Arizona
Sam Leavitt says running helps rhythm, needs to stay healthy
TEMPE — Sam Leavitt has run the ball more to begin this season than any other four-game stretch of the Arizona State quarterback’s career.
Leavitt’s 15 rushes against Baylor set a new career high after his 12 carries against Texas State were among his previous career highs (also 13 in the Peach Bowl).
“I don’t think it was really part of the game plan. It was kind of just what happened,” Leavitt said Tuesday of the new career high. “More so taking what the defense gives me. Try not to do that throughout the rest of the season as much, keep my body a little healthier. But yeah I’m just trying to win the game at the end of the day.”
Leavitt missed one game last season due to a cracked rib sustained while fighting for extra yards against Utah. Arizona State saw firsthand how valuable he is to the offense when it rolled quarterback Jeff Sims out at Cincinnati, one of two Big 12 losses the team had.
“(Leavitt) ran more (at Baylor) than we like to usually run quarterbacks, but he did because it was needed in the game,” ASU coach Kenny Dillingham said.
While the usage is higher than any other stretch in his career (10.5 rushes per game), he’s also picked his spots well. Of his 42 rushes, 14 have been for first downs, and six of those have come on third or fourth down.
He’s also had nine explosive runs, defined by ASU defensive coordinator Brian Ward as pickups of at least 12 yards, including a 52-yard scramble against NAU.
His 220 scramble yards — distinguished from designed run plays, according to PFF — are the most in the country and 63 more than the next-best Power Four quarterback (Auburn’s Jackson Arnold).
TCU coach Sonny Dykes told reporters the Horned Frogs should prepare better for Leavitt’s scrambling after facing athletic SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings, but the numbers indicate a different story.
Jennings has nearly as many scrambles (13) as Leavitt (16), but his production is far below at 6.5 yards per scramble compared to Leavitt’s 13.8. Stripping away the outlying 52-yarder, Leavitt would still average 11.2 yards per scramble. Leavitt also has doubled up Jennings’ yards on designed runs (59 to 28).
“The SMU quarterback was more of a ‘run around to throw.’ This quarterback is more of a runner. He wants to run, and he’s very effective. He’s very fast, he’s very elusive and he does a good job getting down before you tackle him,” Dykes said.
Sam Leavitt in better rhythm passing when running the ball
Four of Leavitt’s six touchdown passes on the year have come after he carried the ball within the previous four plays, his level of engagement higher when feeling the hits.
“Early on, I like to kind of get the juices out, you know, butterflies out by running it a little bit, but later in the game I’m kind of settled in already,” Leavitt said.
After ASU lost to Mississippi State, Dillingham emphasized the importance of Leavitt feeling a rhythm early in games, with the QB run game as a way to get “feisty” signal callers feeling it.
Leavitt rushed the ball twice before he attempted a pass against Baylor and once before his first pass against Texas State. He then had two carries in the final 14 minutes of the Baylor win and three carries in the second half against Texas State.
Catch ASU-TCU on Friday at 6 p.m. MST on the Arizona Sports app, ESPN 620 AM or 98.7 FM HD-2. It will be televised on FOX.
Arizona didn’t have the best start, but a long second half drained the life from Arizona State and sent the Wildcats back home to Tucson with a 23-7 victory, and the Territorial Cup in hand.
Brent Brennan’s first win in the rivalry series punctuates a dramatic turnaround for the program. After a 4-8 finish last season, Brennan’s aggressiveness in the portal, while retaining his roster, and making significant changes to the coaching staff, led to a 9-3 finish this time around.
The Wildcats have been great defensively all season long, and it showed up again on Friday night. The Wildcats forced five turnovers from ASU’s Jeff Sims, nabbing three interceptions and scooping up two fumbles.
According to Pro Football Focus, the Wildcats dominated the game defensively, despite only playing 20 minutes of the game. Here are the five highest-graded defenders from Arizona’s win (minimum 30 snaps).
Kennedy had a relatively quiet night in the box score, but was still effective on the edge. He made two tackles and had one pressure against the Sun Devils.
The edge rusher did a great job of keeping contain against Sims, not letting him scramble or beat the Wildcats with his legs. He did the same thing in the run game. With the exception of a few plays, ASU could only run the ball between the tackles, and the edges were a big reason why.
According to PFF, Kennedy had an overall grade of 68.3, with a tackling grade of 75.8, a run defense grade of 66.5 and a pass rush grade of 62.7.
Dansby had a big day locking down the perimeter with fellow corner Jay’Vion Cole limited to just eight snaps. The senior corner had two tackles, one pass breakup and an interception.
