The dust has hardly even settled on Arizona State's football team following a heartbreaking loss to Texas in the Peach Bowl, but fans are already eagerly looking forward to the 2025 season. And why not, now that all their starters with remaining eligibility have formally announced their return.
With that in mind, it's high time to take an early look ahead and try predicting every game on the Sun Devils' schedule next year. As a disclaimer, we don't yet know the order or dates for Arizona State's conference schedule, but we know who and where they'll play. That information will surely impact these predictions down the road, but this more of a fun offseason exercise anyway.
So, without further ado, 2025 predictions!
vs FCS Northern Arizona Lumberjacks
For the first time in three years, Arizona State will face their FCS in-state counterpart, the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks, who welcomed a new head coach this past season. Brian Wright, who had gone 33-8 in four seasons with Division II Pittsburg State, arrived in Flagstaff and immediately turned around a 5-6 Lumberjacks team, going 8-4 before getting bounced in the first round of the FCS playoffs.
Wright is a very respected coach, and he seems to have Northern Arizona heading in the right direction, but this game is likely to be a resounding win for Arizona State. The Lumberjacks lost 22-10 to an Arizona team that turned out to be pretty bad this past season. The Sun Devils might not coast in this one, but a big win should be the expectation.
Prediction: Arizona State wins 42-14.
at Mississippi State Bulldogs
When the Sun Devils beat Mississippi State this past year, it was the first time in program history they had beaten an SEC team. That distinction felt a little less impressive later in the year, when the Bulldogs limped to a 2-10 finish under first year head coach Jeff Lebby. Their only wins came against FCS Eastern Kentucky and independent UMass.
Mississippi State will return quarterback Blake Shapen, the one-time Arizona State commit who missed most of last season with an injury, and have already added 21 players via the transfer portal. That includes South Alabama star running back Fluff Bothwell. This game won't be easy, especially coming on the road, but Arizona State should have the continuity from all their returning talent to persevere through it.
Prediction: Arizona State wins 28-20.
vs Texas State Bobcats
Arizona State's road win over Texas State last year was considered a coup, as many believed the Bobcats were a frontrunner to be the Group of 5's representative in the College Football Playoff. But Texas State finished just 7-5, winning their bowl game to make it eight wins, and proving the hype was a tad bit premature.
Quarterback Jordan McCloud is out of eligibility, and running back Ismail Mahdi transferred to Arizona, so Texas State will be in search of some new offensive playmakers this year. With an early road trip to Mountain America Stadium, where Arizona State went undefeated in 2024, that bodes well for the Sun Devils.
Prediction: Arizona State wins 38-20.
vs Texas Tech Red Raiders
Speaking of Texas State, their offensive coordinator - Mack Leftwich - took the same job at Texas Tech shortly after the season ended. Rising star Shiel Wood left Houston to take over the Red Raiders defense too, as head coach Joey McGuire hopes to finally compete for a Big 12 championship in his fourth year on the job. He's going all in, too, as Texas Tech currently holds the second-best transfer class in the nation.
Texas Tech was one of three teams to beat Arizona State last year. The Red Raiders won by eight in the boisterous Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, but this time they'll face off in Tempe. Arizona State is a different team at home, and they should be more than capable of winning this one, though it won't be easy by any stretch.
Prediction: Arizona State wins 48-45.
at Baylor Bears
Baylor head coach Dave Aranda saved his job by winning his final six games of the regular season to finish 8-4. Quarterback Sawyer Robertson became the starter midway through the year and grew into it as things progressed. Now, he enters 2025 as the unquestioned leader for Aranda's offense.
The Bears have plenty of resources, and should field another competitive team - three of their four losses last year were by one score - with more talent coming in this year. Aranda, who calls the defensive plays, is a football savant whose scheme wizardry may be enough to throw this Sun Devil offense off their game in a hostile environment.
Prediction: Baylor wins 31-24.
vs TCU Horned Frogs
It feels like ages ago that TCU was in the national championship game, as the Horned Frogs are 14-11 since then. They won eight games last year to get bowl eligible again, but the feeling is that head coach Sonny Dykes needs to finally turn all his recruiting success into real wins.
