No. 13 Utah travels to face Arizona State, new coach Aguano
By The Associated Press
No. 13 Utah (2-1) at Arizona State (1-2), Saturday, 10:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Line: Utah by 15 1/2, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
Series record: Arizona State leads 22-10.
WHAT’S AT STAKE?
The Utes and Sun Devils both enter conference play in vastly different situations. Utah is coming off two lopsided wins and is expected to be among the Pac-12’s elite this season. Arizona State is coming off an embarrassing loss to Eastern Michigan and fired head coach Herm Edwards in the aftermath. Running backs coach Shaun Aguano was promoted to the interim head coaching position.
KEY MATCHUP
Utah QB Cameron Rising has completed 67% of his passes this season for 694 yards, eight touchdowns and an interception. He’ll go against an Arizona State defense that gave up 458 total yards against Eastern Michigan in last weekend’s 30-21 loss.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Utah: RB Tavion Thomas ran for 59 yards and a touchdown last week in a 35-7 win over San Diego State. He’s had a slightly slower start to the season after running for 1,108 yards and 21 touchdowns last year. He’ll be looking for a breakout game against an Arizona State defense that struggled to stop the run against Eastern Michigan.
Arizona St: QB Emory Jones has had a decent start with the Sun Devils after transferring from Florida. Jones has thrown for 557 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. He’s also run for three touchdowns.
FACTS & FIGURES
Arizona State has run for at least 100 yards in 21 straight regular-season games. That’s the longest streak for the program since the mid-1990s. … The Sun Devils are trying for their 17th win over a nationally-ranked opponent since 2012. … Aguano will try to become just the second coach in Arizona State history to earn his first win with the Sun Devils against a ranked opponent. The other was Darryl Rogers, who led Arizona State over No. 9 Houston in 1980. … Arizona State has lost two straight against Utah. … The Utes are giving up just 90 passing yards per game, which ranks second nationally. … Utah has a 4-7 record in conference openers since joining the Pac-12. … Utah has a 64-22 record when ranked in the AP Top 25 during coach Kyle Whittingham’s tenure.
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