No. 7 UCLA maintained its perfect record this season with an emphatic victory over Arizona on Saturday. The Bruins will look to stretch their unbeaten run even further when they take on the Arizona State Sun Devils in a marquee Pac-12 clash this coming Saturday.
Who will grab the edge in this blockbuster showdown? Read on below for an in-depth breakdown of this college football matchup and while you’re at it, you can check out our previews of Georgia vs. Alabama and Notre Dame vs. Clemson.
Arizona State’s playoff hopes were dealt a major blow on Saturday when it suffered a humiliating 42-14 defeat to the USC Trojans at Sun Devil Stadium. The Sun Devils had no answer for USC quarterback Cody Kessler, who threw for 375 yards and a whopping five touchdowns.
[sc:NCAA240banner ]It was a disappointing result for Arizona State, who had won three of its previous four games against USC. The main reason behind the Sun Devils’ meek performance was their unforgivable sloppy play. Arizona State turned the ball over four times in the first half against USC on Saturday night, and the Trojans turned them into 28 huge points. That’s the most points allowed off turnovers by the Sun Devils since 2006.
They will look to get their season back on track when they take on the streaking UCLA Bruins this coming Saturday. For the Sun Devils to record a massive upset, they need to do a much better job of stopping their opponents’ third downs. Arizona State had a hard time getting off the field on defense, allowing USC to convert 10 of its 16 third downs.
It’s also paramount for the Sun Devils that they protect the football against the Bruins. A year ago, the Sun Devils were one of the best in the country at taking care of the football, fumbling 15 times and losing four. So far this season, Arizona State has been one of the worst, fumbling 13 times and losing seven.
The Sun Devils are 7-3 SU and 5-5 ATS in their last 10 road games.
UCLA will head to its Pac-12 showdown with Arizona State with momentum on its side after trouncing Arizona, 56-30, on Saturday night. It was another impressive victory for the Bruins who improved their overall season-record to 4-0. The Bruins have won their first four games by an average of 19.8 points.
Key to UCLA’s hot start has been their solid offense. The Bruins are averaging 37.8 points per game this season, 32nd in the entire FBS. Just like in their previous three games, it was Josh Rosen who grabbed the headlines for UCLA against Arizona State. He completed 19 of 28 passes for 284 yards and two touchdowns in his first game against a Pac-12 rival. Jordan Payton was Rosen’s favorite target in this one-sided contest, catching seven passes for 136 yards, including a touchdown on the night.
What proved to be the difference in this game, though, was UCLA’s aggressive defense. The Bruins have won all three games against Arizona under head coach Jim Mora and they have done it, in large part, by bogging down the Wildcats’ vaunted up-tempo offense. Just last year, the Bruins held the Cardinals to one of their worst offensive performances under head coach Rich Rodriguez, beating them 17-7. The Bruins were relentless once again in this game, forcing Arizona to commit three costly turnovers.
They will need more of the same defensive intensity for them to preserve their unbeaten record against Arizona State. The Bruins are allowing just 18.0 points per game this season, 29th in the FBS. They will fancy their chances of stopping an Arizona State offense that is averaging just 25 points per contest this campaign, 93rd in the entire FBS.
The Bruins are 5-1 ATS in their last six home games against the Sun Devils.
