Former West Linn standout quarterback will be featured in the Peach Bowl

On January 2, 2025By Littum

ATLANTA (KPTV) – Former West Linn and Westview High School standout quarterback Sam Leavitt will be front and center when the No. 4 Arizona State battles No. 5 Texas in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl Wednesday morning at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

“It’s the biggest stage in college football until you win the next one, and we’re all here for one goal,” Leavitt told media members this week.

The Sun Devils are one of the Cenedellas in this year’s reformatted football playoff bracket after being predicted to finish last in the Big 12 Conference before clinching its at-large berth after an 11-2 season. “It’s something we’ve lived with, being ranked last,” Leavitt said. “Every single game we are the underdog, that’s something we’ve lived with and helped us play better.”

Like most adventures, it took some time for the 6′2 dual-threat signal caller to find his footing at the next level.

His father, Jared, said the moment came a year ago when Leavitt transferred from Michigan State to Arizona State after his freshman season. “When we visited ASU, (Marcus) Arroyo later said he didn’t let us out of the room,” Jared Leavitt said. “So you can feel the desire and the faith they had in Sam, one hundred percent.”

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The trust shown by Sun Devils head coach Kenny Dillingham and offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo paid off big this season, as the redshirt freshman passed for 24 touchdowns and rushed for five more en route to earning Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year honors . “That’s what’s gotten him to this point, he’s wired in a way that he wants to be the best all the time,” Dillingham said. “All the time, and he has the confidence to want to be the best all the time.”

“On the run, not playing script, scrambling for a first down, that’s vintage Sam Leavitt, he did that a couple of times here. West Linn football coach Jon Eagle soared with the 2022 Oregon Gatorade Player of the Year, and says during that 6A championship run he saw a mentally tough star just starting to shine.

“I’ve never had a quarterback where maybe when things didn’t go well, he came back like those things didn’t happen,” Eagle said. “Quarterbacks get cautious when things aren’t going well, and Sam never had that. Always confident and very competitive.”

The two-time state championship coach with the Lions adds that even with the University of Oregon in the playoff field, the former prep star will have plenty of support at home. “I’ve picked out my snacks and the spot on the couch, can’t wait to see,” Eagle said.

While Leavitt is considered a front-runner for next year’s Heisman Trophy race, right now the Oregonian is focused on a deep run with ASU in this year’s postseason. “We put ourselves in this situation, we have three games left, so why not us?” Leavitt said.