The ASU football team and its entire fan base breathed one big collective sigh of relief on Saturday.
The Sun Devils were the favored team on Saturday against Utah, but there was a lot of pressure on ASU to pull out the victory.
First of all, they were ranked No. 22, and ranked teams are not supposed to be upset by teams with no conference wins.
But more importantly, the win on Saturday virtually locks up the Pac-12 South. Colorado and Arizona are out of the running already, and the Sun Devils already had a win against USC under their belt. Only Utah and UCLA stand in the way, and knocking off the Utes takes them out of the equation as well.
ASU knew this going into Salt Lake City, and it showed in the first half.
The Sun Devils weren’t sluggish, they were nervous. The offense stuck to safe plays, and the Utes were ready for it.
The Sun Devil defense was solid early on, but not spectacular. To the pessimist in all of us, it looked like Illinois all over again.
Then ASU woke up, and the game was literally over in a matter of minutes. It was impressive how quick the turnaround was.
So next up is Oregon in Eugene, and with that comes a chance to repeat what was done to USC and take down a national powerhouse on national TV. At this point in the season, we know that this team has the ability to do it. They can make huge plays when huge plays are needed, our defense has the ability to shut down the best playmakers in the Pac-12, and our offense has the talent to explode and put lots of points on the board.
In order to pull this off, ASU has to avoid coming out flat like it did in Utah. Oregon will make them pay, especially at home.
But start the game strong, and we could see a new favorite for the Pac-12 crown.
The Sun Devils could set themselves up for a jump from three straight seasons without a bowl game to a shot at the Rose Bowl. UCLA and USC are the only teams left in the Pac-12 South with one loss in conference play (and USC is still banned from post-season play). That means a victory over UCLA on Nov. 5 almost guarantees a spot in the Pac-12 Championship game. Then again, no Pac-12 team should be overlooked, especially UA, who will be looking to ruin the Sun Devils season in Tempe.
The season’s fate is in the Sun Devils’ hands.
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