ASU Football: First look at Utah

Heading into Week Seven, the Arizona State Sun Devils will travel to Salt Lake City to face the Utah Utes.

The Utes are ranked No. 13 in the country, while the Sun Devils are ranked No. 17 coming off a win against Washington State. The two teams have an 5-1 record, both 2-1 in Pac-12 play.

Utah beat the Oregon State Beavers 52-7 on Saturday, but have yet to face a ranked opponent this season.

Let’s take a look at the Utes:

A strong offense

Ute quarterback Tyler Huntley’s season ended last year in a game against the Sun Devils after breaking his collarbone.

This season Huntley has thrown for over 1300 yards and nine touchdowns. He has yet to throw an interception this season, but in his previous two games against the Sun Devils he has thrown six interceptions.

The Sun Devils only have two interceptions on the year so far, the fewest in the Pac-12.

Last week against the Cougars, the Sun Devils let Anthony Gordon throw for 466 passing yards. If the defense does the same thing as last week, Huntley could have another big game.

Running back Zack Moss is also a key component to the Utes offense. Moss is currently averaging 102.8 yards per game and 7.6 yards per carry.

About a month ago, the Utes suffered a 30-23 loss to the USC Trojans. They were without Moss who was dealing with an injury and it really showed.

Now, their running game is back in motion and in the win against Oregon State, Moss only had five carries for 121 yards and two touchdowns. He will be a dangerous threat against the Sun Devil defense.

A solid defense

At this point in the season, the Utes defense is just where everyone thought it would be, an overall good defense.

This week will be a new test for the defense as they are faced with the strong run game of Eno Benjamin. He has seven touchdowns this season and has over 500 rushing yards. The Utes will need to shut down Benjamin and not let him get into a good rhythm.

Utes’ opponents are averaging 218.6 passing yards per game and Arizona State QB Jayden Daniels and wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk are both coming off huge passing games last week. Daniels threw for 363 yards and three touchdowns, while Aiyuk is second in the Pac-12 with 651 yards receiving.

The Utes already have eight interceptions on the year, and it could be a momentum changer if they are able to intercept Daniels as it played a big factor in the Sun Devils loss against Colorado.

In their matchups against Washington State and Oregon State, the Utes were able to hold their opponents to a combined 20 points. Their opponents are averaging 13.17 points per game and the Sun Devils are averaging 25.33.