COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The Arizona State football team took to the road for the first time in 2026 and lost, 48-20, to Texas A&M in front of 107,523 fans on Saturday, Sept. 12. It was the largest crowd the Sun Devils have ever played before.
ASU stuck close and only trailed 24-20 heading into the fourth quarter, but unraveled in the final 15 minutes. The Sun Devils committed four turnovers, leading to 24 points for the nationally ranked Aggies (No. 9 Coaches Poll, No. 10 AP).
A turning point came with ASU trailing 31-20 with 8:38 left. The Sun Devils had a chance to cut the deficit to one score after the Aggies fumbled a punt snap, allowing ASU to take over at the Texas A&M 34. But on the first play, quarterback Cutter Boley was pressured, causing
the ball to squirt out of his hand and into those of the Aggies' Marco Jones, who ran it back for a touchdown that made it 38-20.
It was over after that.
"We're going to be a hell of a team. We know that," Boley said. "We know who we are. We know what we've got. Just another day in the office. Go back to work. All of our guys believe in each other. We trust each other, so we're going to go right back to work because we know what we've got."
Here's a closer look at what transpired:
What went right
ASU held its own early: This marked the first game in front of 100,000-plus spectators for most ASU players. It can be intimidating, but the Sun Devils stood their ground early on, even after a costly early fumble. The first half ended with the Aggies in front, 17-10. The Sun Devils didn't flinch after going down by double digits. Down 24-13, ASU responded with a 75-yard drive, with Boley connecting with Reed Harris for a 58-yard scoring strike that cut the deficit to 24-20 with 3:39 left in the third quarter.
Boley to Harris connection: Much was made of the addition of Omarion Miller to the receiving room, but Harris has loomed as the most dangerous threat thus far. This marked the second game in which he had more than 100 yards, and his scoring receptions of 21 and 58 yards were the highlights of the afternoon for ASU.
Defense was solid: ASU held the Aggies to 92 yards on 35 rushing attempts. It allowed 163 passing yards on 15 completions. The turnovers and punting issues resulted in Texas A&M having a short field much of the day.
What went wrong
Turnovers: Last week ASU lost the turnover battle against an FCS foe, so that did not bode well for a game against a top-10 opponent. There were four turnovers — two interceptions (both returned for scores) and two fumbles lost. There also were two fumbles ASU managed to retain, so there were ball security issues.
Special teams issues: Problems remain despite new personnel. Cory Butler fumbled on his second return try midway through the first quarter. The ball was recovered by Texas A&M, which scored two plays later on a 2-yard run by Rueben Owens II. Nick McLarty handled the punting, kicking four times and averaging 41.5 yards, with his longest 52 yards. Two others went 34 and 35 yards, while a 45-yarder was returned 21-yards into ASU territory and led to an Aggies' touchdown.
Penalties: ASU had nine penalties for 62 yards, and the majority of those resulted in first downs. One of those was a holding call on Rodney Bimage on an incomplete pass on a fourth-and-2 at the 45. ASU would have held, but instead, Texas A&M had a first down at the 35. It scored four plays later, taking a 24-13 lead on a 13-yard scoring pass from Marcel Reed to Isaiah Horton with 5:53 left in the third.
Grades
Offense (C): The offense was fine. In fact, the Sun Devils had 369 yards, 114 more than Texas A&M. They also averaged 5.9 yards per play, while the opponent averaged 4.6. The difference was four turnovers. Another reason for the mediocre grade is that the Sun Devils went just 3-for-12 on third down and 1-for-3 on fourth down. Boley was 21-for-34 for 254 yards with two touchdowns and two turnovers. Harris caught nine passes for 189 yards. Kyson Brown was the leading rusher with 66 carries on 13 tries. ASU also gave up a sack.
Defense (B): You look at 48 points given up, but 14 were on interceptions returned for scores. ASU gave up 255 yards, a more-than-respectable showing. The Aggies went 3-for-12 on third down and 1-for-2 on fourth. S Adrian "Boogie" Wilson and LB Martell Hughes each had eight tackles. Emar'rion Winston and Montana Warren each had sacks; Lyrik Rawls had an interception for ASU's first takeaway of the season.
Special Teams (D): Nick McLarty averaged just 41.5 yards on four punts and failed to land a kick inside the 20. Kicker Carson Smith got his first opportunities of the season and made field goal attempts from 30 and 35 yards. Butler had two punt returns, going for a minus-1 on the first and fumbling away the second. After that, he was replaced by Jalen Moss. Jaren Hamilton had one kick return for 20 yards.
Personnel notes
C Tana Alo-Tupuola, CB Ashton Stamps and G Wade Helton all came out of the game with apparent injuries. Alo-Tupuola and Stamps did return, but Helton did not and was on crutches with his right foot in a boot. He was replaced by sophomore Rob Lapuaho.
They said it
"I had a few really costly mistakes that cost us a lot and turned the tide in that game, but overall I thought we were really in control most of the time, just kept hurting ourselves. Most of the time, they didn't stop us; we stopped ourselves. Balls I forced in there, that just can't happen. It's a bang-bang sport. A game of inches. Things I can't do." - ASU quarterback Cutter Boley
"We played a really good game in the first half, and then it was three or four possessions we just handed the ball to them, but that's stuff we can learn from. We just have to keep going and stay consistent the rest of the season." - ASU receiver Reed Harris
"Three plays, 21 points. You're not going to beat anybody. They're a good football team, played well for most of the game. Four plays were critical plays in the game. Those plays don't happen, and it's a different football game. But they did happen, so that's football. Right? You can't let those plays happen. You watched the game. We looked like we belonged. That wasn't the issue. We just made the mistakes, starting with the staff, and the mistakes were critical." - ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham.
Up next
The Sun Devils face Kansas at 9 a.m. on Sept. 19, at London's Wembley Stadium in their Big 12 Conference opener. ASU took a short flight from College Station to Dallas, then was having dinner there before jetting off to London later that night.
Kansas (1-1) lost to Missouri, 38-21, on Sept. 11, marking its fifth straight loss to its rival.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: ASU football report card. Sun Devils' miscues too much vs Texas A&M
