This past fall, maroon and gold mixed to make green in Tempe. ASU football won 11 games in 2024, its most this century. The Sun Devils took the Big 12 Conference by storm, winning a Big 12 Championship in its inaugural season in the league, and ASU’s first outright conference championship since winning the Pac-10 in 1996.

Following back-to-back 3-9 seasons, ASU’s successful 2024 campaign on the field rejuvenated an apathetic fan base, providing a much-needed boost to local businesses in Tempe.

“It was huge,” Cactus Sports owner Troy Scoma said. “Basically, what those two-and-a-half years did (the back-to-back 3-9 seasons) was put my business in a serious financial hole. So it was really the right time that my business needed to make itself whole again.”

Located in Tempe, Cactus Sports is a small business that sells merchandise and ASU memorabilia.

Scoma, who graduated from ASU with a business degree in 1991, launched the store with his brother in 1992 before moving away for a couple of years. He returned to Tempe in 1995 to become a partner with his brother at the store, and about six years later, Scoma bought out his brother for full ownership.

In 2013, the store moved from its original location at the corner of Fourth Street and Mill Avenue to its current location at Mill Avenue between Fifth and Sixth Street.

The COVID-19 pandemic devastated many small businesses. Over 700,000 businesses in the United States closed in the second quarter of 2020, according to the Federal Reserve. While many businesses across the country closed down for good, Cactus Sports weathered the storm.

However, after the pandemic problems, they were met with a new problem.

“You somehow find a way to get out of COVID, which we did,” Scoma said. “And then in 2021, by the time football came around, people hadn’t seen in-person football since 2019 … people were stuck in their houses … (ASU) finished the football season in 2022 with only three wins, and in 2023, we have only three wins again for the first time since World War II.

The previous administration (coached by Herm Edwards) and previous football regime had pretty much pissed off fans so badly, that apathy was the worst that I’ve ever seen. So it was really tough.”

Approximately 55-60% of Cactus’s Sports business in a year is generated between back-to-school season in August through the end of the college football season in December, Scoma estimates. Football and the foot traffic on Mill Avenue are major components of that.

In 2024, nearly 75% of Cactus Sports’ total sales were made August through December, a 96% increase from 2023, according to Scoma.

“It is completely night and day,” former Cactus Sports employee Caleb Campero said about the difference in foot traffic between the summer and the fall. “Summer days are incredibly hot and long, and because no one is on campus, you’re lucky to see even double-digit sales. When the fall comes and football season is here, shipments are coming in what seems bi-weekly.”

ASU’s breakout 2024 campaign came at the perfect time for Scoma and other businesses. Led by quarterback Sam Leavitt and running back Cam Skattebo, the Sun Devils earned a spot in the College Football Playoff before capping their season with a hard-fought Peach Bowl loss to Texas in double overtime.

“Last year with that miracle season, it was like the old days,” said Julian Wright, CEO and Founder of Forks and Dagger Hospitality.

Wright, an ASU grad, has two properties currently open on Mill Avenue: Pedal Haus Brewery and Devils Hideaway.

Pedal Haus, founded in 2015, has become a staple of the Tempe community. Since its inception, it has served as a popular restaurant and gathering place in the area, while receiving numerous accolades, including medals at the Great American Beer Festival and the World Beer Cup.

The three best days in Pedal Haus history have all been on the days of home football games, according to Wright.

Now, with winning ways returning to ASU football, so has the excitement in the fan base.

“They’re (Pedal Haus) really busy for games again, and people were actually watching away games, especially the last two,” Wright said.

Road games, in particular, have drawn strong crowds, reinforcing Pedal Haus’s status as a go-to watch spot for Sun Devil fans.

“We, Pedal Haus, had been an official sponsor of the athletic program, mostly focused on football,” Wright said. “Pedal Haus has been pretty established for being ASU supporters. Between the owner being an alumnus and the big mural we have for Sun Devils… We’re pretty well established as an away game watch place.”

Big 12 Brings Uncertainty

Pedal Haus took a break as the official sponsor of Sun Devil Athletics entering the 2024 season due to uncertainty regarding ASU’s transition to the Big 12.

