Utah football faces major Pac-12 South test vs. Arizona State

Utah football invites Arizona State to Rice-Eccles for a Saturday afternoon game in Salt Lake City. Here’s a preview, prediction and how to watch.

This game is indicative of the issues the Pac-12 has as a conference.

Forgive the opening rant, but this is the game that everyone in the country needs eyeballs on. These are the two best teams in the Pac-12 South. This is a showcase game for the conference, and it’s televised where everyone can’t see. Ridiculous — now onto the game.

Both the Sun Devils and the Utes are coming off of wins last weekend. Arizona State won another close one against the Washington State Cougars and the Utes blew the doors off the Oregon State Beavers in Corvallis.

Both teams want to do the same thing: run the ball and play physical defense. The young Sun Devils and their freshman phenom quarterback Jayden Daniels have had their mettle tested in close games. They’ve won three of four and every game has been one possession including their loss to Colorado.

Utah, however, is playing every game with that USC loss fresh in their mind. The Utes’ defense has been stingy in the last two games since the loss in Los Angeles, giving up 20 points combined.

Here’s how you can watch the game:

Date: Saturday, Oct. 19
Time: 6 p.m. ET
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Venue: Rice-Eccles Stadium
TV: Pac-12 Network
Live Stream: Pac-12 Network Live

Keys to Victory

Arizona State wants to play the same game it’s played all season. Give Daniels some responsibilities, but not too much, play conservative keep it close and give yourself a chance to win the game at the end. They don’t do too much, and  are doing a great job of bringing their talented freshman quarterback along this season. The question for the Sun Devils is, “Can they protect Jayden Daniels?”

The Utes want to play the power rushing game, and smother teams with their defense. Tyler Huntley has more responsibility in the run game and Zack Moss is healthy. Can they run against Arizona State’s front-seven?

Prediction

If Arizona State has one weakness on defense it’s through the air. If the Utes can throw against a young Sun Devils secondary, Utah might be able to win this going away. The Sun Devils are going to have issues all afternoon protecting Daniels and run blocking has been an issue for them all season as well. The matchup to watch is Utah’s offensive line against Arizona State’s front-seven. All in all the Sun Devils’ inability to move the ball against Utah’s defense will be their downfall.

Final Score: Utah 24, Arizona State 3