Arizona State vs. Oregon: 5 Things to Watch for in Pac-12 Battle

The No. 18 Arizona State Sun Devils (5-1) will have a huge test playing the No. 9 Oregon Ducks (4-1) on the road in Eugene this weekend.

If the Sun Devils can come out with a win, they will have a good chance to shoot up the rankings and potentially have a shot in the Top 10 when the BCS rankings come out Sunday night.

First things first though, the Sun Devils have to win.

It won't be easy, but that doesn't mean it is impossible.

The Sun Devils did only lose by 11 to Oregon a year ago, but of course that game was at home. Nonetheless, people can expect a great game this Saturday night.

Here are five things to watch for when the Sun Devils visit Oregon this weekend.

The Sun Devil Defense

Will the Sun Devils streaking defense be able to slow down the Oregon Ducks who are averaging 50.2 PPG this season?

Well, it certainly will be a big test for both the Sun Devils defense and the Oregon offense.

Oregon has been on a tear as of late, but they only scored 27 points in their first game against LSU. Every opponent since then has been mediocre at best, and none have the same defense as Arizona State. LSU is a better defense then what the Sun Devils have, but the Ducks will be experiencing a change in pace of the defenses they have played as of late.

The Sun Devils have forced 14 turnovers in their last three games, but they are going to have to keep that going against Oregon.

There is no doubt that Oregon's offense is explosive, so the Sun Devils' best chances of slowing them down early is to continue to force the turnovers.

The Oregon Running Game

The Oregon Ducks are averaging 312.6 yards on the ground each game.The only problem is they will be likely missing star running back LaMichael James. 

Just because James is out though, that doesn't mean the Sun Devils should think they are home free. This is Oregon and they always are stacked with athletic freaks.

James will be replaced by a combination of De'Anthony Thomas and Kejon Barner, both fully capable of changing a game. There is no doubt that either running back can go off, but no one can doubt the loss of James and the effect it just may have on this offense.

No one will know for sure until this game gets going Saturday, but we will find out how much James means to this offense.

Which Cameron Marshall Will We See?

Arizona State running back Cameron Marshall made his mark on the season when he exploded for 141 yards on 25 carries with three touchdowns against USC in Week 4.

He followed that game with 80 yards and two touchdowns over Oregon State in Week 5.

Things started to revert back to the way things were in Week 6 at Utah. Marshall only gained 47 yards on 21 carries with one touchdown.

So which Marshall will we see in Oregon? Tough to say. In Week 6, Oregon gave up 119 yards to Cal's Isi Sofele, which was a season-high for the back. Most of those yards came in the first half too, and that was when the game was still close.

Oregon's defense is actually allowing 173.8 rushing yards per game, so the potential for Marshall is definitely there. That depends though on if the Sun Devil can find holes and make the big runs that he is capable of.

Will Brock Osweiler Continue to Have Success on His Biggest Stage Yet?

The Oregon Ducks pass defense has been solid this season. They haven't forced a great amount of interceptions (3), but they have been solid in holding their opposing offenses to low pass yardage and touchdowns.

On the season, the Ducks are allowing only 230.8 yards per game through the air and offenses have only completed a total of six touchdown passes. Through five games, that is pretty good.

Oregon hasn't played the greatest teams so far this season, but no doubt the best quarterback they have gone up against this season was Arizona's Nick Foles. 

Against Oregon, Foles lit up the Ducks for 398 yards and three touchdowns. There is no question that Foles is a much better quarterback then the Sun Devils' Brock Osweiler, but it gives you reason to believe that Osweiler could succeed.

Osweiler only has 13 touchdowns and 1677 yards on the season, but he has been nothing short of consistent. He has also completed 66.7 percent of his passes with only six turnovers. Those turnovers only came within two games, so for the most part Osweiler has been turnover free in the majority of his games.

The Arizona game was at home though, so Osweiler will have a greater test on the road. Still, Oregon's pass defense has been exposed, and they were exposed against an Arizona team that is 1-5.

Watch for the 6'8" quarterback to possibly expose the Ducks once again.

What Will the Penalty Situation Look Like?

The Arizona State Sun Devils have been notorious for penalties since Dennis Erickson took over the helm.

Over the last few games though, those numbers have started to go down, and that has allowed the Sun Devils to produce well.

Penalties have killed this Sun Devils team already this season, as we saw when they visited Illinois. At Illinois, the Sun Devils received eight penalties for 91 yards in a three-point loss back in Week 3.

At Autzen Stadium, things possibly could get ugly. 

Oregon Duck fans are loud, and they make that stadium deafening. The Sun Devils will have to be ready for this, and their offensive line cannot get caught up in false starts and stupid penalties that will push the Sun Devils back in what is already a tough environment.

There is no doubt that this will be the Sun Devils biggest obstacle. We will have to see how they handle it.