How Scared Should Oregon Be of Arizona State?

The crash course is set. 

Arizona State. Oregon. Pac-12 title game. 

At this point, it's almost a guarantee. 

Oregon is the Pac-12's best chance for a berth into the College Football Playoff, so Pac-12 fans are hoping the Ducks can run the table. 

Oregon is seemingly peaking right now, easily dispatching Cal, Stanford and Utah in its last three contests. But can Arizona State, the darlings of the Pac-12 South, crush the Ducks' dreams? 

With how the Sun Devils buried Notre Dame despite a late rally by the Irish on Saturday, they very well could. 

The fact of the matter is that Arizona State can survive in shootouts—it's proven that with wins over USC and the Irish. 

So if Oregon just plans to outgun the Devils, think again. Because Arizona State has been there, done that. 

The Sun Devils move their offense through the air. Against the Irish, quarterback Taylor Kelly racked up three touchdowns and 224 yards on 17-of-28 passing. Heading into this week, the Devils were 22nd in the nation in passing yards per game through the efforts of both Kelly and Mike Bercovici. 

Kelly and Bercovici's favorite target is Jaelen Strong—perhaps the Pac-12's best receiver. He's famous for his Hail Mary reception against USC, but he's hauled in 57 balls for 821 yards and eight scores this season. 

On the flipside, Oregon has one of the worst defenses in the nation at guarding the pass. Heading into Saturday, the Ducks ranked 116th in pass defense, giving up 291 yards through the air per game. 

How much those numbers are skewed because Oregon often takes the lead and therefore teams are forced to pass is hard to determine. But it's still revealing to know that Arizona State's greatest strength will attack Oregon's greatest weakness. 

But as was mentioned earlier, what is scariest about Arizona State from from the Ducks' perspective is the Devils' ability to take a punch.

On Saturday, the Devils led Notre Dame 34-3 before the Irish cut the lead to 34-31. Arizona State responded with a touchdown, a pick-six and ended up winning by 24 points, 55-31. 

Against USC, after going back-and-forth for most of the game, the Devils found themselves down nine points with three minutes to play. 

Instead of laying down in the Coliseum, the Devils scored two quick touchdowns—the last coming on that famous Hail Mary—to upend the Trojans 38-34. 

Oregon likes to take the heart out of teams with its offensive firepower. Arizona State has proven it refuses to die. 

Tomorrow's never guaranteed, especially in college football. For now, tomorrow is the playoffs. But the Sun Devils are a huge obstacle between now and then for the Ducks.