PHOENIX — Not once all season had West Virginia’s defense accommodated a 400-yard passer. Mike Bercovici changed that.
Rarely had the Mountaineers seen receivers exploit missed tackles and slivers of daylight for touchdowns like Arizona State’s did.
And not since October had Tony Gibson’s defense yielded 40 points.The Sun Devils snapped that string too.
Yet on the Cactus Bowl’s critical series, with Chase Field building a roar the folks could’ve heard in Tempe, the Big 12’s second-rated defense stiffened to preserve a 43-42 victory, keeping Arizona State and its dangerous kicker out of field-goal range.