|
 Gonzalez?
"I don't worry about him," Graham said. "He has a personality that
gives you a lot of confidence. If he lines up right, he's going to
make every field goal he tries. He's special."
Gonzalez made a 36-yarder on the final play to help the No. 15 Sun
Devils to a 19-16 overtime victory over No. 18 Utah in a Pac-12 game
at Sun Devil Stadium.
Andy Phillips missed a 35-yard field goal attempt wide left on
Utah's overtime possession, and Arizona State ran three plays into
the line before Gonzalez's kick.
Phillips had made 12 straight field goals in four games before his
miss.
"It was just a misjudgment on my part," Phillips said, "just a
little bit of over-compensation. When it comes to field goal
kicking, it is a game of inches and I put that one just barely
outside the upright."
Gonzalez made four field goals for the second time in three games,
and his 30-yarder tied the score with 5:47 remaining in the fourth
quarter. Although he missed a 50-yard attempt, he is 14 of 17 this
season.
 "They asked me after the game, 'How'd you feel when the best kicker
in the country missed that field goal?' I said, 'What do you mean,
the best kicker in the country made that field goal,'" Graham said.
Arizona State (7-1, 5-1) won its fourth straight game and is the
only team in the division with one loss. The Sun Devils will win
their second straight South title if they win their final three
Pac-12 games.
"We're in the driver's seat, and that's where we want to be,"
Arizona State quarterback Taylor Kelly said.
The Sun Devils play No. 6 Notre Dame (7-1) on Saturday.
Running back Devontae Booker had 146 yards rushing on a career-high
37 carries for the Utes (6-2, 3-2).
Booker scored on a 4-yard pass on the first possession of the third
quarter for a 13-13 tie, and Phillips made a 44-yard field goal on
the next possession for a 16-13 lead.
Utah quarterback Travis Wilson completed 12 of 23 passes for 57
yards and a touchdown.
Utah's last four games have been decided in the final seconds of
regulation or overtime. The Utes beat USC 24-21 on a touchdown pass
with eight seconds remaining last Saturday after topping Oregon
State 29-23 in double overtime on Oct. 16 and UCLA 30-28 when the
Bruins missed a field goal attempt as time expired.
"Us on offense need to make more plays," Wilson said. "We have to
help out our defense and we are not doing that so far and we need to
improve on it."
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Kelly completed 18 of 32 passes for 205 yards, with a touchdown and
an interception.
Arizona State freshman running back Demario Richard rushed for a
career-high yards 126 yards as the Sun Devils had 444 total yards,
239 rushing.
"He gives us something, a bruising power," Graham said of Richard.
"Our running back corps is special. We have a stable of guys."
Gonzalez made 20- and 45-yard field goals to end Arizona State's
first two drives and the Sun Devils' defense limited Utah to two
first downs and 21 yards in first quarter.
Phillips made a 50-yard field goal with 9:13 remaining in the second
quarter after linebacker Gionni Paul intercepted a Kelly pass that
ricocheted off another defender.
Kelly hit wide receiver Jaelen Strong with a 6-yard touchdown pass
with 7:13 remaining in the first half, capping a five-play, 75-yard
drive for a 13-3 lead.
Phillips' 36-yard field goal as time expired made it 13-6 at half.
NOTES: Arizona State and Utah are the only teams to have beaten
South Division rival USC (6-3, 5-2) in conference play. Arizona
State beat USC 38-34 on a Hail Mary pass on the final play of the
game on Oct. 4, and Utah beat the Trojans 24-21 with eight seconds
remaining on Oct. 25. ... Utah played without senior WR Dres
Anderson, who suffered a season-ending knee injury against USC.
Anderson had 22 receptions and led the team with 355 receiving yards
and four touchdowns before suffering his injury on the winning
drive. ... Arizona State had won the last 10 games against Utah, the
second-longest active streak in the Pac-12. Oregon has won 11
straight against Washington. ... The Pac-12 South is 18-13 against
the North this season. No. 5 Oregon is the only North team with a
winning record.
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reserved.]
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