“We were just really kind of curious how the conference change would affect things,” Wright said. “We’re used to getting a lot of people in when USC plays, most of the Pac-12 teams would travel really well. So even if our team wasn’t doing well, people would still show up and we’d still be busy.”

ASU’s 11-win season was exactly what local businesses needed to counteract the potential loss of revenue to a new conference schedule. They needed loyal and local Sun Devil fans to be active – and they delivered.

“On average, we estimate, based on DataFi information, on game day, 88% of the people in the stadium were from in-state … 12% were from out of state,” said Michael Martin, an ASU grad and President and CEO of Tempe Tourism.

Tempe Tourism is the tourism and marketing office for the city of Tempe. They’re tasked with collecting data, identifying target markets and encouraging or inspiring people to travel to Tempe.

One resource available to Tempe Tourism is DataFi information. DataFi measures mobile data, meaning if a fan attended a game at Mountain America Stadium without their phone or adjusted their settings to not allow data tracking, then that person wouldn’t be counted. This means DataFi information isn’t an exact science, but it can supply Tempe Tourism with trends and estimates.

Similar to Wright, Martin was curious about how the new conference would affect business in Tempe.

“I think it is more of a challenge to get people to travel here from smaller schools,” Martin said. “They might not have as large an alumni base or student base like the California, Washington or Oregon schools.”

The Pac-12 also had fan bases that were used to traveling to Arizona, a journey that Big 12 fans will need to adjust to.

“They (Pac-12 schools) had larger student populations, larger alumni bases who traveled and who were used to traveling and following their teams and used to coming into Arizona,” Martin said. “It wasn’t a big deal because it’s an hour flight. It’s a five to six hour drive from L.A. Or it’s a two-hour flight from Seattle … We’re an easy access point.”

In 2024, ASU welcomed schools from several states, including Mississippi, Florida and Kansas.

“If you have teams from other parts of the country, we don’t even have non-stop flights,” Martin said. “So, for example, Mississippi, how do you get here?”

Arizona State’s game against Mississippi State last September only had an estimated 3,185 out-of-state fans, or 7%, the lowest percentage of the season. The season high for out-of-state fans was last November against BYU. With a sold-out crowd of 55,400, 11,080 of them were from out-of-state, a season-high 20%.

Given the new markets, activity from local in-state fans was critical, and they stepped up with a 90% spending share at Mountain America Stadium.

ASU Football Activates The Valley

Pairing winning with ASU coach Kenny Dillingham’s youthful energy and “Activate the Valley” moniker breathed life into Tempe.

“We’ve never really had one central figure or central theme to dial everything to a point of why ASU is and can be special,” Arizona State assistant coach Charlie Ragle said. “I’m not just saying this because I work for the guy, but he is that beacon. He’s a kid that grew up here. He’s a kid that believes in Arizona State. He believes in the Valley of the Sun; he totally encompasses everything that is the Valley.”

Dillingham’s infectious energy and belief have been significant contributors to overall fan excitement, from fundraising efforts to showing up in support of other ASU athletic programs. His visibility and commitment have helped reignite school spirit and foster a stronger connection between the program and its supporters.

“Man, has that guy ever motivated that program and motivated the Valley,” Wright said. “I think that more people are paying more attention to the team. I feel like I’ve seen more ASU flags and stickers and license plates and people wearing ASU gear. Way more than I have in the past. So I would assume that’s partly motivated by Kenny and his being vocal about getting everyone involved.”

Even for ASU alumni and business owners who have been in Tempe for decades, they haven’t seen anything like the energy that Dillingham and his program brought last year.

In the retail world, markets such as playoff runs or championships are referred to as hot markets. Scoma, in his time as the owner of Cactus Sports and with his experience in his parents’ retail stores, has experienced many hot markets, but none quite like ASU football’s 2024 run.

“Out of all the hot market events that I’ve been involved with, I’ve gone through a Bear’s Super Bowl, I’ve gone through a couple of playoff runs,” Scoma said. “I’ve gone through three National Championships in town. I’ve gone through a Super Bowl in town … I’ve never experienced anything like what we dealt with last fall.”  – more at azbigmedia.com