Arizona Football battles for pride in showdown with the Sun Devils

It’s that time again, it’s the Territorial Cup, and for the Arizona Football team (4-7, 2-6), nothing else matters except beating rival ASU (6-5, 3-5).

It’s been a rough ending to the 2019 Arizona Football season. After starting the season 4-1 (2-0), the Wildcats have stumbled, and have stumbled hard, falling to 4-7 (2-5) and officially out of bowl contention. 

Arizona Wildcats

Injuries, coaching changes, etc. regardless of the issue this season, it’s all gone wrong for Arizona, and simply put, things have been ugly these past few weeks.

However, the sting of a bowl-less season can be remedied somewhat in the eyes of fans with a win over rival ASU.

The challenge will be on though, as the Sun Devils will surely be riding high after a big win over No. 6 Oregon at home last weekend. It’s worth noting that the Sun Devils have played at home this season, compiling a 4-2 record.

Nonetheless, despite their inconsistencies, ASU is bowl bound for the second season in a row under Herm Edwards, and have a talented group, especially on the defensive side of the ball to make this a tough match-up.

To make matters worse, Arizona has battled injury lately especially along the offensive line, and if the Cats are unable to field a decent group on offense this week, getting a win in Tempe seems unlikely. However, with rivalries you just never know how they’re going to go.

With that said, here’s our ‘Week 14’ preview of Arizona’s match-up against the Sun Devils:

Know Thy Foe:

Team: Arizona State Sun Devils (6-5, 3-5)

Conference: Pac-12 Conference

2018 Record: 7-6 (5-4); finished the season by losing to Fresno State 31-20 in the Las Vegas Bowl.

Head Coach: Herm Edwards. Enters just his second season as head coach of the Sun Devils and as a college coach. With an overall record of 13-11, Edwards has ASU bowl eligible for the second year in a row.

So far, the Devils have been rather competitive this season and are certainly riding high after their upset of No. 6 Oregon last week.

Key Returners/ Starters: Starting with the offense, this is a group that has gotten significantly better as the season has gone on, specifically along the offensive line. ASU struggled here at first to begin the year and are playing much better now and it’s showing in their offensive production.

Led mostly by freshman quarterback Jayden Daniels, he has played well this season, throwing for a over 2,600 yards, with 17 touchdowns to just two interceptions. He’s also been pretty good with his legs, running for 257 yards three touchdowns this season as well.

He’s a threat to find his guys down field, and is also a threat to extend plays with his legs and keep defenses honest.

At running back, Eno Benjamin returns for his junior season and although his production is down this year, he is still one of the better backs in the conference and lately he has found a nice groove. This year Benjamin has rushed for 915 yards and eight touchdowns, and while he is a threat to break big runs, he also does a nice job catching passes out of the backfield, giving Daniels a solid outlet option.

As for their receivers, ASU uses a myriad of targets, but there’s no question guys like; Brandon Aiyuk, Kyle Williams and Frank Darby get a majority of the targets, combining for 128 receptions for 2,115 yards and 18 touchdowns so far. All three are play makers, and can beat you over the top, or they can find shifty ways to get open in zone coverages. They will surely challenge the Arizona secondary on Saturday.

Along the offensive line is where ASU has struggled the most. This is a group that has battled some key injuries, and also had to rotate in some younger players. This group has certainly gelled lately and are playing much better and it’s showing in just how efficient this offense has been lately.

Defensively is where the Sun Devils excel the most though. Led mostly by linebackers Merlin Robertson, Darien Butler as well as defensive back Evan Fields, this defense has a lot of good play makers on that side of the ball, and they play fast and aggressively.

Guys like Khaylan Kearse-Thomas, Chase Lucas and Kobe Williams will be vital to the Sun Devils success this weekend, and with all three having nice seasons so far, I would expect their impact to be felt in this one.

Lastly, the Sun Devils have a pretty good pass rush, and again if Arizona is unable to get any of their linemen healthy prior to Saturday, I would look for Jermayne Lole, Kearse-Thomas and Tyler Johnson to really pressure Arizona’s backfield and potentially have big days. All three have certainly done well this season in creating havoc, and slowing them down will be important.

Key Injuries: 

Arizona 

• OL – Cody Creason (Questionable) – Did not play versus Utah, so his status is unknown at this time.
• OL – Josh McCauley (Questionable) – Did not play versus Utah, and is questionable versus ASU.
• OL – Paiton Fears (Questionable) – Did not play versus Utah, and is questionable versus ASU.
• OL – Jordan Morgan (Questionable) – Did not play versus Utah, and is questionable versus ASU.

Arizona State

• QB – Cameron Rising (Out) – Rising has been dealing with an eligibility matter and will not be available for the 2019 season.
• DL – George Lea (Out) – Lea suffered a season-ending knee injury and will be out for 2019.
• DB – Demetrious Flowers (Questionable) – Flowers sat out the last game with an unspecified injury, and it is unknown if he will face Arizona.
• WR – Curtis Hodges (Questionable) – Hodges has an undefined injury, and it is unclear if he will play Saturday against Arizona.
• QB – Joey Yellen (Questionable) – Yellen has missed the last two games with a shoulder injury, and it is unclear if he will be available against Arizona

Game Information: 

When: Saturday, November 30th, 2019

Time: 8:00 PM MST/ 7:00 PM PST

Watch: ESPN

Where: Sun Devil Stadium – Tempe, AZ (53,599)

Spread: -13.5 ASU

Overall Series Record: 49-42-1 Arizona. We’ve definitely seen some drastic ‘pendulum swings’ in this rivalry, and there’s no doubt ASU is seeing that right now, winning five of the last seven, including two straight.

Last Meeting vs. Arizona: Arizona State won the last match-up by a 41-40 final, and as we all know too well as this point, the Wildcats squandered a 19-point fourth quarter lead to lose.

My Prediction: ASU 31 Arizona 23. Picking ASU? Yes, I know, I hate to do it, but this Arizona team has been a mess and the culture of this team is bad right now, meanwhile the Devils are riding high after their win over No. 6 Oregon.

I do think ASU will be carrying a lot of that momentum into this one, nonetheless it is a rivalry, and because of that it is still winnable. If Arizona is to win, I think a lot of it will depend on whether the Cats will be healthy along the offensive line. If they are not, it’s going to be a long day for the Cats.

Either way, Arizona’s offense has been atrocious lately and because of that, I think the Cats come up short in this one.

Prediction record so far: 7-4

At Zona Zealots, we’re hoping the Cats can just end the season on a high note! As always, Bear Down, Arizona and beat the Devils!