Arizona State @ Utah preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 1, 2014 ) Utah 16, Arizona State 19

Seventh-ranked Utah is the lone unbeaten Pac-12 program but faces a team it traditionally struggles against when it hosts Arizona State on Saturday. The Utes are making a surprise run at cracking the four-team College Football Playoff but the Sun Devils are certainly capable of denting those plans as they seek to defeat Utah for the 12th consecutive time.

The Utes forced six turnovers in last Saturday's victory over California and picked off NFL quarterback prospect Jared Goff five times, which caught the attention of Arizona State senior quarterback Mike Bercovici. "Utah's a very opportunistic football team," Bercovici said in a press conference. "They've done a great job thus far. They play with energy, and they play with passion, and that's something that we've got to match and surpass. But the reality is we've got to focus on ourselves, do what we need to do." The Utes rely on standout senior running back Devontae Booker, who racked up 222 yards against Cal and has 665 on the season. “I don’t really care if it was a breakout game for me," Booker told reporters. "I was just doing my job to help my team win.”

TV: 10 p.m. ET, ESPN. LINE: Utah -7.

ABOUT ARIZONA STATE (4-2, 2-1 Pac-12): Bercovici has passed for 1,604 yards and has an impressive touchdown-to-interception ratio of 14-to-4. Sophomore running back Demario Richards has rushed for 529 yards and four scores, while six different players have more than 200 receiving yards. Freshman safety Kareem Orr and senior safety Jordan Simone share the team lead of two interceptions while Simone has a team-high 51 tackles and is followed by junior outside linebacker Salamo Fiso (team-high 10.5 tackles for loss) with 50.

ABOUT UTAH (5-0, 2-0): Booker, in his second season with the Utes, has 2,177 career yards and is one of just 13 players in school history to top 2,000 rushing yards. Senior quarterback Travis Wilson has passed for 683 yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions and also has three rushing scores while averaging 7.1 yards per carry. The Utes have forced 17 turnovers (12 interceptions, five fumbles) with sophomore free safety Marcus Williams (four) and junior cornerback Dominique Hatfield (three) combining for seven interceptions while junior defensive end Pita Taumoepenu has a team-leading four sacks.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Arizona State is 20-6 against the Utes and won last season's matchup 19-16 in overtime.

2. Utah freshman Britain Covey leads the Pac-12 with a 16.9 punt-return average.

3. Sun Devils senior WR D.J. Foster has caught at least one pass in 46 consecutive games, two shy of the Pac-12 record held by USC's Kareem Kelly (1999-2002).

PREDICTION: Utah 30, Arizona State 17