Pac-12 Football 2017: 3 teams on upset alert in Week 8

The Pac-12 team that will be on the highest level of upset alert this week is the favorite that kicks off earliest on Saturday. Utah dropped out of the Coaches Poll last week after falling to USC. Nevertheless, they remain one of the top teams in the Pac-12 South. The Utes enter their Saturday afternoon with Arizona State as a 9.5-point favorite, but they will need to beware the threat posed by the Sun Devils.

Two ranked teams have fallen to the Sun Devils already this season, with then-No. 24 Oregon collapsing 37-35 in Tempe in late September and then-No. 5 Washington falling flat last week in the 13-7 defeat. Away from home, Todd Graham’s squad hasn’t been as great as they have been in Tempe. But the tide is right for Arizona State to grab a statement on the road.

Utah will exploit the Sun Devils at the line of scrimmage when the visitors have the ball. ASU rank second-to-last in the country as they givesup four sacks per game. When the tables are turned, though, the Sun Devils will also push around the Utes offensive line. Arizona State’s defense ranks sixth nationally with 20 sacks in its first six games.

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After as much chaos as we have already seen in the Pac-12, at least one of the home favorites looks susceptible to an upset this week. And with Utah and Arizona State jockeying to keep pace with USC in the Pac-12 South, the Utes need to beware the creeping upset alert that the Sun Deils will present this week.