Multiple Players Ejected After Arizona, ASU Rivalry Game Ends In Benches-Clearing Brawl
Saturday's Duel in the Desert came down to the wire, but Arizona beat Arizona State on its home turf to keep the Territorial Cup in Tucson. That didn't keep the Sun Devils from going down without a fight, though. Literally.
The two sides came to blows late in the fourth quarter and multiple players were sent to the locker room.
Entering the weekend, neither the Wildcats nor their in-state opponents could reach bowl eligibility with a ceiling of five and four wins, respectively. While that undoubtedly leads to disappointment, it also heightens the importance of their final game of the season.
A win or loss can determine an entire season's success.
Arizona and Arizona State came to blows in 2022, literally.
This year marked the 95th meeting between the two Grand Canyon State programs. Both sides traded hypothetical punches through the first 58 minutes.
Arizona held a three-point lead with 1:22 left in the game.
However, Arizona State had the ball with a chance to tie the game on a field goal or find pay dirt and take the lead. Neither of those two things happened as the Wildcats picked off the Sun Devils to seal the win.
The Arizona sideline poured out onto the field in jubilee. Arizona State did not like that and a fight broke out between the two sides.
It could have been a lot worse. Flags were flying as the fight was broken up and five players were ejected for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Two players from the home team hit the showers early. Three visitors were tossed.
The brawl on Friday came with a large amount of irony after a mascot fight in the third quarter.
Little did Sparky the Sun Devil and Wilbur Wildcat know, they were just the preliminary fight with the main event to come at the end of regulation.