Final Predictions for Mississippi State football vs Arizona State

Mississippi State football travels out west to Tempe for a duel in the desert with the Arizona State Sun Devils. ASU looked much better in their season-opening, 48-7 win over Wyoming than they did at any point last season, and this game certainly looks like it will be much more challenging for MSU than was originally expected. In fact, the Sun Devils are actually the favored team over the Bulldogs by many metrics.

How do these teams matchup, and how do I predict this one to go?

Mississippi State's offense has to be on the attack against Arizona State's defense

Arizona State plays an aggressive style on defense. They like to get after quarterbacks to create negative plays and force turnovers. They had plenty of success with this in Week 1 with three sacks and three forced turnovers, including two recovered for TDs. Mississippi State's best bet for success against the Sun Devils is to use their own aggression against them. They should get some 1-on-1 opportunities in the passing game downfield, and with ASU starting a pair of young CBs, the Bulldog WRs should have an edge. If Blake Shapen has time to throw, he should find success.

Mississippi State's defense must limit the Arizona State ground game

The Sun Devil offense builds around their ground game. With a good group of RBs and a young but mobile QB in Sam Leavitt, they want to run to set up their passing game. But if you get them into clear passing situations, they're less likely to find success. State's defense allowed EKU to run the ball decently on early downs last week. That can't happen against ASU. Stop the run on early downs to force them into 3rd & Long and make Leavitt have to beat you with his arm. They'll have to be sure to prevent him from scrambling in those spots too, but if they can keep him in the pocket, they can get stops.

Mississippi State will be in a shootout with Arizona State

This feels like it will be a high-scoring game. The ASU defense looks improved, but handling Shapen and the MSU WRs is another story. Meanwhile MSU's defense has major question marks, and with ASU fielding a better offense, they should be able to put some points on the board. I definitely feel like this will a much closer game than I expected before the season, and the road trip factor does worry me for the Bulldogs. But I'll trust the more experienced QB to make the winning plays, even on the road.

Prediction: Mississippi State defeats Arizona State 37-35