Colorado @ Arizona State preview
Sun Devil Stadium
Last Meeting ( Oct 15, 2016 ) Arizona State 16, Colorado 40
Looking for its third win over a top-25 opponent in five games, Arizona State hit a sizable speed-bump last week in falling to visiting USC 48-17. Now the Sun Devils will try to regroup when they host Colorado on Saturday night to cap their annual Salute to Service week.
Arizona State entered the USC game with three wins in its previous four outings, beating Oregon (37-35), defending Pac-12-champion Washington (13-7) and Utah (30-10), but was gashed by the Trojans for 607 total yards, including 341 on the ground. “I feel good about our team, I feel good about the young men, the character on our team and the discipline that we have,” Sun Devils coach Todd Graham said at his weekly Monday news conference. “We just have to push restart and go to the next week.” Colorado, meanwhile, entered last weekend having dropped four of its previous five but rebounded with one of its best all-around games of the season in thrashing visiting California 44-28 and now is seeking to maintain the momentum with only three regular-season contests remaining. “We don’t have that many games left – only three guaranteed, and we want to help our seniors get to that bowl game,” Buffaloes linebacker Rick Gamboa said at the team’s weekly news conference Tuesday. “That sense of urgency is increasing more and more as we get closer to Saturday.”
TV: 9 p.m. ET, Pac-12 Network. LINE: Arizona State -4.5
ABOUT COLORADO (5-4, 2-4 Pac-12): A week after getting benched in a 28-0 loss at Washington State, sophomore quarterback Steven Montez bounced back with his best outing of the season, throwing for 347 yards and three touchdowns and rushing for 17 yards and another score against Cal. Montez also continues to get plenty of help from running back Phillip Lindsay, the conference’s third-leading rusher (139.3 yards per game), who amassed 184 total yards and has rushed for at least 161 yards in three of his last four outings. Gamboa (7.2 tackles) and fellow linebacker Drew Lewis (7.4) lead a Colorado defense which is surrendering the fifth-fewest points in the conference at 25 per game.
ABOUT ARIZONA STATE (4-4, 3-2): Quarterback Manny Wilkins threw for 259 yards and a TD and added another score on the ground against USC and ranks sixth in the conference in total offense with 268.4 yards per outing. The Sun Devils, though, were missing second-leading rusher Kalen Ballage (54.0 yards) who sat out with a virus but should be able to return Saturday to resume his potent 1-2 punch with fellow senior Demario Richard (54.1 rushing yards). Linebacker Christian Sam continues to pace the Pac-12 in tackles (10.4) and is one of the few bright spots on a defense which is surrendering the third-most points (30.9) and rushing yards (186.9) in the conference.
EXTRA POINTS
1. Arizona State has won seven of eight all-time against Colorado, but the Buffaloes broke through last season with a 40-16 romp in Boulder.
2. Montez ranks fifth in the Pac-12 in passing efficiency (144.6) and has gone 134 pass attempts without throwing an interception.
3. Sun Devils sophomore WR N’Keal Harry ranks second in the Pac-12 with 89.1 receiving yards per game.
PREDICTION: Arizona State 32, Colorado 29