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Arizona State Football: Revisiting the Epic 2016 Clash With Patrick Mahomes and the Texas Tech Red Raiders

This weekend, the Arizona State football team will attempt to push their undefeated season through four weeks with a road win in Lubbock against the Texas Tech Red Raiders. Last Saturday, the Arizona State Sun Devils survived a back-and-forth on the road against top non-Power Five opponent Texas State. Conversely, Texas Tech beat down North Texas 66-21. The Sun Devils and the Red Raiders will play their Big 12 opener this weekend. Despite ASU being a new face in the now heavily loaded conference, the two squads battled three times in the 2010s, highlighted by an epic 68-55 Sun Devils victory in 2016.

ASU combined for eight total touchdowns, yet Red Raiders signal-caller Patrick Mahomes, yes, that Patrick Mahomes, nearly matched the Sun Devils by himself. Many college football accounts are reliving the monumental tilt from 2016 ahead of this interconference matchup on Saturday.

Reliving Arizona State Football’s All-Time Offensive Performance vs. TTU

Arizona State football
Christian Petersen/Getty Images (Arizona State Sun Devils football recruiting)

Trending on Twitter through ProducerWes:

Texas Tech at Arizona State – 2016 Kalen Ballage scored eight touchdowns, tying the NCAA record against an FBS opponent.

On a hot autumn night in Tempe, Arizona, the Texas Tech Raiders visited the Arizona State football team in a non-conference matchup. A high-scoring affair ensued, with both teams combining for 1,264 yards, 123 points, 90 pass attempts, and just two sacks. More notably, Arizona State running Kalen Ballage rushed for seven touchdowns and caught a score, tying the NCAA record for a player against an FBS opponent. After six rushing touchdowns of seven yards or less, Ballage broke open for a 75-yard score late in the fourth quarter. The future NFL back finished with 137 yards on 13 carries and seven touchdowns. He also caught two passes for 48 yards and a touchdown.

As for the Sun Devils defense, they were essentially nonexistent, surrendering 55 points to a Patrick Mahomes-led Texas Tech offense. Mahomes tried his best to keep pace with ASU’s offense, going 38-of-53 for 540 yards and five touchdowns. However, he recorded two interceptions, likely the difference in a 68-55 game. The two teams met again in 2017 to finish the home-and-home series, but Mahomes had since darted to join the NFL. Meanwhile, Ballage had a down game compared to the 2016 rendition, tallying just one touchdown in a 52-45 loss.

patrick mahomes texas tech nebraska cornhuskers dylan railola
Oct 25, 2014; Fort Worth, TX, USA; Texas Tech Red Raiders quarterback Patrick Mahomes (5) throws during the game against the TCU Horned Frogs at Amon G. Carter Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

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About Alec Musa

Alec is a sports writer and former college/high school football coach from Phoenix, Arizona. Before taking on his current role at Gridiron Heroics, Alec worked for Sportskeeda in the same role. He covers the Dallas Cowboys, Kansas City Chiefs, Florida State Seminoles, and Michigan Wolverines.

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