Arizona State Beats Kansas State 28-17 as Freshman Mack Scores All Four Touchdowns

Arizona State beat Kansas State 28-17 at Mountain America Stadium in Tempe on Saturday, October 24, 2026. True freshman running back Cardae Mack rushed for 159 yards on 26 carries and scored all four Arizona State touchdowns, including two in the fourth quarter that turned a 17-14 deficit into the final score.

The quarter scores were Kansas State 7, 3, 7, 0 and Arizona State 7, 7, 0, 14. Arizona State improved to 4-3 overall and 2-2 in the Big 12. Kansas State fell to 4-3 overall and 1-3 in conference games.

Three quarterbacks for Arizona State

Arizona State played three quarterbacks. Starter Mikey Keene left the game with an injury late in the second quarter after completing 10 of 20 passes for 160 yards. Cutter Boley took over in relief and completed 1 of 5 passes. True freshman Jake Fette then replaced Boley, completed 3 of 6 passes for 45 yards, and helped Arizona State score 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to win the game.

Kansas State played without its regular starter. Jacob Knuth started for the injured Avery Johnson and completed 26 of 41 passes for 194 yards. Knuth threw one touchdown pass and ran for another touchdown for the Wildcats.

Mack takes over the fourth quarter

Mack gave Arizona State the lead for good with a 12 yard touchdown run at 14:55 of the fourth quarter. His fourth touchdown came with 6:23 left in the fourth quarter and gave Arizona State its 28-17 lead. The Sun Devils defense held Kansas State scoreless in the fourth quarter.

That finish followed a turning point late in the third quarter. Arizona State forced four turnovers on downs in Kansas State's last five possessions. A failed Kansas State fourth and 12 in Arizona State territory late in the third quarter shifted the momentum and led to a quick Arizona State go-ahead touchdown on the next sequence.

Mack carried the load for the Arizona State running game. He took 26 of the 30 carries by Arizona State backs. He had already broken out earlier this season against Hawaii, where he rushed for 154 yards and two scores, after carrying the ball only four times through Arizona State's first three games.

This report does not publish a yardage line for Arizona State receiver Reed Harris. The hunter package flagged conflicting Harris totals across the named outlets, and the editor was told not to use any Harris line without the official box score. No Harris figure is stated here for that reason.

Arizona State plays at BYU on October 31. Kansas State plays at Colorado on the same day.