Editor’s note: This year, UA and ASU football will face off for the 100th time in what has come to be known as the Territorial Cup game. Leading up to that Nov. 28 matchup, which will be played right here in Tucson, we will be republishing the Arizona Daily Star’s coverage of each rivalry game — one a day — going back to their first meeting in 1899. Tune in daily for a blast from the past.
Some important things to keep in mind: This isn’t the 100th anniversary; the upcoming meeting will be the 100th time the teams have gone head-to-head. There were a number of years that they didn’t compete against one another. The Wildcats lead the all-time series vs. the Sun Devils, 52-46-1.
Matchup: Game 55
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Date: Nov. 28, 1981
Where: Tempe
Winner: ASU, 24-13
What was reported at the time:
By Greg Hansen
The Arizona Daily Star
TEMPE — It almost rained hard enough to open an ark-building business last night at Sun Devil Stadium, but the only football casualty was the University of Arizona, washed out by a flood of Arizona State touchdowns in the second quarter.
ASU scored 21 points in less than five minutes of the second period, blotting out the Wildcats' 6-0 lead and enabling the Sun Devils to win, 24-13.
ASU Quarterback Mike Pagel, who was intercepted four times, completed one pass in the second half, but his three touchdown passes in a 4:54 stretch of the second period were too much for the Wildcats to overcome.
The Sun Devils, 9-2, beat Arizona for the 15th time in 17 games. The UA, 6-5, ended with two consecutive losses, which is how it began the season.
Arizona's defense held ASU 86 yards below its NCAA-leading average of 506. It also forced five ASU turnovers but didn't get a point from them.
The Sun Devils intercepted five passes by UA quarterback Tom Tunnicliffe, getting 10 points as a result. Tunnicliffe was 14 of 33 for 151 yards on the wet field and had five passes dropped.
The UA had 300 total yards, with Vance Johnson running 23 times for 75.
But Pagel had 193 yards passing, and senior tailback Gerald Riggs totaled 80 yards on 21 carries.
"In the playing conditions, it was a phenomenal effort by Pagel," said ASU Coach Darryl Rogers.
"Our defense rose up time after time after time to take some things away from Arizona. They bailed us out with great plays."
But it was Pagel's second touchdown pass, a 20-yarder to Bernard Henry with 3:11 left in the first half — giving ASU a 14-6 lead — that did the big damage. The TD pass was Pagel's 28th of the season, a Pacific 10 Conference record.
The Wildcats had a chance for at least a tie in the fourth period, having rallied to 21-13. But they didn't score on any of their seven possessions in that period.
The game seemed to be decided in the first half. Or, precisely, the second period.
With 7:52 left in the half, the Wildcats led, 6-0, despite the fact they had driven to the Sun Devil's five-, 25- and 26-yard lines.
"We didn't capitalize early in the game when the momentum was ours," UA Coach Larry Smith said. "Three times we had it deep and came up with zero points.
"You can't win football games playing like that."
In the last 7:52 of the half, ASU outscored the UA, 21-0, but took just 12 plays to get its points.
It gained 187 yards in the second period and had 248 at the half (the UA had 157).
Clearly, the quarterbacks were much of the reason why.
Tunnicliffe had three passes intercepted in the half; Pagel threw three TD passes. What's more, Pagel had three passes intercepted but none on the Sun Devil half of the field.
The first Tunnicliffe interception aborted a 74-yard Wildcat possession. Linebacker Ricky Hunley gained 47 yards on a fake punt, reaching the ASU 28. A 17-yard pass to Brad Anderson on third down put the ball at the five. But Tunnicliffe, in the grasp of Sun Devil linebacker Darryl Comeaux, threw into a crowd at the goal line, and Vernon Maxwell intercepted.
On its next series, to open the second period, Arizona drove to the Sun Devil 25 with Johnson gaining 21 yards on three carries. On second down, Tunnicliffe threw late over the middle, and Nate King intercepted in the end zone.
Wildcat junior free safety Bubba Gross intercepted a Pagel pass to give Arizona the ball at its 49, and with the help of a personal-foul penalty for fighting on ASU end Jim Jeffcoat, the UA reached ASU's 25. But Johnson lost seven on a third-down play, and Bob Boris' 48-yard field-goal attempt was wide left.
Arizona finally ended its frustration when senior noseguard Gary Shaw — who had five tackles for losses in the half — intercepted a dump-off pass by Pagel on the next series. Shaw ran 24 yards to the Sun Devil 20.
Four plays later, Tunnicliffe dodged a sack attempt by two ASU linemen, wriggled free and threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to senior tight end Bill Cook, alone in the end zone. Brett Weber's attempted point-after kick was deflected by Duane Galloway.
In the final 7:52 of the half, Pagel's accurate throwing ability took advantage of the UA's pass defense.
First, he passed for a 44-yard TD to Jerry Bell, who beat Tony Neely down the right sideline. Luis Zendejas kicked the extra point to put ASU ahead, 7-6.
Next, Pagel passed 20 yards to Henry for a touchdown with 3:11 left in the half. An 18-yard pass to Jerome Weatherspoon on a third-and-14 play was significant, as was a 15-yard penalty on UA linebacker Gary Gibson on the same play, putting the ball at the 20.
Arizona got it back with 3:06 in the half, and Tunnicliffe threw his third interception, this time to Mike Richardson, into deep coverage over the middle. Richardson returned it 10 yards to the UA 35.
Pagel then passed to Henry again, who beat sophomore cornerback Greg Turner for a second score, a 35-yard touchdown, and a 21-6 lead.
The third period, as the first, seemed to be controlled by the Wildcats, who held ASU scoreless in 14 plays and scored on a 75-yard drive to cut ASU's lead to 21-13.
Pagel did not complete a pass in the third period and was one-of-nine for 13 yards in the second half as ASU kept the ball on the ground most of the way.
Brian Holland scored for the UA on a one-yard run, a score set up by two 17-yard completions to Kevin Ward and a 14-yard run by Johnson.
A pass-interference call on Galloway for bumping Brad Anderson gave Arizona a first down on the one.
The Wildcats got the ball seven times in the fourth period but couldn't score, despite taking over at the ASU 46 with 13 minutes to play on an interception by Ricky Hunley. Boris' 48-yard field-goal attempt failed on fourth down.
Two more Tunnicliffe passes were intercepted in the final six minutes, both when passes were dropped. Holland tipped a pass, and Comeaux got it at the UA 28 with 5:27 left.
Then, after Zendejas missed a 44-yard field-goal attempt, Arizona's last chance ended in a turnover.
A 14-yard completion to Cook got the UA to its 40, but Cook fumbled when he was hit by Ron Brown. Comeaux recovered at the 37.
The Sun Devils got their final three points thereafter, using a 33-yard run by Alvin Moore on a draw to get to the two. The UA's goal-line stand held — twice on tackles by Shaw — and Zendejas kicked a 20-yarder with 1:04 left, broadening ASU's lead to 24-13.
Shaw had 13 tackles, a pass interception and a fumble recovery.
Climb into the Arizona Daily Star’s time machine as we revisit every Territorial Cup matchup between U of A and ASU football ahead of the Nov.…
