers in yards, touchdowns and efficiency.
The Sun Devils bottled him up in a 27-24 ASU victory, preventing a single touchdown pass, sacking Hoover five times and forcing two interceptions – Hoover’s single-game high this season.
There are only three other games in Hoover’s 25-game college career as a starter in which he did not throw a touchdown pass.
For a team that leans on large chunks of offense, TCU “didn’t have any explosive plays at all,” Horned Frogs coach Sonny Dykes said after TCU blew a 17-point lead against the Sun Devils.
A 39-yard Hoover completion to DJ Rogers was the longest play of the game, which pales in comparison to the Big 12 Offensive Player of the week performance wide receiver Eric McAlister had the week prior.
Now, Utah’s field general Dampier hopes to push his Heisman campaign as one of the best dual threat quarterbacks in the nation when the 4-1 Utes host the 4-1 Sun Devils, who are ranked No. 21 in the AP Top 25.
“Dampier has played awesome this year and he’s athletic,” ASU coach Kenny Dillingham said during ASU’s bye week. “He can throw a ball downfield … it creates a plus one run.”
That was not always the case for Dampier, who transferred to Utah this year after two seasons at New Mexico. In 2024, he recorded a 57.9% completion rate, threw the fourth most interceptions in the nation (12) and posted the sixth lowest touchdown percentage in NCAA DI football at 3.1%.
Instead, Dampier got by with his legs, rushing for 19 touchdowns and 1,166 yards in 2024.
He has put it together this year with the highest completion rate in the conference (72.5%) and 11 touchdown passes. Among Big 12 quarterbacks, he ranks second with 258 rushing yards behind ASU’s Sam Leavitt five weeks into the season.
Arizona State defensive coordinator Brian Ward understands the upside of the Phoenix-born quarterback.
“He’s a really good athlete. I’m really familiar with him. I recruited him briefly when I was at (Washington State),” Ward said during the bye week. “I came down here and watched him work out when he was at Saguaro (High School) playing for coach Jason Mohns. He’s athletic. He plays like he’s the best player on the field, plays with a lot of confidence.”
Dampier’s drastic improvement and eye-popping athleticism in year three, though, were overshadowed by a poor performance this season against a Texas Tech team that Dillingham believes is among the top five in the country.
Dampier’s 162 passing yards and 91.1 quarterback rating versus the Red Raiders marked a career single-game low as starter and essentially tanked his chances at a Heisman.
But Utah coach Kyle Whittingham has unwavering faith in his quarterback.
“I give him an A-plus,” Whittingham said. “We couldn’t have asked any more from him to this point.”
The projected Heisman field has been in flux all season with no bona fide front-runner. This uncertainty lends an opportunity to Dampier to re-enter the race with a showcase game against a ranked opponent in ASU.
Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss was completely off Heisman preseason betting boards. He threw for 314 yards with a touchdown against No. 4 Louisiana State and entered the conversation.
Tennessee quarterback Joey Aguilar was nowhere near Heisman talks before the year. A 317-passing-yards and four-touchdown game against No. 6 Georgia changed that.
A strong showing against the Sun Devils would not sky rocket Dampier’s odds like those SEC quarterbacks, but it certainly would jolt them back to life.
With his name floating around Heisman considerations, Dampier said on the “Golic & Golic” show that earning the honor is something players dream about as kids, especially as a quarterback.
But the ASU defense turns dreams into nightmares.
And Dillingham is confident in his home-grown front four to pressure one of the best offensive lines in the nation, disrupting Dampier and the Utah offense.
“We got better at pass rush through development, not acquisition,” Dillingham said. “That’s a good step for a program, is seeing guys get better.”
However, he recognizes the challenging schedule ASU has to begin conference competition, specifically quarterback play. It is hard to come up for air with Baylor and TCU in back-to-back weeks.
Utah does not supply any relief.
“Yeah, a few more undefeated teams that we get to face. We’re on a roll,” Dillingham said, grinning. “Utah’s not undefeated, but their one loss was an unbelievably tight game versus (No. 17 Texas Tech).”
“I think Utah should 100% be in the top 25,” Dillingham added.
Battle-tested and well-rested off a bye week, the Sun Devils look to bury another Big 12 quarterback’s hopes of a trip to New York City at the end of the season.
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