Preview and Predictions For Fresno State vs. Arizona State

Later tonight, the Arizona State Sun Devils will host the Fresno State Bulldogs at Mountain America Stadium.

This will be the third home game in a row to start the season for the Sun Devils as they’re opening the season with four home games.

This is only the fifth time both teams will be facing off against each other and the first time since 2018 when ASU played Fresno State at the Fiesta Bowl.

Fresno State enters this game with the second-longest win streak in the FBS at 11 games trailing only behind back-to-back national champion Georgia Bulldogs.

The good news for ASU fans is that their team is currently 106-37-2 all-time against schools currently in the Mountain West Conference.

ASU is however coming off of a loss last week to future Big 12 conference rivals the Oklahoma State Cowboys and they’re trying to avoid a loss today to make sure they avoid losing a regular season non-conference record for two straight seasons for the first time since 1998 and 1999.

Arizona State is coming off a bad loss to the Oklahoma State Cowboys in which they lost 27-15 and didn’t score a point in the second half on offense.

With them not scoring a point in the second half, that puts their total to just 3 points in the entire second half of the season.

One of the things that has been successful so far in Arizona State’s two games, has been their defense led by B.J. Green. III. Green is coming off of 2 sacks and 3 tackles for a loss against Oklahoma State.

During the season, he has forced a 24.4 percent QB pressure on 10 of 41 pass-rushing plays this season. He ranks 11th amongst all defensive linemen/edge rushers in this category who have played at least 30 pass-rushing snaps. His 10 QB pressures are tied for 14th amongst all defensive linemen and edge rushers in the nation.

What’s also been great on the defensive end for the Sun Devils is their ability to not give up the big play opportunity. Their defense has given up just 16 plays over 10 yards throughout the season which ranks 10th in the FBS.

A big part of that has to do with stellar cornerback Jordan Clark. Clark this season has allowed just a 45.6 percent successful play percentage in coverage which ranks 5th among Pac-12 corners.

This is after him coming off of a stellar 2022 season where he allowed a 40% completion percentage in Cover 0 and Cover 1 as well as a 41.9% NFL QB rating when targeted in man coverage last season which is the 13th-best tallies among FBS corners.

Overall, against a red-hot team like Fresno State, the Sun Devils are going to have to rely on their strength of defense to try to pull off the upset tonight.

Fresno State is off to a 2-0 start to the season and like I said earlier, has the second most active winning streak in college football at 11.

Fresno State has been in back-to-back close games to start the season but has found its way on the winning side both times. Fresno State quarterback Mikey Keene has been off to a terrific start to the season.

He has thrown for 599 yards, 6 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions so far this season. The UCF transfer is going to give ASU’s defense all they can handle tonight.

Fresno State this season is averaging 36.5 points per game this season and averaging 425.5 total yards on offense which both rank in the top 60 in the FBS.

Their best attributes this season are their time of possession and passing offense which both rank in the top 30 in the country. It’s going to be key for ASU’s secondary to be locked in tonight as they will get a bunch of opportunities to play locked-on defense against a top-flight heavy passing offense.

Brendan Mau’s Prediction for Tonight’s Game:

Prediction: 24-20 Fresno State

A struggling Arizona State offense meets a struggling Fresno State defense. A hot Fresno State offense meets a top-25 defense in ASU.

This could be a good game for the Sun Devils to finally show what they can do offensively. However, they are missing some key offensive linemen, along with star tight end Jalin Conyers and backup running back DeCarlos Brooks.

I think ASU once again has a hard time finding its rhythm offensively. That being said, I don’t think its defense will perform poorly. Similar to the last game, I predict the defense will simply be on the field too much to withstand Fresno State’s aerial attack.

Arizona State has had a good week of practice, so it wouldn’t surprise me if the Sun Devils came out a lot sharper, especially in the second half tonight. However, I haven’t seen enough of that in-game situations to pick the Sun Devils in this one.

I think the Bulldogs leave Tempe with their 12th straight win and second victory over a Power 5 opponent tonight.”

Franklin Miller’s Prediction For Tonight’s Game:

I have Arizona State losing by a final score of 38-20. A lot of busted coverages in last week’s game against Oklahoma State that I feel like Fresno State doesn’t miss. I’m expecting a very efficient game from Mikey Keene and for ASU’s offense to play catchup starting in the second quarter.

Fresno State’s defense can be had, however, with a lot of injuries on the offensive side of the ball as well as there offensive line, it could be a tall task for Arizona State to overcome tonight. I’m expecting Fresno State to keep the winning streak alive.

Kick-off for tonight’s game is at 7:30 and we’ll see if ASU can end Fresno State’s winning streak tonight.