Washington State football faces potential trap game vs. Arizona

Washington State football needs to keep winning to maintain an outside chance at the playoff. Can Arizona throw a wrench into those best-laid plans?

Washington State is something of an enigma this year. Sitting currently at No. 8 in the College Football Playoff Top 25, the Cougars are the last team in the Pac-12 with any chance of reaching the main bracket this season. The Cougars can claim their first Pac-12 title since it was still the Pac-10 back in 2002 even if they lose to Arizona on Saturday night, but they will be out of the playoff picture if they fail at home to the Wildcats.

Arizona, meanwhile, could still reach the Pac-12 championship game as well if they win out and Utah suffers another defeat in one of their final two contests. The Wildcats have won their past two, taking down Oregon and Colorado at home over the first two weeks of November. Three of their five losses came by five points or less, with only Houston and Utah able to pull away to win by double digits.

Washington State has been winning thanks to a solid top-40 defense and an offensive line that provides some of the best protection in the country. In Mike Leach’s Air Raid offense, quarterback Gardner Minshew has been able to use that time to become one of the best passers in the country.

Arizona has struggled year in a hot-and-cold campaign as they have dealt with injuries to their own dynamic quarterback. Khalil Tate took the Pac-12 and the country by storm last year, but nagging issues have derailed his first year working with new head coach Kevin Sumlin.

This game lines up with three of the five hallmarks of a trap game, as the Cougars look ahead to the Apple Cup and face a rising unranked opponent. Can Tate and company actually pull off an upset on Saturday night to close out Week 12 action before Thanksgiving? Here’s how you can watch the Pac-12 After Dark battle in the Palouse between No. 8 Washington State and Arizona:

Date: Saturday, Nov. 17
Time: 10:30 p.m. ET
Location: Pullman, Wash.
Venue: Martin Stadium
TV: ESPN
Live Stream: WatchESPN | FuboTV

Keys to Victory

Washington State has a decided advantage at home. Mike Leach’s team is currently ranked 123rd out of 129 FBS teams in terms of red zone defense. Opponents score on more than 93 percent of the visits inside the Cougars 20. To make sure they win on Saturday, Leach’s crew would be wise to either keep Arizona out of the red zone entirely or figure out how to finally get some stops in those positions. Scaling back on penalties would also certainly help in that department.

Arizona, though, has been even worse at incurring penalties. The Wildcats are ranked among the bottom dozen teams in the nation in both flags and lost yardage. If they are going to pull off the upset on the road, Sumlin’s squad needs to cut down on those types of preventable mistakes. Holding the ball for as long as possible would also help the Wildcats as they try to knock off a top-10 team. Give Washington State too many chances and no game plan will stop them forever.

Betting Odds

Odds courtesy of oddsshark.com

Point Spread: Washington State -9.5
Over/Under: 62.5

Prediction

Leach’s charges are finally going to put a merciful end to Arizona’s dreams of a Pac-12 South crown in 2018, as they run away with a big victory. This won’t be a close contest, as the Wildcats go down by at least three scores before halftime. If these two teams are going to cover the total points, it will largely come down to how many points Washington State’s top-20 scoring offense can post on the day.

Final Score: Washington State 48, Arizona 17