Getty Quarterback Chase Garbers #7 of the California Golden Bears passes against the Stanford Cardinal during the first quarter at California Memorial Stadium on December 1, 2018 in Berkeley, California.
The red-hot California Golden Bears host the Arizona State Sun Devils in an intriguing Pac-12 clash on Friday night.
Arizona State started the season strong with consecutive wins against Kent State, Sacramento State and a 10-7 upset victory against then No. 18 Michigan State on the road before suffering a disappointing 34-31 home loss against Colorado last Saturday.
California beat UC Davis and North Texas at home and upset Washington and Ole Miss on the road, as 2.5-point underdogs. California leads the all-time series 17-16 but Arizona State won the last meeting, 51-41 on September 24, 2016 in Tempe.
Arizona State Sun Devils (3-1) vs. No. 15 California Golden Bears (4-0)
Friday, September 27 at 10:30 PM ET
Memorial Stadium
Coverage: ESPN
*All odds and betting info courtesy of OddsShark and originally posted by Jazz Sports
- Arizona State vs. No. 15 California -4.5
- Over/Under: 40
Arizona State Sun Devils
All success stories include overcoming adversity 😤
Focused on Cal.
Arizona State was off to a 3-0 start behind a defense that allowed 21 combined points in those games but Colorado scored 24 points by halftime and finished with 475 total yards, despite playing most of the game without star receiver Laviska Shenault due to injury.
Jayden Daniels completed 24 of 39 passes for 345 yards and two touchdowns with one interception, Eno Benjamin ran for 83 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries and Brandon Aiyuk caught nine passes for 122 yards and one touchdown in the loss. Colorado outgained Arizona State 475-453, they had 20 first downs to Arizona State’s 21 and won the time of possession 31:56 to 28:04.
California Golden Bears
Friday Night. Under the Lights. #EarnIt
California nearly let a 28-13 lead disappear in the final six minutes but they were able to upset Ole Miss 28-20 behind a brilliant performance from Chase Garbers, who completed 23 of 35 passes for 357 yards and four touchdowns with one interception. Jake Tonges caught three passes for 88 yards and one touchdown, Jordan Duncan had five receptions for 63 yards and one touchdown and Marcel Dancy ran for 47 yards on 12 carries.
Ole Miss outgained California 525-433 and they had 27 first downs to California’s 24 but the Golden Bears won the time of possession 31:00 to 29:00 and they were more efficient, going 6-for-12 in third down efficiency and 3-for-3 in the red zone.
Trends and Prediction
The Arizona State Sun Devils are:
- 1-4 ATS in their last five games after accumulating more than 450 total yards in their previous game
- 1-4 ATS in their last five games after allowing more than 280 passing yards in their previous game
- 1-5 ATS in their last six games overall
- 0-6 ATS in their last six Friday games
- 2-6 ATS in their last eight meetings in California
The California Golden Bears are:
- 5-0-1 ATS in their last six games after allowing more than 280 passing yards in their previous game
- 6-1 ATS in their last seven conference games
- 5-1 ATS in their last six games against a team with a winning record
- 10-4 ATS in their last 14 games following a straight up win
The California run defense will give Arizona State issues, they have fared very well against teams with a better running game than Arizona State’s and their star linebacker Evan Weaver made 22 tackles against Ole Miss, so he’s clearly a player to watch and a potential difference-maker on Friday.
Arizona State has talented playmakers but the California secondary can keep them in check. The home team is 12-5 ATS in their last 17 meetings and is hard not to like what California is doing this season, they have enough weapons to get this win and cover.
Pick: California -4.5
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