Arizona State visits No. 20 K-State with both teams still in the fight for the Big 12 title game
Arizona State (7-2, 4-2 Big 12) at No. 20 Kansas State (7-2, 4-2), Saturday, 7 p.m. EST (ESPN)
BetMGM College Football Odds: Kansas State by 8 1/2.
Series record: Arizona State leads 5-1.
WHAT’S AT STAKE?
Arizona State and Kansas State are among a logjam of four Big 12 teams that are 4-2 in conference play, and all of them but West Virginia are 7-2 overall. That means the Sun Devils and Wildcats are a game behind Colorado — Kansas State has the tiebreaker on the Buffalos courtesy of a head-to-head win — and two games behind unbeaten BYU with the top two teams advancing to the conference championship game.
KEY MATCHUP
Arizona State freshman Sam Leavitt against the Kansas State pass defense, which has been prone to giving up big yardage through the air this season. Leavitt has thrown for 1,631 yards with 14 touchdown passes and only four interceptions. He has six of those TD passes and no picks the past two weeks in wins over Oklahoma State and UCF.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Arizona State: RB Cam Skattebo missed last week’s game against UCF with an undisclosed injury, but Sun Devils coach Kenny Dillingham said he would try to practice this week. Skattebo has 1,001 yards rushing and 11 scores along with 27 catches for 404 yards and two more TDs in eight games this season.
Kansas State: QB Avery Johnson’s hyped first season as the starter has been a rollercoaster ride, and it hit a big-time dip two weeks ago in an upset loss in Houston. Johnson was just 23 of 39 for 238 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions for his worst quarterback rating since a similarly ugly performance in a loss to BYU.
FACTS & FIGURES
The teams have not met since the 2002 Holiday Bowl won by Kansas State. Prior to that game, Arizona State had won all five matchups with the first in November 1964 and the most recent regular-season game on Sept. 9, 1989. … Arizona State is off to its best start since going 8-1 in 2014. … Leavitt’s back-to-back games with three TD passes and no picks are the first for Arizona State since Jayden Daniels did so in three straight games in 2019. … Arizona State WR Jordyn Tyson has 448 yards receiving and five TD catches over the last five games. … Kansas State is coming off its second bye of the season. … Johnson needs 108 yards passing to reach 2,000 this season.
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