Arizona State and Utah are the leaders in the Pac-12 South, and this could be a huge win for both programs.
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BYU (4-2) won its second consecutive game for the second time this season with another last-second victory in a 45-38 win over East Carolina at home. Arizona State likes to spread the ball around to a number of receivers. They have good athletes.
Arizona State is 4-0 against Utah since the latter joined the Pac-12 four seasons ago, but the last two meetings have been close, with the Utes covering as underdogs.
Whatever form of measurement you want to use, however, there’s no denying this simple truth: The Sun Devils have owned the Utes. But with the game tied, Mangum came back into the game to lead BYU to another last-second game-winning drive. The last two games have been decided by just four points, with the Sun Devils besting the Utes in overtime past year and then coming from behind in the fourth quarter to win in 2013.
Stretching that streak to 12 will be a major challenge for ASU (4-2) on Saturday in Salt Lake City. While wins are great, expectations for a ton of ’em in the first year aren’t that high. But head coach Kyle Whittingham might be wise to ban his players from reading media, because the hype can only hurt. “The volume of what they do and how well they’re coached is pretty impressive”. The Sun Devils have run for over 200 yards twice this season against Colorado and Cal Poly, and failed to run for 100 yards once this season, against Texas A&M.
The Sun Devils finally started living up to expectations with a road win over UCLA, which was in the top 10 at the time, and controlled Colorado in a 48-23 home victory last Saturday.
Arizona QB Mike Bercovici is tied for No. 11 in the nation with 14 touchdowns and his 1,604 passing yards is the 15th most in the country.
ASU defensive coordinator Keith Patterson understands that pressuring Wilson will be more hard this season against an offensive line that has allowed a Pac-12 best two sacks, but it isn’t always about sacks.
The defense is led by junior linebacker Salamo Fiso, who leads the Pac-12 in sacks and tackles for loss. Another big loss to USC dropped the Sun Devils out of the top 25.
Broncos freshman quarterback Brett Rypien has played terrific so far this season – posting the fifth-best passer rating (175.9) in the nation to go along with seven touchdowns and one interception – but will face his toughest test of the season against a physical Aggie defense. The Utes didn’t have a pass play over 13 yards against ASU last season. It will begin Saturday, October 17 at 10:00 p.m. ET. Demario Richard leads the ASU rushing attack with 529 yards on the season…
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Since HC Todd Graham took over coaching duties at Arizona State, Utah is 0-3 in their match-ups. Booker is averaging 133 yards per game rushing.
