Go Joe Bruin continues to preview the UCLA Football schedule as we take a look at their Week 6 contest against the Arizona State Sun Devils.
One of the more complex match ups in the Pac-12 is UCLA and ASU. In the last four years, both the Bruins and Sun Devils have traded victories. The funny thing about that is the road team has pulled out the win.
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That is favorable to UCLA this season as the two teams meet in Tempe, but it is more than just a pattern that could give the Bruins the win, but a difference in program trajectories.
This season, UCLA is expected to continue their success behind sophomore QB Josh Rosen. The Bruins have made improvement son offense and defense which should help them in this game.
After ASU’s 6-7 fall from from grace in 2015, who knows how they will be.
Still, there are some teams that match up well together and some that find their niche against their conference opponent. If Arizona State Head Coach Todd Graham can do what he did last year and confuse UCLA, he has a shot, but it might not be that easy.
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2015 Record and Recap
Arizona State Sun Devils, 6-7 overall, 4-5 Pac-12
ASU had a lot of momentum going into 2015, seeing as they were just short of winning the South Division the previous year. They started the season on the road in a highly anticipated Pac-12-SEC showdown against Texas A&M and proceeded to get wrecked 38-17.
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The Sun Devils then got a couple of “Ws” against some cupcakes, as they went into conference play 2-1.
After taking a 42-14 beating by USC, ASU then came into the Rose Bowl with fists and blitzes flying to turn the Bruins on their head in 38-23 win, giving UCLA their first loss of the season (and on camo hat night too!).
ASU was able to push past Colorado, but then fell victim to three superior conference opponent: Utah, Oregon (whom they almost beat) and Washington State. They were then able to beat Washington and Arizona to get them to six wins and make them bowl eligible, but a season-ending loss to Cal deflated any momentum they had going into bowl season.
The Sun Devils then lost by one in a a defenseless game against West Virginia in the sub-standard Motel 6 Cactus Bowl, 43-42. And now here they are.
Next: 3 Key Players and Stats
3 Key Players
RB Demario Richard (Jr)
As a sophomore last season, Richard ran for 1,143 yards, making him the 19th player in Sun Devil history to run for over 1,000 yards. He is a big solid back that is hard to bring down and will be heavily relied on as the offense adjusts to a new quarterback. Along with Kalen Ballage, the Sun Devils will have a solid run game (if the offensive line allows it).
WR Tim White (Sr)
After losing two of their top three receivers from last season (former Bruin Devin Lucien and D.J. Foster) the passing game will look to White as their go-to guy. Last season, White was second on the team in receiving yards with 633 and yards per game 48.7. If ASU can find a nice balance between the run and the pass, White will be their saving grace.
LB Salamo Fiso (Sr)
Fiso returns as the top tackler from last season, collecting 99 total (78 solo, 21 assisted). He also has the third most sacks in ASU’s blitz-heavy defense with 4.5 on the year. With the Sun Devils losing some key players on defense, having Fiso maintain some stability will be a huge deal for Arizona State as they try to keep their defensive style intact.
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Stats
- ASU gave up 337.8 ypg last season, the worst in the FBS
- The Sun Devils allowed 20 or points in 9 of their 13 games in 2015.
- UCLA and ASU’s rivalry is only 40 years old, playing their first game against each other in 1976.
- The last time either team won at home against the other was in 2011 when UCLA defeated ASU 29-28 at the Rose Bowl.
Next: Offenses Vs. Defenses
UCLA Offense Vs. ASU Defense
Last year, the Sun Devil’s blitz-happy defense put the Bruins through hell. With high-risk pass rushing, UCLA was not able to overpower ASU on the offensive side. The Sun Devils lose five defensive starters this season, so chemistry will be an issue early on, but will it come together by the time they play UCLA is yet to be seen.
It is also a matter of UCLA’s power and spread schemes being able to take ASU off their footing. If UCLA can thicken up the line to limit pass rushes, UCLA QB Josh Rosen can operate properly against a not-so-good pass defense. And if the Bruin run game gets things going, forget about it!
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ASU Offense Vs. UCLA Defense
ASU’s up tempo offense will need time to get up to speed. They lose their QB, 2 WRs and an solid OG. Though the Sun Devils found some success with former QB Mike Bercovici, that will take a hit with whomever ASU choses to lead the offense in 2016.
ASU will run behind a pair of solid RBs, but if UCLA figures out how to stop the run, the Devils may be forced to throw, and that will be a difficult task against the Bruin’s secondary, which will once again be one of the better units in the Pac-12. If UCLA’s offense can’t get past the ASU defense, the Bruin defense should be the group that gets the win out of this.
Next: Final Analysis and Prediction
Final Analysis
It is easy to matchup these two teams in the preseason, but it will be a different story when this game finally comes around mid-season. Both teams have a lot of meshing to do, but it seems that ASU has lost too many players and coaches and with their risky style of play, might be heading down the same path they did last year, or even worse.
UCLA has actively been trying to improve both the offense and defense since last season, which should help them against teams like ASU. If they can use their power to push back Arizona State, UCLA will roll over the Sun Devils. And that is exactly what is going to happen as the Mighty Bruins stomp the Sun Devils in their own home once again.
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- UCLA Football: It’s time for the nation to meet Dante Moore
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- UCLA vs. Utah: Location, time, prediction, and more
- UCLA Football: Highlights from Chip Kelly’s appearance on the Jim Rome Show
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Prediction
Rosen will have a field day (with 4 touchdown passes) against ASU while the defense punishes the offensive side.
UCLA 42 – Arizona State 17