Stanford vs. ASU: TV Info, Spread, Injury Updates, Game Time and More
Something has to give when the No. 23 Stanford Cardinal meet the No. 17 Arizona State Sun Devils in Saturday's Pac-12 showdown, a third encounter between the schools in the past two seasons.
The Cardinal escaped with a pair of wins over the Sun Devils last season, once in the regular season and once in the conference title game. This year, though, both teams have suffered major hiccups so far and tout opposing strengths.
David Shaw's Cardinal are once again a force on the defensive side of the football, but the team has failed to slam the door on credible competition such as USC and Notre Dame. Todd Graham's offense continues to churn no matter who resides under center, but the team was laughed out of the building against UCLA a few weeks back.
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When these two meet in Tempe Saturday, expect fireworks. Or not. That is what makes encounters between these programs with different approaches so much fun.
A Tale of Two Quarterbacks
One year removed from throwing for 3,635 yards and 28 touchdowns to 12 interceptions, Arizona State senior quarterback Taylor Kelly has attempted just 68 passes this year, although six of them have gone for touchdowns.
Kelly is still a question mark after a bye week thanks to a foot injury, but the nation's No. 14 scoring offense at 41.2 points per game on average has hardly skipped a beat thanks to Mike Bercovici, who has a pair of quality outings under his belt:
| UCLA | 42 | 68 | 488 | 61.8 | 3 | 2 |
| USC | 27 | 45 | 510 | 60.0 | 5 | 0 |
That UCLA game was an inexplicable 62-27 loss and the encounter with USC only resulted in a win thanks to a fluky Hail Mary, so it makes sense to reason that Graham would prefer to have his senior under center Saturday.
But according to Craig Grialou of ArizonaSports.com, it seems both are set to get some playing time:
This makes sense based on comments by Graham in the week leading up to the game, per The Associated Press, via ESPN.com:
"Taylor has years' experience in winning games and to move the down markers in very different ways, whether it be with his legs, the run game, making good decisions. I think Berc's just a great extension of him, obviously brings a lot to it from the standpoint of the rhythm passing game. They complement each other very well.
"
Both will need to be in superb form regardless, as Stanford brings with it the No. 1 defense in nation, which allows just 10.0 points per game.
Letdown Potential and Will Power
Stanford already has two soul-crushing defeats against ranked opposition this season, both which came by just three points each.
A loss to then-ranked No. 14 USC at the start of September was strange in that the stout Cardinal defense allowed 156 total rushing yards on a 4.2 average. The beginning of October was more strange thanks to a loss to then-ranked No. 9 Notre Dame, a team that managed 129 yards and a 4.0 average, not to mention a fourth-down touchdown to win the game.
The problem is, things are in no way easier for the Cardinal the rest of the way. Three of the team's five remaining games after Saturday are on the road, with those three coming against No. 9 Oregon, California and UCLA. Go ahead and throw in No. 20 Utah for good measure, too.
As if all of this is not enough, the AP writeup notes that Stanford will likely be without No. 2 wideout Devon Cajuste, too, placing even more pressure on an ineffective offense that ranks No. 89 with 26.3 points scored per game to produce against an elite defense.
In short, Stanford's season will be defined Saturday. If the defense can do all of the heavy lifting, the team may be able to win. If not, well, we have seen the end result twice already.
When: Saturday, October 18, 10:30 p.m. ET
Where: Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona
Television: ESPN
Betting Lines (via Odds Shark):
- Over/Under: 54.5
- Spread: Stanford (-3)
Team Injury Reports
| Devon Cajuste | WR | 10/15/2014 | is expected to miss Saturday's game against Arizona State | Out | undisclosed |
| Brandon Fanaika | OL | 08/31/2014 | is expected to miss the entire season | Out | undisclosed |
| Austin Hooper | TE | 10/15/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Arizona State | Questionable | undisclosed |
| Ikenna Nwafor | DL | 08/23/2014 | will miss the entire season | Out | undisclosed |
| Thomas Oser | C | 08/31/2014 | is out indefinitely | Out | undisclosed |
| Ra'Chard Pippens | DB | 10/15/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Arizona State | Questionable | undisclosed |
| Lane Veach | LB | 08/31/2014 | is expected to miss the entire season | Out | undisclosed |
| Jason Franklin | LB | 10/14/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Stanford | Questionable | undisclosed |
| Taylor Kelly | QB | 10/14/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Stanford | Questionable | foot |
| Viliami Latu | DT | 10/14/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Stanford | Questionable | knee |
| Carlos Mendoza | LB | 08/14/2014 | is out indefinitely | Out | knee |
| Viliami Laiu Moeakiola | LB | 10/14/2014 | is doubtful for Saturday's game against Stanford | Doubtful | shoulder |
| Ismael Murphy-Richardson | LB | 10/12/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Stanford | Questionable | eligibility |
| Corey Smith | DT | 09/05/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | hip |
| Marcus Washington | TE | 10/05/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | knee |
Injury reports per Sports Network, via USA Today.
Prediction
While Stanford has looked shaky in big games this season, it seems to have the formula down pat in regards to upending a fully loaded Sun Devils offense.
This year is different in that the Sun Devils may trot out two quarterbacks, too, although in general quarterback rotations merely disrupt a signal-caller's rhythm and subsequently hurt offenses as a whole.
The Cardinal are on the road, but the offense should be able to actually move the ball somewhat well for once against the 92nd-ranked defense. We know the Stanford defense is going to play at a high level, but it gets some serious help from a messy quarterback situation.
Living on the edge is going to bite the Sun Devils yet again.
Prediction: Cardinal 20, Sun Devils 17
Statistics and info courtesy of ESPN unless otherwise specified.
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