INSIDE COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Third Time Is the Charm

Sun Devil surprise

by Ivan Maisel

Posted: Wed September 17, 1997

Arizona State coach Bruce Snyder sounded proud after his 24th-ranked Sun Devils beat No. 13 Miami at the Orange Bowl, whipping the Hurricanes more soundly than the 23-12 final score indicated. "This is a big win, and that's with a capital B," Snyder said. "I've brought some teams into the Orange Bowl before, and this is the first time I'm walking out of here with a higher score than the other team."

Snyder visited Miami before the Hurricanes became a national powerhouse (his Utah State team lost to Lou Saban's Miami team 17-16 in 1978) and during the Hurricanes' heyday (in '89 his California team was victim number 27 in Miami's 58-game Orange Bowl winning streak). Last Saturday he finally came calling with the right team at the right time.

The Sun Devils, overlooked in the preseason polls after winning the Pac-10 last year, rushed for 232 yards and passed for 239. They held the ball for 36:29, so long that desert-based Arizona State wore down humidity's darlings. In other words, the Sun Devils dominated the fourth quarter, which Miami (1-1) used to own. Hurricanes coach Butch Davis played 15 freshmen and sounded ready to give his team over to them. "We're going to play the guys who produce," he said.

An upset? Not really.

Issue date: September 22, 1997

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