No. 22 Arizona State Sun Devils (-4) at Utah Utes, Total 48.5 |
Arizona State is coming off a 35-20 win over Oregon State as 17.5-point home favorites and will now play its first-ever Pac-12 Conference road game. The Sun Devils have faced the Utes 22 times, but this will be the first meeting since 1993.
The program leads the series, 16-6, including a 3-3 record at Utah. This will be the second tim in head coach Dennis Erickson’s career that he faces Utah. His only previous matchup was in 1986, when his Wyoming Cowboys defeated Utah 38-14.
The Sun Devils were fortunate to come out of last week with a victory, falling behind by a 13-0 score, only to put up 21 unanswered points. The defense forced five turnovers, including four interceptions. So far in 2011, the defense has already forced 10 turnovers, which includes six picks and four fumbles.
Erickson has been preaching to his team not to come into this contest overconfident due to Utah losing its starting quarterback. “The other quarterback Jon Hays is a kid that transferred from Nebraska-Omaha,” he stated. “He’s a pretty good player.”
The Sun Devils have dropped 10 of 14 conference road games the last three seasons. Bettors will find that the team has tallied a 5-7 ATS mark away from Sun Devil Stadium the last two-plus seasons.
Utah is in its first year of playing in the Pac-12 and it hasn’t started well. The Utes are off to their first 0-2 conference start since 2007. The team has also dropped seven consecutive games against Saturday’s opponent.
“The Sun Devils are an excellent football team,” commented Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham. “We have our hands full.”
Junior quarterback Jordan Wynn is questionable for Saturday’s game, but many believe Hays will get all the snaps.
In the latest national rankings, Utah is No. 4 in red-zone defense and is tied for fifth in recovering eight fumbles. The Utes are second in the Pac-12 and 25th nationally in scoring defense.
sportsbook bettors will find that the Utes are 44-24 ATS as an underdog.
