Both teams enter this one coming off of wins -- UCLA dispatched Washington, 41-31, last Friday, while Arizona State took care of Oregon State, 30-17, at home. Those were only tuneups. This is the one that matters.
How to watch Arizona State vs. UCLA 2013: Preview, TV schedule, odds and more
Win and get control of the Pac-12 South. No pressure.
Ralph Freso
One factor to watch for is the play of UCLA’s front seven, which is one of the most athletic and ferocious in the country. If the Bruins are to stop Taylor Kelly and ASU’s 23rd-ranked offense, some significant production from Myles Jack -- hang on, more on him in a bit -- Jordan Zumwalt, Anthony Barr and Eric Kendricks would be a good start. They certainly have the talent to make Kelly’s life miserable.
The numbers
Rankings and records: No. 14 UCLA has won two straight against the Sun Devils and leads No. 17 Arizona State, 18-10-1, in their all-time series.
Vegas: Arizona State is a 2.5-point road favorite. The over/under is 61.5 points.
Weather: There’s a 30% chance of rain at the Rose Bowl this weekend, with a high of 69 and a low of 49.
Three names to know
Myles Jack (UCLA linebacker) - There's little to no chance you haven't heard of Myles Jack by now. The true freshman has had his name everywhere after his jaw-dropping performances the last two weeks on both defense, where he has been consistently fantastic, and offense, where he has just begun playing. Washington was the latest victim of the Myles Jack express, giving up four short-yardage touchdowns to him last Friday. Will Arizona State be better prepared for Jack?
Cassius Marsh (UCLA defensive end) - Jack isn't the only defensive player working with the offense, though. Marsh, who has three sacks this year, caught a touchdown pass against the Huskies as well.
Paul Randolph (ASU defensive coordinator) - All of that is a roundabout way of saying Randolph will have his hands full this week trying to stop a diverse UCLA attack headed by Noel Mazzone. Still, Randolph does have the Sun Devil defense playing superbly this season, leading a unit that ranks 16th in the country in total defense, although just 45th in scoring.
Two things at stake
For both of these teams, the thing at stake is the same. Because UCLA already has two conference losses -- to Stanford and Oregon -- and Arizona State only has one, a UCLA win would give the Bruins the lead in the Pac-12 South, by virtue of a head-to-head tiebreaker. If the Sun Devils were to emerge victorious, however, they would secure the South outright, thanks to a victory over USC earlier in the season.
You may remember that game as the one that got Lane Kiffin fired.
How to witness
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FOX
Further reading
Bruins Nation has more on UCLA, including a look at all the possible Pac-12 South scenarios.
All things Sun Devil are inside the House of Sparky. They’ve got a look at UCLA this week.
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