Utah @ Arizona State preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 8, 2011 ) Arizona State 35, Utah 14

A pair of 2-1 teams with increasingly lofty expectations begin their Pac-12 Conference slate at Tempe, Ariz., on Saturday. High-powered Arizona State is 2-0 at home, including a thrashing of Illinois. The Sun Devils dropped a narrow decision at Missouri last week but look to rebound against Utah, a team they have historically dominated. Although Arizona State is just 5-5 in conference openers over the last 10 seasons, it is 17-6 all-time against the Utes, including six in a row at Tempe. Utah beat rival Brigham Young last week but will enter conference play without the services of quarterback Jordan Wynn who has retired from the sport after suffering yet another shoulder injury. Jon Hays will get the start. He lost to ASU 35-14 in his collegiate debut last season.

TV: 10 p.m. ET, Pac-12 Network. LINE: Arizona State -7

ABOUT UTAH (2-1): The Utes are still hyperventilating from a wild game against rival BYU last week. Utah appeared to have the contest won but a BYU rally accompanied by a series of strange circumstances saw the Cougars get three chances to tie the game after the final whistle had blown. BYU, however, failed every time. It was such an emotional finish that it may be hard for the Utes to refocus on this week’s big road test. Utah will get back the services of strong safety Brian Blechen for the first time this season after serving a three-game suspension for a violation of team rules. Running back John White is also expected to return from an ankle injury and free safety Eric Rowe will also be back from injury.

ABOUT ARIZONA STATE (2-1): The Sun Devils dropped a tough 24-20 decision in front of 70,000 fans at Missouri last week. Marion Grice scored on a pair of fourth-quarter runs that cut the deficit to four, and the Sun Devils made two more trips inside the red zone to try to win the game in the final minutes but were denied. Arizona State has scored at least 20 points in a dozen straight games. Quarterback Taylor Kelly has completed 71 percent of his passes on the season. Highly touted linebacker Carlos Mendoza will miss the remainder of the season due to a shoulder injury. ASU scored the final 25 points of last season’s win over the Utes.

EXTRA POINTS

1. This is just the second time these teams have met since 1993.

2. Grice has 22 carries on the season and five touchdowns.

3. ASU's defense has not yielded a fourth-quarter point this season.

PREDICTION: Arizona State 35, Utah 24