Arizona State @ Notre Dame preview

Arizona State looks to become the first team to defeat USC and Notre Dame in consecutive weeks on Saturday when the 24th-ranked Sun Devils face the Fighting Irish at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Notre Dame likely needs to win its remaining seven contests to reach a BCS bowl, while Arizona State hopes to build on its impressive 62-41 win over the Trojans last Saturday. The Sun Devils generated 612 yards of offense against USC, and they’ll seek to continue that pace against a Notre Dame defense that struggled in losses to Michigan and Oklahoma.

The Sun Devils’ balanced attack is led by senior running back Marion Grice, who leads the FBS in scoring this season with 12 touchdowns and has scored 31 in 17 games. “He’s just phenomenal,” Arizona State coach Todd Graham said. “He has this way of eluding people very smoothly to get to the end zone. He’s a unique back.” In order to keep the Sun Devils’ offense off the field, the Fighting Irish need strong performances from running backs Amir Carlisle, Cam McDaniel and George Atkinson III, who is averaging more than seven yards per carry.

TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, NBC. LINE: Arizona State -5.5

ABOUT ARIZONA STATE (3-1): Junior quarterback Taylor Kelly has thrown for more than 300 yards in each of the Sun Devils’ first four games, and junior college transfer Jaelen Strong has made an immediate impact with 433 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Safety Alden Darby had two interceptions and seven tackles against USC, but the Sun Devils’ run defense ranks 11th in the Pac-12. All-American defensive lineman Will Sutton, who had 13 sacks last season, is off to a slow start while dealing with constant double-teams.

ABOUT NOTRE DAME (3-2): The Fighting Irish defense hasn’t been as impressive as last season, but linemen Stephon Tuitt and Louis Nix remain among the best in the country. Linebacker Jarrett Grace has a team-high 37 tackles for Notre Dame, which could struggle to slow down an Arizona State team averaging 44.3 points per game. The Fighting Irish need a bounce-back effort from quarterback Tommy Rees, who threw two interceptions on his first three passes last week in a 35-21 loss to Oklahoma.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Notre Dame is 12-0 under coach Brian Kelly when it does not commit a turnover.

2. Arizona State is 10-0 under Graham when leading at halftime.

3. Notre Dame has won nine of its last 10 regular-season games at an NFL stadium since 1995.

PREDICTION: Arizona State 38, Notre Dame 31