Utah heads to the Valley of the Sun on Saturday for a pivotal Pac-12 South matchup with Arizona State. In preparation for the contest, The Daily Utah Chronicle caught up with Matthew Tonis and Evan Webeck, who cover the Sun Devils for The State Press, to get some insight on the Utes’ next opponent.
Q: Taylor Kelly didn’t look like his old self last weekend against Washington. What caused him to struggle? What are the chances of seeing Mike Bercovici under center Saturday?
MT: I think it was mostly due to shaking off the rust of not playing since mid-September. He said Wednesday that his internal timing was a bit off, but that he has been working on it all week in practice. Facing a defense the caliber of Washington’s is not an easy task in your first game in over a month. I don’t think Bercovici plays unless something goes horribly wrong with Kelly, such as a couple of turnovers. Bercovici is a very capable quarterback, but this is Kelly’s team, and Todd Graham has said as much.
Q: How has the Arizona State offensive line performed this season? How well do you think they will hold up against the Utah pass rush?
MT: Taylor Kelly was sacked seven times last week by Washington, and guard Christian Westerman will be out this week, so the unit has been in better shape. Stephon McCray has looked good in practice this week, so the drop-off should not be as big as some presume. D.J. Foster said that the running back unit has been working a lot with pass blocking this week and that will be the difference. Utah’s pass rush is obviously great, but I think ASU will gameplan so that it does not control the game.
Q: The Sun Devil defense seems to have found itself after being a massive question mark coming into the season. What are the strengths of the Arizona State defense? What are its weaknesses?
EW: Honestly, this game will probably tell us better than the last two if the defense has found itself. Neither Stanford nor Washington boast what many would call a “dangerous” or even “good” offense. While Utah’s isn’t anything spectacular, Devontae Booker should at least present a test the defense hasn’t faced yet. I expect the success to continue, at least against another run-happy team, as the biggest differences have been in getting bigger personnel on the field. The defensive line, despite the changes, continues to be the defense’s biggest weak spot. The difference now, however, is that points to the solid play of the linebackers and secondary lately, rather than the poor play of the line earlier in the season. It’s still not up to par, but it’s better than what it had been.
Q: What advantages do you think Utah has over the Sun Devils?
MT: I think Utah’s running game will be able to gash through ASU’s defense. Devontae Booker is the best running back ASU will face this season, but the Sun Devils have been sub-par on the ground. The Sun Devils have allowed 4.5 yards per carry this year and have allowed all but one team to gain over 150 yards this season, and that was Stanford in a game ASU dominated from start to finish. Also, the front seven of Utah is one of the best in the nation, if not the best, so obviously it has the advantage over ASU’s offensive front. The offensive line is good, but not as good as Nate Orchard’s group on the other side of the ball.
Q: What does Arizona State have to do to get the win on Saturday?
EW: Basically, shut down the run. Travis Wilson isn’t a quarterback that’s going to scare many defenses, especially if he’s forced to pass the ball. This is something I think ASU can do. If you asked me before the last two weeks, I would have had many doubts. But with a bigger defense line, which has been much improved the last two games, allowing an average of 113.5 yards on the ground (207.2 rush YPG the first five games). I’m predicting 24-21 ASU.
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