TEMPE — There’s nothing quite like the tenacity of Duel in the Desert, and Saturday’s contest lived right up to its billing with the Wildcats taking the Territorial Cup back to Tucson after a 31-27 victory.
It was the Wildcats’ third victory against ASU in four years, and it also marked the third time in a row that the cup was won by the visiting team.
One thing was for sure throughout the entire contest; these teams have a pure hatred for one another.
Here are some things, seen and heard, that marked the 2011 installment in this storied rivalry:
Laser pointer … really?
At one point in the second quarter, the officials announced that a green laser was being shone on the field by one of the fans at Sun Devil Stadium. The referees announced that if the light persisted, that play would be suspended.
After the announcement, it didn’t seem to appear again.
Muhammed makes his mark
Linebacker Bilal Muhammed was among the seniors that shined in Arizona’s win.
In his second appearance of substantial playing time this year, Muhammed was put in the rover position and was dominant, managing to haul in two tackles for a loss.
“He came out and played that rover like something else,” Wildcats defensive back Jourdon Grandon. “He was causing havoc.”
Crump’s dancing shoes
Arizona wide receiver Gino Crump brought the Wildcats within three points off a 33-yard catch and run touchdown play.
It was a simple screen pass from Foles to Crump, who made fools out of four would-be tacklers.
“He danced (around defenders) a couple weeks ago, and I told him I doubt I’ll ever see a dance like that again,” Arizona interim head coach Tim Kish said. “But he fooled me, he came back with it.”
A profound statement
After Wildcat center Kyle Quinn grabbed the flag from the cheerleaders, he handed it off to Crump, who continued to run it toward midfield. Crump then speared the ASU pitchfork logo with the flagpole at the 50-yard-line.
“Payback’s a you-know-what,” Crump said after the game.
Celebration city
During the coaches and players press conference, you could hear the sounds of celebration in the Arizona locker room.
Cornerback Shaquille Richardson said he hadn’t seen a happier locker room in his life, calling it “such a party.”
The Wildcats also dusted off a few renditions of “Bear Down, Arizona” in celebration.
“(It was) wild, we sang the fight song at least two or three times,” Grandon said around midnight. “It’s crazy. I don’t think we’re gonna get out of here till 3 (a.m.).”
Quinn like a kid in a candy store
During the locker room celebration, ASU officials were looking for the Territorial Cup trophy to give to the Wildcats to take back to Tucson.
Halfway through Kish’s press conference, Quinn came charging into the press conference smiling from here to ear. The trophy clutched in his hand, he presented it to Kish.
“I like that, that’s some good stuff,” an excited Kish said to Quinn. “We gotta get this back to the locker room.”
As Quinn ran back out of the room he screamed, “We got it” and ran toward the rest of his team.
