Sun Devil Time Capsule: Revisiting Historic Kalen Ballage Performance

One of the most legendary performances in recent college football history came from that of an Arizona State player - an unlikely figure, at that.

Ballage - who was entering his junior season in 2016 - had only taken 167 carries across his first two seasons in Tempe, and was coming off of a modest 56 yard showing in a 44-13 victory over Northern Arizona in the season opener.

In came Texas Tech.

No one would have guessed the end result prior to kickoff - but history was made, as previously stated - Ballage found the end zone eight times in Arizona State's 68-55 victory over the Red Raiders.

The scoring started early in the second quarter and never ceded. While the majority of Ballage's trips to the end zone were short-range scores, he did haul in a 39 yard receiving touchdown to continue positive momentum for the Sun Devils, and eventually broke the game open with a 75 yard rushing score that put Arizona State up 65-48 with just over nine minutes remaining in the game.

The legendary performance from Ballage becomes even more obscene when the context is added that he outshined then Texas Tech quarterback Patrick Mahomes - who accounted for 584 total yards and six touchdowns of his own.

Not many within the Sun Devil locker room were shocked by this incredible showing - former ASU head coach Todd Graham included.

“It’s hard to really point out individuals in a win like that. Kalen is a guy who is just now figuring out how powerful and explosive he can really be, and I think tonight he began to scratch that surface really well.”

Ballage showcased high-end ability on an occasional basis - but was never truly able to build off of this massive game, as he only found the end zone 11 more times in his final 23 games with the program.

The talented back did eventually get picked in the fourth round of the 2018 NFL draft by the Miami Dolphins, but unfortunately did not pan out as expected.

Still, Ballage is responsible for some truly great core memories amongst the Sun Devil fanbase and should absolutely be commended for that.

Read more on Arizona State running backs coach Shaun Aguano reflecting on Cam Skattebo's time with the program here, and on 2027 recruit Dane Weber discussing the interest the Sun Devils have shown him here.