That'll be difficult to do when they come into the unfriendly confines of Mountain America Stadium. Dykes' Air Raid offense is always difficult to defend, but TCU's own defense has had its fair share of troubles in recent years too. This one could be a shootout, but the homefield advantage goes in Arizona State's favor.
Prediction: Arizona State wins 42-38.
at Colorado Buffaloes
The last time Arizona State and Colorado met, it was a wild game between two really bad teams led by first year head coaches. Kenny Dillingham's squad took a late lead before Deion Sanders' Buffaloes kicked a game-winning field goal as time expired. Both teams broke through last year, though Colorado loses both Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter to the draft.
Meanwhile, Arizona State still has all their top players, save for Cam Skattebo. Sanders lured Liberty quarterback Kaidon Salter via the portal, but depth was already a big question mark for Colorado this past year and the future holds plenty of uncertainty. Even on the road, Arizona State should come into this one as the favorite.
Prediction: Arizona State wins 31-20.
vs West Virginia Mountaineers
West Virginia opted to move on from head coach Neal Brown despite the Mountaineers finishing 6-7 with a 5-4 record in the Big 12. They then brought back Rich Rodriguez, who once coached West Virginia but left them for Michigan in a move that left many fans feeling betrayed.
Rodriguez will also be making a return to the desert in this game, as he coahed Arizona for six seasons, going 2-4 in the Territorial Cup. Dillingham was on the Sun Devils staff for a portion of that time, too, making this clash all the more fascinating. Rodriguez is a proven winner, with 190 career wins, but this is a long journey to travel for his team.
Prediction: Arizona State wins 24-20.
at Utah Utes
Longtime head coach Kyle Whittingham is returning for his 21st season at Utah, looking to bounce back after going 5-7 last year and playing a handful of different quarterbacks throughout the year due to injuries. New Mexico offensive coordinator Jason Beck is now in Salt Lake City, and he brought his quarterback, Arizona native Devon Dampier, with him.
Utah figures to have another rowdy defense, one that held Arizona State to just 27 points last year, and their offense should be much improved. The Utes' stadium is a notoriously tough place to play - last year was the first time in seven seasons they lost multiple home games - and Arizona State might run into trouble in this one.
Prediction: Utah wins 21-20.
vs Houston Cougars
Houston kicked off their first season under head coach Willie Fritz last year, and they knew it would be a slow build. Fritz has built winners at every stop along the way, but it usually takes a year or two. Houston has overflowing resources, and Fritz finished 4-8 this past year while breaking in a new quarterback.
The Cougars figure to be better this year just based on continuity in coaching, but losing their defensive coordinator to Texas Tech hurts. Going on the road for this one will make things more challenging, though; last year, Houston was 1-5 on the road, and Tempe is a tough place to play.
Prediction: Arizona State wins 44-25.
at Iowa State Cyclones
This one will be hotly anticipated all year, as it features a rematch of the Big 12 championship game. Iowa State won double digit games for the first time ever last year, and coach Matt Campbell is looking to run it back with quarterback Rocco Becht.
This game also features a tough road trip for the Sun Devils, especially if it lands in winter time. Iowa State is 16-8 at home over the last four years, with half of those losses coming all in the 2022 season. The timing for this game will be pivotal, as Ames has the potential to become the next Corvallis for the Sun Devils.
Prediction: Iowa State wins 20-14.
vs Arizona Wildcats
The Sun Devils' hated rival stumbled to a miserable 4-8 season but opted to retain head coach Brent Brennan for a second season. They'll have two new coordinators as well, hiring Seth Doege from Marshall to run the offense and moving Danny Gonzales from special teams coordinator to defensive coordinator. Quarterback Noah Fifita is set to return, though star receiver Tetairoa McMillan is NFL-bound.
The Wildcats were abysmal this past year, and they'll need several key players to step up, namely Fifita, in order to bounce back in 2025. That could very well happen, and Arizona may be flying high by the time these two meet in late November, but we'll need to see it before we believe it.
Prediction: Arizona State wins 38-28.