TEMPE — For a good chunk of last Saturday’s 26-22 win over No. 7 Texas Tech, it looked like Arizona State was going to win comfortably.
However, errant special teams play in the fourth quarter let the Red Raiders back in it after ASU took a 19-7 lead.
Texas Tech fought all the way back to take a lead with two minutes left thanks to multiple instances of advantageous field position, before Sam Leavitt led the ASU offense on a well-executed two-minute drill to come away with the win.
Head coach Kenny Dillingham on Monday said he kept the entire team in for the special teams meeting to watch the miscues that he called “embarrassingly bad football.”
“Quarterbacks, O-line, I don’t care. You’re staying in here because everybody needs to understand how important this was to winning and losing a football game,” Dillingham said. “I haven’t done a good enough job making sure people understand the importance.
“It was a reality check this last week for us to get better at that area. And there’s going to be an improved intensity, an imporved effort and improved mindset in those phases of the game because that was just unacceptable.”
What special teams miscues by Arizona State let Texas Tech back in it?
ASU scored a touchdown to take a two-possession lead early in the fourth, and the avalanche of miscues started on the ensuing kickoff.
here’s a look back at the asu special teams in fourth vs. texas tech, including:
some bad kickoff coverage (but a good save by jesus gomez), a blocked punt, a punt off the side of the foot and an offsides kickoff that actually benefitted asu because of time bled off the clock. pic.twitter.com/PRX3oisBDX
— Damon Allred (@iamdamonallred) October 20, 2025
A porous kickoff coverage allowed a 56-yard return into Sun Devil territory, with Jesus Gomez slowing the return enough to get a stop.
The defense held and forced a turnover on downs, but the poor coverage was a sign of things to come.
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Punting became an issue as ASU found itself in a fourth-and-2 at the Texas Tech 44-yard line. A slow operation by punter Kanyon Floyd — who was notably doubtful throughout the week as he’s battled a quad injury much of the season — mixed with an all-out rush resulted in a blocked punt that was returned to the ASU 48.
The Red Raiders would score in 11 plays.
The next ASU drive went three-and-out and left Floyd punting from his own 19. With the blocked boot possibly still on his mind, it went off the side of his foot for 29 yards, and Coy Eakin returned it 36 yards before Floyd pushed him out.
The Red Raiders found the end zone on the next play.
The final sequence was a kickoff that had to be redone because of offsides, and Gomez wasn’t aiming for a touchback on either kick.
With a four-point lead that required Texas Tech to go the length of the field, ASU put its chips on running time off the clock rather than pin the Red Raiders as far back as possible. The clock was squeezed from 34 seconds to 25 after the do-over.
With the exception of red zone offense, ASU has done well in cleaning up areas of emphasis this season, whether it be the physicality after the Utah loss or shoring up explosive plays after the Mississippi State loss.
The game against Houston on Saturday will be a good opportunity for special teams coordinator Charlie Ragle’s unit to show potential improvements, as Houston boasts a dangerous return man in Mekhi Mews, who has two punt returns for touchdown in his career.
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