Sick and injured, Sac State transfer Skattebo nearly helps Arizona State upset Colorado

Arizona State running back Cameron Skattebo didn’t start Saturday’s Pac-12 Conference game against Colorado, but somehow he found the strength to finish it.

Skattebo overcame illness and assorted aches and pains to suit up for the Sun Devils. The Sacramento State transfer wasn’t as explosive as he was in previous weeks, but he nearly helped Arizona State upset Colorado in a battle between first-year coaches Kenny Dillingham and Deion Sanders.

Skattebo rushed for 49 yards on 13 carries with one touchdown in a 27-24 loss to Colorado at Mountain America Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. He also had two catches for 17 yards and booted a 53-yard punt, but he was slow to get up and had to be helped off the field on multiple occasions.

Reporters in Tempe asked Dillingham after the game about Skattebo’s absence from the starting lineup and his seemingly reduced role. According to the Arizona Republic, Dillingham said: “He was out all week, didn’t practice. Sick and then a few other banged up injuries, so we were trying to get some of the young bucks running. We couldn’t use him as a lead guy because he was sick and he had the ailing things.”

Colorado (4-2, 1-2 Pac-12) bounced back from losses to Oregon and USC. Arizona State (1-5, 0-3) lost its fifth in a row with three starting offensive linemen and two key backups out due to injuries.

Skattebo, a former Sacramento Bee Player of the Year out of Rio Linda High School, has 367 rushing yards and 245 receiving yards in his first season with the Sun Devils. He was named Big Sky Conference Offensive Player of the Year after rushing for 1,372 yards for Sacramento State last season.

Skattebo powered his way into the end zone from the 1-yard line to cap a nine-play, 59-yard drive, giving Arizona State a 14-7 lead with 6:39 to play in the second quarter.

Skattebo later booted a 53-yard punt to put Colorado on its own 18-yard line with 3:03 to play in the first half. Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders orchestrated an 82-yard touchdown drive, scoring on an 18-yard run to tie the game with 54 seconds remaining in the half.

Arizona State kicked a field goal as time expired to reclaim the lead at halftime. Colorado went up 24-17 early in the fourth quarter. The Sun Devils tied the game with 50 seconds remaining after Skattebo converted on a fourth-and-1 run to keep the drive alive, but a big pass play on the ensuing possession put the Buffaloes in position to win on a 43-yard field goal from Alejandro Mata.