– Last Updated on June 8, 2018 7:50 am
2016 Football Preview – Pac-12 – Arizona State
Looking for 2016 Arizona State Sun Devils predictions? The Sun Devils were a sexy sleeper pick to crash the College Football party last year and those predictions were wrong after the first game, unsurprisingly. ASU lost to Texas A&M to open the season and then proceeded to lose their first conference game to the Trojans of Southern California.
2016 Pac 12 College Football Preview – Arizona State Sun Devils
NCAA Division: Pac-12
Head Coach: Todd Graham
2015 Record: 6-7
Arizona State Sun Devils Odds To Win NCAA Championship 80/1
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However, the Sun Devils did bounce back and beat the UCLA Bruins. Probably their biggest win and biggest highlight of the season along with beating their in-state rival the Wildcats of Arizona. Other than that, the season went as expected.
They beat the teams that were better than, they lost to the teams they were supposed, and they split against the teams in the same ballpark as them. All for a 6-6 record and a loss in the bowl game to West Virginia.
2016 Arizona State Sun Devils Predictions: Team Strengths
The only strength Arizona State has is their running game. Demario Richard and Kalen Ballage are back and they should make about as positive of an impact you can make on a team that looks really poor on paper.
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It’s also worth mentioning that Tim White is their special teams ace. White is a dynamic kick returner who brought one back to the house last year and averaged over 27 yards per attempt.
He should get plenty of opportunities this year as ASU’s opposition will be kicking the ball off time and time again.
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2016 Arizona State Sun Devils Predictions: Team Weaknesses
Where do we start? Arizona State was one of the worst defensive teams in the nation last year. Arizona State gave up 33 points per game which includes giving up 21 points to Cal Poly and 10 points to New Mexico.
Against their conference rivals they gave up a lot more than that. USC let off the gas for basically the entire second half but still scored 42 points on them.
Utah scored 34, Oregon scored 61, Washington State scored 38, Arizona scored 37, Cal scored 58, and West Virginia scored 43.
It’s going to be hard to believe, but Arizona State did lose a lot of talent in the offseason. The talent has always been there, but the Graham’s defensive philosophy is just silly.
You can’t blitz 100% of the time all the time. But, that’s what Graham and ASU does and that’s why they are a mediocre football team.
On the offensive side of the ball the Sun Devils will have to figure out who will be behind center this year.
Losing Mike Bercovici is a significant blow and the starter will be sophomore Manny Wilkins or freshman Brady White. There will be growing pains on the offensive side of the ball for the Sun Devils.
2016 Arizona State Sun Devils Predictions:
(Arizona State Sun Devils 5-7)
This is a team that is going through a major transitional period. They only bring back four returning players on offense and six players on defense.
This is a very green and a team that carries extremely low expectations.
If the Arizona State Sun Devils become bowl eligible and make it to the New Mexico Bowl, I say that’s a successful season. It definitely could happen, but I’m not banking on it.
Someone has to finish at the bottom – or at the very least near the bottom of the conference – and I believe they will.
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Arizona State’s defense will continue to be one of the worst defenses in the country, their offense won’t be as explosive as it was last year and wins will be hard to come by in the Pac-12.
I see this team winning five games and even that kind of feels like a stretch. They should start off well enough going 3-1, but after that it gets tough. There are no slam dunks on their schedule.
I see five losses guaranteed and that puts them at 3-6. They would have to win the other three swing games to put themselves at .500 for the season and that seems like a stretch. The Sun Devils look like a team that will finish below .500 this year.
2016 Arizona State Sun Devils Football Schedule
- 9/3/16 vs. Northern Arizona Lumberjacks 7:45 PM/PT
- 9/10/16 vs. Texas Tech Red Raiders 7:00 PM/PT
- 9/16/16 at. UTSA Roadrunners 6:30 PM/PT
- 9/24/16 vs. Cal Golden Bears TBA
- 10/1/16 at. USC Trojans TBA
- 10/8/16 vs. UCLA Bruins TBA
- 10/15/16 at. Colorado Buffaloes TBA
- 10/22/16 vs. Washington State Cougars TBA
- 10/29/16 at. Oregon Ducks TBA
- 11/10/16 vs. Utah Utes 6:30 PM/PT
- 11/19/16 at. Washington Huskies TBA
- 11/25/16 at. Arizona Wildcats 12:30 PM/PT
What do you think about our 2016 Arizona State Sun Devils predictions? Please leave us a comment below telling us how you think they’ll do in 2016!
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