Sun Devils Get Wild Win Over Huskies

Robert Nycz kicked a 38-yard field goal with two seconds remaining as No. 20 Arizona State averted a fourth-quarter collapse and beat Washington, 45-42, in the season and Pacific 10 opener for both teams Saturday night.

Washington, trailing 42-21 with 12 minutes remaining, tied the score behind freshman quarterback Brock Huard, who relieved starter Shane Fortney several times in a game that began in 95-degree conditions.

Huard scored on a 10-yard run with nine minutes left, then threw hooked up with Gerald Harris on a 67-yard touchdown pass play with 7:15 to play.

Jesse Binkley recovered an Arizona State fumble on the ensuing kickoff at the Sun Devils’ 21-yard line, and Washington tied the score on Corey Dillon’s 8-yard TD run with 5:13 left.

Freshman cornerback Jermaine Smith’s interception and 10-yard return to his team’s 22-yard line with 2:43 remaining gave the Huskies a chance to win it but they were forced to punt.

Geoff Prince’s kick only went 18 yards, however, and Arizona State took over at its own 37 with 56 seconds left.

Jake Plummer, who was 16 of 30 for 186 yards and three touchdowns, directed his team down to Washington’s 21 with seven seconds left.

Nycz, who was wide left on a 49-yard field goal try in the first quarter, then kicked his game-winner.

Arizona State had scored twice in a two-minute span of the third quarter to take a 28-21 lead.

Isaiah Mustafa recovered a fumble in the end zone after teammate J.R. Redmond’s 61-yard punt return to break a 22-21 tie with 3:07 left in the third quarter.

It came less than two minutes after Michael Martin had tied the game on a one-yard run.

Terry Battle’s 7-yard scoring run 29 seconds into the fourth quarter made it 35-21.

After Brent Bernstein recovered a fumble by Fortney at the Washington 4-yard line, Plummer lofted a 1-yard scoring pass to Steve Bush with 12:01 to play.

Washington, which had won 15 of its previous 17 season-openers including two against Arizona State since 1992, had taken a 21-14 lead on Fortney’s 36-yard touchdown pass to Cameron Cleeland.