When I last left you, Shooter had just come out of the gauntlet. His Sun Devils were sitting at 1-6 with no hope of a bowl game because of their 11 game schedule. Can he keep the ASU football season from getting completely derailed? Or will he be looking elsewhere to play his junior year?
Primetime Television
ASU’s next game up was a primetime double feature on the Student Union Sports periscope. The first game of the double feature was at home against Oregon State. Oregon State at the time wasn’t anything special. They were a middle of the pack PAC-12 team, but when you’re Shooter and this Sun Devils offense, every game feels like you’re playing against the bounty gate New Orleans Saints. Shooter didn’t look great in this one. He was just doing enough to hang around.
As the 4th quarter was winding down, play by play and color commentator Bryce Hopwood finally showed up to the booth. Rumor has it he was out having a little too much fun in a sorority on campus. He showed up just in time though because with 40 seconds left in the game shooter went over the middle for a 40-yard go-ahead touchdown pass that sealed the Sun Devils 2nd victory of the season.\
It was a quick turnaround for Shooter and the squad because they hopped on a plane and went right back to work at Colorado. Colorado, much like Oregon State was very middle of the pack. And it was almost like fans were watching a replay of the OSU game because Shooter was very mediocre. He looked like he was with Hopwood the night before tearing up the campus.
Hopwood was once again on the call and he had this to say during the game,
“Shooter may be the worst quaterback in the country”- Bryce Hopwood
As the game winded down the Sun Devils were very much still alive. Shooter had them driving until a failed third-down conversion brought up 4th and long. Shooter looked over the middle and found no one. Ball game.
Hopwood was able to catch up with Shooter after the game and he had this to say,
“I’m going to hop in my car, drive back to Michigan, and forget that this even happened.”- Shooter
His time in Tempe may be running out.
Made for TV
The last two games of the season were also picked up by the Student Union Sports Periscope. The first at #25 Washington. All you need to know about that one was that it was a beat down.
Next up was rivalry week at home against Arizona. Arizona was also a very mediocre team. Before the game Shooter guaranteed a win over his rivals which we believe led Play by Play and Color Commentator Bryce Hopwood to run to his bookie and bet the house on UA.
Early on that bet looked safe as the Sun Devils went into halftime down 24-0. Shooter wasn’t going to give up that easily. He led two third-quarter touchdown drives to go into the 4th down 38-14. What happened next will go down as one of the greatest moments in NCAA history.
Shooter knew he had to trust his arm if he was going to come through on his promise. He wasn’t going to let what might be his last game in Tempe end in a blowout to his rival. He started going deep. One deep ball touchdown led to another which led to another. Just like that, it was 35-41, and Shooter had the ball in his hands. If it’s not broke don’t fix it is what they say so he went deep one more time. This one put the Sun Devils just inside the red zone with 1:13 remaining. The play call was a corner strike. A play that more often than not had led to an interception this season but something felt different in the huddle.
Shooter dropped back and immediately felt pressure but he channeled his inner Eli Manning and somehow broke free from the sack. He looked out to his right. Receiver X had just finished his corner route and was standing wide open at the pylon. The pass was in the air for what felt like an eternity. X reached out and caught the pass. Touchdown Sun Devils. They were an extra point away from taking the lead and the kick was good.
UA tried to drive down the field in the final minute but ran out of time in the final minute. Shooter had led one of the greatest comebacks in NCAA history and cost Hopwood a lot of money in the process.
The Decision
With his sophomore year being over, Shooter is now left with a big decision. Will he stay in Tempe for his junior year? or look for a fresh start elsewhere? You’ll have to stay tuned to find out. In the meantime, you can follow along on twitter @twitch_35 and @StudentUSports.