ASU’s first turnover of the day came as Sims was flushed from the pocket and made an errant throw toward the sideline, where Dansby dove and came up with the takeaway. He allowed just one short catch on five targets, but he also had a pass interference penalty.
Break out the turnover sword. 🗡️@dansby_michael with the INT. pic.twitter.com/pzFghLex4c
— Arizona Football (@ArizonaFBall) November 29, 2025
According to PFF, Dansby had an overall grade of 68.9, with a coverage grade of 71.4, a tackling grade of 76.6 and a run defense grade of 56.1.
Wilson had a great day opposite Kennedy on the edge. He made six tackles and batted down two passes at the line of scrimmage in the win for Arizona.
Like Kennedy, Wilson did a great job of keeping ASU contained to the pocket or running between the tackles in traffic. He also had two hits on Sims as a pass rusher, making his presence felt.
According to PFF, Wilson had an overall grade of 69.0, with a tackling grade of 78.3, a run defense grade of 75.2 and a pass rush grade of 57.1.
Arizona’s safeties once again were flying around the field and always near the ball. Smith was huge against the run, making six tackles and deflecting one pass.
While tackling has been a problem for Smith this season, he was perfect against the Sun Devils. He played close to stop the run and also picked up one pressure. Smith didn’t allow any catches as the primary defender and made some key tackles downfield to prevent ASU from scoring.
According to PFF, Smith had an overall grade of 71.7, with a tackling grade of 82.9, a run defense grade of 74.6 and a coverage grade of 68.7.
Who else? Johnson was once again all over the field making plays. He made three tackles, two pass breakups, one interception and forced a fumble in the fourth quarter.
Johnson punched the ball away from Sims on a run with ASU driving into scoring range, and Arizona recovered and went on the score the final touchdown to seal the game. On the ensuing possession, Sims overshot his man and Johnson laid out to snatch the pick, the fifth and final takeaway of the day for the Wildcats.
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🌵 that’s four, fam. pic.twitter.com/VCwlvoY8yY— Arizona Football (@ArizonaFBall) November 29, 2025
According to PFF, Johnson had an overall grade of 83.3, by far his highest grade of the season. He also had a run defense grade of 92.7, a coverage grade of 71.3 and a tackling grade of 56.2.
What did you think of Arizona’s statement win over Arizona State? To let us know, follow us on our X account by clicking on the link.
Arizona has brought the Territorial Cup back to Tucson, winning the rivalry game with ASU for the third time in four seasons. And it did so despite some of the worst grades of the season for the team as a whole and the offense specifically.
The UA’s team grade of 69.1 ranked third-lowest in 2025, ironically ahead of two of the other wins in the current 5-game streak. The offensive grade of 62.6 was also better than only the recent wins over Kansas (57.2) and Colorado (55.5).
Defensively it was a different story. Arizona graded at 76.1, which was 6th-best, and its 90.3 run defense grade was the best of 2025.
For the season, Arizona’s overall grade of 87.5 ranks 39th in FBS. The defense is tied for 21st at 91.5. Compare those to a season ago when the Wildcats ranked 98th nationally and their defense was 118th out of 134 FBS schools.
Below are the snap counts and individual grades of all players who appeared on offense or defense at ASU:
Top overall grades (min. 20 snaps): S Dalton Johnson (83.3), S Genesis Smith (71.7), QB Noah Fifita (71.2), RT Matthew Lado (71.2), LB Riley Wilson (69.0)
Top pass blocking: RG Alexander Doost (85.5), LG Chubba Maae (81.6), RB Ismail Mahdi (76.2)
Top run blocking: RT Matthew Lado (66.2), WR Kris Hutson (62.7), WR Tre Spivey (61.9)
Top pass rushing: LB Chase Kennedy (62.7), CB Treydan Stukes (60.0), CB Michael Dansby (59.7)
Top run defense: Johnson (92.7), CB Ayden Garnes (77.0), Wilson (75.2)
Top tackling: Smith (82.9), Garnes (81.1), LB Taye Brown (79.1)
Top coverage: Dansby (71.4), Johnson (71.3), Smith (68.7)
PHOENIX – From the terrifying moment caught on camera of a wrong-way driver on I-10, to the duel in the desert as ASU takes on Arizona for the rivalry game, here’s a look at your top stories on FOX10Phoenix.com for Friday, Nov. 28, 2025.
1. Wrong-way driver caught on camera
What we know:
During the late night hours of Thanksgiving, a white pickup truck was seen heading the wrong way on Interstate 10’s HOV lane near Baseline Road.
2. Man found lying near roadway prompts hit-and-run investigation
3. Suspect in custody after shooting at South Phoenix apartment
4. Officers use less-lethal means to detain road rage suspect
5. ASU vs. U of A: Fans gear up for rivalry game
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