Position Battles: Utah vs. Arizona State

The Utah Utes are back at home for their biggest game of the season up to this point against the Arizona State Sun Devils. The Sun Devils have been a thorn in the side to the Utes as of late, beating them on the field as well as on the recruiting trail. Arizona State is 5-1 on the year and 2-1 in conference play and like the Utes, are in control of their destiny in the Pac-12 South. It seems that ASU always knows how to beat Utah and the Utes have lost 7 of their 9 games against the Sun Devils since joining the conference. The Sun Devils have a young team and have put up mixed results this season so far but are capable of beatinganyone in the Pac-12. On paper, the Utes are favored and should win this game, however, based on history this is a tough matchup for the Utes.

Let’s take a look at the position battles for this matchup:

Quarterback

The emergence of freshman quarterback, Jayden Daniels, has been a pleasant surprise for the Sun Devils and he has already showed his poise on multiple game winning drives. He has completed 63% of his passes for just more than 1,600 yards and eight touchdowns. It is also worth noting that he has thrown just one interception on the year. Despite this early success in his career, he has struggled on the road and is yet to face a defense like that of the Utes. Utah quarterback Tyler Huntley should be motivated for another chance to beat the Sun Devils, especially after suffering a season ending injury against them last year. He is one of the nation’s most accurate passers and is playing the best football of his career.

Running Backs

This running back matchup might be the best matchup in the whole conference. Zack Moss vs Eno Benjamin. Utah fans would most likely take Moss and ASU fans would take Benjamin. However, based on the circumstances, Moss gets the edge. He will be breaking the school’s rushing record this game and is never one to have the moment be too big for him. Benjamin has regressed from last year and is only averaging 4.2 yards per carry on the ground and has already rushed the ball 125 times this season. Moss on the other hand is averaging 7.6 yards per carry and only has 15 less rush yards on the year on almost half the amount of carries. However, both defenses give up less than 100 rush yards per game. This is a tough matchup for both teams.

Wide Receivers

The Sun Devils win this matchup due to the dynamic Brandon Aiyuk who already has 651 receiving yards on 31 receptions this year. He has emerged as one of the best receivers in all of the Pac-12 and is a matchup problem for all defenses. He scored three touchdowns last week against Washington State and shows no signs of slowing down. Kyle Williams and Frank Darby also have close to 200 yards each and could be dangerous if the defense only pays attention to Aiyuk. The question is if Jaylon Johnson will be shadowing Aiyuk throughout the game and how ASU will respond. On the other side of the ball, the Utes have been very efficient in the pass game and the receivers contribute as a group. They still lack a WOW factor, which could very well be Bryan Thompson, however the sample size is still a bit too small.

Tight Ends

Utah wins this matchup basically because they feature the tight ends much more in their offense compared to ASU. The Sun Devil’s two tight ends have one catch each this year, while Brant Kuithe is the second leading receiver for the Utes with 207 yards.

Offensive Line

ASU has struggled all year to protect Jayden Daniels, giving up 16 sacks so far in just six games. Also there are two true freshman that will be starting for the Sun Devils. These two freshman will be lining up against Bradlee Anae and Leki Fotu, two player which will be drafted in a few months. This is not a favorable matchup for the Sun Devils. For the Utes, starting center Orlando Umana will have fresh legs after being ejectedearly last week. This will be a tough matchup for the boys up front because ASU only gives up 91 yards on the ground, and the Utes are averaging about 228. One of these will have to give on Saturday.

Defensive Line

Utah has very favorable matchups against the ASU offensive line, however, they have not faced a back like Eno Benjamin up to this point in the year. Also, the Utes will be forced to containJayden Daniels and keep him in the pocket. Sack Lake City has been absent up to this point in the year but expect it to make a comeback on Saturday. The ASU defensive front has been stout in the run up to this point in the year, but has also struggled getting to the quarterback. This group is underrated for the Sun Devils, but the Utes get the advantage because of their competition across the line.

Linebackers

Arizona state features a three linebacker system that has been productive all season. Merlin Robertson, Darien Butler, and Khaylan Kearse-Thomas all have close to 30 tackles on the year and are a great reason for the stout rushing defense. They also each have a forced fumble and have made big plays for the ASU defense all year. For the Utes, Francis Bernard and Devin Lloyd have emerged as two of the most complete and athletic linebackers in the conference. They both have interceptions returned for touchdowns this year and lead the team in tackles. Both linebacking corps have tough matchups, trying to stop Benjamin and Moss out of the backfield. Benjamin is so quick in the pass game, it will be interesting to see how Utah responds to it.

Secondary

Jaylon Johnson proved once again that he is one of the best corners in the nation last week against Isaiah Hodgins of Oregon State. Ute fans should hope that Morgan Scalley does the same thing this week against Brandon Aiyuk. This group has hit their stride after playing three consecutive pass happy teams. Jayden Daniels has only thrown one interception this year, which means the Utes must take advantage if the opportunity presents himself. On the other side, ASU has only forced two interceptions in six games. Freshman Cam Phillips has already racked up 35 tackles from the safety spot and plays alongside Jack Jones who has nine pass breakups on the year. This group just gave up 466 yards and three touchdowns to Washington State and needs improvement.

Special Teams

Coach Kyle Whittingham has not been too pleased with the Utah special teams so far this year and has every right to not be. The kickers are still trying to figure themselves out, the Utes do not punt enough to use Ben Lennon as a weapon and there has not been much action in the return game. However, for the Sun Devils, Brandon Aiyuk is one of the best returners in the conference and has that big play ability. Also, kicker Christian Zendejas is 11-14 on the year which is third best in the conference.