Arizona State football (6-3, 4-2 Big 12) is primed to make a bowl game and is a dark horse to make the Big 12 championship game with help. The Sun Devils have an easyish schedule with West Virginia, Colorado and Arizona as their final opponents.
1. Will the week off from football help the Sun Devils?
In practice, the Sun Devils looked rejuvenated and showed a bit more intensity than usual. The Sun Devils were still in the weight room, and they studied film, only taking the week off from practicing.
2. Will quarterback Jeff Sims take advantage of West Virginia’s poor pass defense?
West Virginia allows 259.4 passing yards per game, which ranks outside of the top 100 FBS teams. The redshirt senior’s performance at Iowa State saw him be explosive on the ground as well as a solid passing attack.
3. Will Arizona State corral the West Virginia rushing attack?
The Mountaineers rank 39th in the FBS for rushing yards per game with 182.2. Their attack is more run-heavy, which aligns with Arizona State’s strength of rush defense, which ranks 34th in the FBS with 123.2 yards allowed per game.
4. How will special teams look?
Three weeks ago, Jack Nudo took over as special teams coordinator after Charlie Ragle stepped down for health reasons. This will be the first week that Nudo has had a full seven days to prepare as interim special teams coordinator, and it will be interesting to see the level of execution on game day.
5. Who will be the top receiver with Jordyn Tyson out?
Potential first-round draft pick Jordyn Tyson will be out this week. Wide receivers Malik McClain, Jaren Hamilton, Derek Eusebio and redshirt senior tight end Chamon Metayer have all been impactful in games this season. Sims will look to find McClain and Metayer in particular, as they were two of his favorite targets at Iowa State, along with redshirt junior wide receiver Jalen Moss.
Arizona State is looking to win its second consecutive game for the first time since September when it beat Texas State, Baylor and TCU. West Virginia is on a two-game win streak, defeating Houston and Colorado, making it an interesting matchup.