Sun Devils stay perfect, beat Cal

TEMPE, Ariz. – No. 7 Arizona State followed a familiar script to stay perfect.

The Sun Devils spotted No. 18 California a 13-point first-quarter lead, then rallied for a 31-20 victory on Saturday night. Dimitri Nance ran for three touchdowns and Rudy Carpenter threw for 219 yards and a touchdown as the Sun Devils overcame a double-digit deficit at home for the third time.

Arizona State (8-0, 5-0) took over first place in the Pac-10 and set up a high-stakes showdown with No. 5 Oregon next week in Eugene – a game that will have national title implications.

The Sun Devils can now comfortably call themselves national championship contenders. Students rushed the field to celebrate ASU’s first victory over a ranked opponent this season.

Nate Longshore threw for 261 yards and a touchdown for the Golden Bears (5-3, 2-3 Pac-10), who dropped their third straight. Cal has plunged from No. 2 in the country to sixth in the conference in 21 days.

First-year ASU coach Dennis Erickson improved to 27-15 against the Top 25. Erickson and his staff have become noted for their halftime adjustments, and they made the right ones on Saturday night as Arizona State shut out the Golden Bears in the second half. The Sun Devils have outscored opponents by a combined 153-29 after halftime.

ASU clinched the victory with a 12-yard touchdown pass in the fourth from Carpenter to Kyle Williams.