Texas Defense Will Have Hands Full With Cam Skattebo

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It will take a Herculean effort from the No. 5 seed Texas Longhorns (12-2) on defense to keep stellar No. 4 seed Arizona State (11-2) running back Cam Skattebo from breaking off long runs. Skattebo showed that he was worthy of a Heisman Trophy ceremony invitation (even though one didn’t come). With his stocky build and ability to run downhill through opposing defenses, Skattebo will be a focal point when the Longhorns and Sun Devils do battle in the Peach Bowl at 1 p.m. EST on Jan. 1, 2025 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

Both teams also know what’s at stake in this College Football Playoff quarterfinal. Oh, and don’t think for one minute that Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian has not been looking at Skattebo’s style of play. He knows that Arizona State’s offense goes as far as Skattebo can take it. 

“Well, I think this: He’s a really versatile player,” Sarkisian said on Dec. 23 at a Peach Bowl press conference also attended by Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham, Inside Texas reported. “I think when you first turn on Cam’s tape, you’re thinking you’re just going to see Mike Alstott; you’re going to see this bruiser that’s just running into the line of scrimmage and bouncing off of people.

“Then, the more you watch him, you’re like, man, this guy has got really good feet, this guy has got great contact balance,” Sarkisian said. “This guy, right when you think he’s getting to run somebody over, he makes them miss. He uses his stiff arm. He’s really good in the open field. He’s got really good initial quickness after the catch (on pass plays) to get vertical.”

Texas Knows Skattebo Is Tough

Heading into the CFP game, Skattebo has 263 carries for 1,568 yards and 19 touchdowns. Skattebo, a 5-foot-11, 215-pound senior from Rio Linda, Calif., was lights-out great in the Big 12 Championship against Iowa State. He totaled 170 yards on 16 carries and scored 2 TDs. 

The Longhorns’ defense has simply been stout all season long. Players like freshman Colin Simmons, who won the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year award this week, are going to be counted upon to keep up their solid play in this CFP matchup. Texas’ defensive line buckled down when needed for two goal-line stands Longhorns fans will talk about for years to come. 

They stopped Texas A&M on a fourth-down play in the Longhorns’ win at Kyle Field in College Station, Texas. On Dec. 21 at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium, Clemson also was pushed back on yet another fourth-down play at the Texas goalline. The Longhorns beat the Tigers 38-24 to advance in CFP play. Dillingham is not blind to the effort put out on the field week in and week out by the Texas defense.

“They do such a good job of being fundamentally sound and just defeating blocks,” Dillingham said on Dec. 23. “That’s going to be a great challenge for us and our offensive staff is creating angles, creating leverage to give our guys an advantage to get Cam started and at least get him to second and third levels of players where he can win one-on-ones and not getting stuck at the line of scrimmage, obviously.”

Kenny Dillingham Sees Test Ahead

Dillingham and his Arizona State staff are very aware of the tweaks done by Texas on defense as a game progresses.

“But they do such a good job fundamentally moving D-linemen around, not big tweaks but minor tweaks throughout a game plan to take advantage of your running game, and like I said, I think that’s why they do a good job defensively in small changes are what good coordinators do, not big changes, and they’re a team that’s filled with small changes within a game plan,” he said.

Sarkisian will put his trust in defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski to dial up plenty of defensive schemes that befuddle Arizona State’s offense. Getting turnovers could play a vital role in Texas’ plans, yet Skattebo doesn’t make it easy to get the ball loose from his hands.

“On the flipside, when you look at it, when you have a runner carry it as much as Cam carries it and to think as a team they only have three fumbles on the year, to me that tells me they practice ball security,” Sarkisian said. “You just don’t not fumble the ball. You work at not fumbling the ball.” 

Defensive lineman Bill Norton, who made the key stop in Texas’ goal-line effort against Clemson, will look to have a repeat performance against Arizona State. Skattebo, though, will not be easy to bring down. It will provide Texas with a test all game long.