Biggest Win in Program History Makes Arizona State True Playoff Contender

It's time to start taking Arizona State seriously.

We are past the point where its legitimacy can be denied.

The Sun Devils entered Week 11 ranked No. 9 in the College Football Playoff standings, but it never truly felt like they belonged at the grownup table—i.e., the discussion to make the national semifinal. But the way in which they beat No. 10 Notre Dame, a team that nearly beat No. 2 Florida State in Tallahassee, was not something a team at the kids table could have accomplished.

It was also their first win over a Top 10 team since 2002:

The Sun Devils forced five turnovers in the 55-31 victory, although a cynic might claim they were "given" more than "forced." Notre Dame quarterback Everett Golson played poorly—no doubt—but ASU had seven sacks and wreaked havoc at every level.

It also engineered just enough offense to leave a positive impression on that side of the ball. The point total is obviously misleading (Notre Dame actually outgained ASU 487-412), but quarterback Taylor Kelly looked more comfortable in his third game back from a foot injury than he did in his previous two, completing 17 of 28 passes for 224 yards and scoring four total touchdowns.

"Nobody flinched," said Kelly of the mood when Notre Dame pulled within one score, 34-31, per Doug Haller of AZCentral Sports.

It's easy not to flinch when your quarterback's a redshirt senior.

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Which isn't to say that things were perfect.

They weren't.

Arizona State didn't bury Notre Dame the way it should have, allowing the Irish to clamber back into the game. The defense was energetic and opportunistic, but too often it was also disorganized.

This, for example, was the coverage Notre Dame exploited to pull within three points midway through the fourth quarter:

The Jekyll-and-Hydeness of Arizona State is what makes it so difficult to count on. But it's also what makes it so fun.

And it might be what makes it so good.

The Sun Devils have survived the first 11 weeks with just one loss on their resume, which is all that matters moving forward. We know how low their basement is—does UCLA 62, Arizona State 27 ring a bell?—but we also know the height of their ceiling.

When they're playing as well as they played in the first half Saturday, they can hang with (and beat) just about anybody.

How many other teams can that be said about?

The only games left on ASU's schedule are at Oregon State (in a pretty glaring letdown spot) next week, home against Washington State and at No. 19 Arizona. That is not a waltz to an 11-1 season and Pac-12 South title, but neither is it exceptionally tough. On a subjective scale from 1-10, I would probably give it a six.

From there, all Arizona State would need is a win in the Pac-12 Championship Game, ostensibly over Oregon, to crash the CFP. Would it be favored in that game? No. And rightfully not. Oregon is the better, more consistent team. It has been that way all season.

But for 60 minutes? We've seen what Arizona State can do.

Christian Petersen/Getty Images

The Sun Devils needed a Hail Mary to beat USC earlier this season, a fluky result that has colored most peoples' perception of their playoff viability (this author included). But you know who else needed a Hail Mary to finish with one loss? The 2013 Auburn Tigers.

And that team came within 13 seconds of winning it all.

Arizona State head coach Todd Graham was a mentor to Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn, hiring Malzahn to run his offense at Tulsa in 2007 and 2008. His current offensive coordinator, Mike Norvell, is a Malzahn-esque evil genius who rarely gets out-schemed.

With athletes such as running back D.J. Foster and receiver Jaelen Strong playing at an All-Pac-12 level (if not better), Graham and Norvell have the weapons to parlay that scheme into success. They also have the quarterback, assuming Kelly reverts to last year's form.

Arizona State finishing 12-1, winning the Pac-12 and landing in the playoff sounds ludicrous on paper, but is it any more ludicrous than the run Auburn made last season? ASU entered the week No. 9 in the CFP standings, after all. That's precisely where Auburn entered Week 11 in the BCS standings last year.

This might not be the end of the similarities.

Follow Brian Leigh on Twitter: @BLeighDAT