The Texas Tech Red Raiders are still undefeated heading into Week 7. The process hasn’t always been pretty, but they’re one of just nine programs at the FBS level without a blemish on their record. On Saturday, they’re looking to keep that clean heading into a matchup against the Arizona State Sun Devils, who upset the reigning Big 12 champs last season. In the rematch, could we get a similar result?
Here’s a preview, prediction and pick for Arizona State vs. Texas Tech on Saturday’s college football slate.
Arizona State vs. Texas Tech prediction, preview
It’s already been an up-and-down campaign for the Sun Devils. They’re 3-2 overall, 2-2 against FBS foes and 1-1 in Big 12 play with mixed results all around. Their wins came over Kansas and Hawaii; the losses came at the hands of Texas A&M and Baylor in blowouts. Offense is the name of the game for this team since they average 32.6 PPG with 421.4 YPG, a necessity since the defense has proven rather weak (more on that in a moment). The good news is that quarterback Cutter Boley looks quite good with 1,229 yards and 12 touchdowns to just three interceptions. With weapons like his top wideouts, how could he not? Reed Harris leads the conference with 590 receiving yards and seven touchdowns on 34 catches, while Omarion Miller has 312 yards and two scores on 31 grabs. The halfback duo of Kyson Brown (55 ATT, 290 YDS, 1 TD) and Cardae Mack (22 ATT, 214 YDS, 2 TD) are also efficient on the ground, too. The defense is a killer, though. Arizona State is conceding 27.8 PPG – 106th in the nation – and 347.4 YPG. The secondary is particularly vulnerable and has just three interceptions, and while the pass rush has a respectable 10 sacks, that side of the ball just isn’t holding up.
Meanwhile, Texas Tech sits at a perfect 5-0 thus far. The Red Raiders haven’t always looked like the best team on the field during their matchups, but they do have a ranked win over Houston along with FBS victories against Oregon State, Sam Houston and Colorado. This isn’t last year’s squad on either side of the ball, to be frank. Offensively, they’re averaging 34.8 PPG with 406.4 YPG, relying largely on the run game. Cameron Dickey won’t play due to a high ankle sprain, meaning there should be plenty of work for leading rusher J’Koby Williams – who has 510 scrimmage yards and three total touchdowns while averaging 5.9 YPC – and Quinten Joyner in relief. Will Hammond looked solid as a spot starter last season but has struggled plenty this year, posting 1,102 yards with a 68.3% completion rate, but also throwing five interceptions alongside his five touchdowns. He’s spread the ball out quite a bit as well, though wideouts Kenny Johnson (17 REC, 298 YDS, 1 TD) and Coy Eakin (16 REC, 194 YDS, 2 TD) lead the team in receiving yardage. Last season’s defense was extremely formidable, and for what it’s worth, the Red Raiders are 23rd in opponent scoring with 16.2 PPG allowed. However, they’re conceding 353.6 YPG and have been gashed through the air, though they have a whopping nine interceptions with 11 sacks, too.
Arizona State vs. Texas Tech pick, best bet
On DraftKings Sportsbook, Texas Tech enters as a 15.5-point favorite with -700 odds on the Moneyline; Arizona State is a +500 underdog to win outright. The game total sits at 50.5 combined points between these teams.
The Red Raiders should win this game outright. Then again, we said that last year before they eventually lost on the road with Hammond at the helm. Can the Sun Devils challenge them again? Absolutely. The reasoning behind that centers around how vulnerable Texas Tech has been through the air – the secondary has conceded an average of 262.2 passing yards per contest. Tech is still quite stout against the run, but that’s created something of a pass-funnel defense that has opponents turning to the passing attack at a high rate. Boley is the kind of quarterback who can take advantage of that, assuming he doesn’t turn the ball over. He’s probably one of the two best signal-callers this TTU unit has faced so far, and with a couple of real standout receivers to cover, it’s not hard to see a world in which Arizona State easily covers this line. The offense has the juice to hang around even if the Sun Devils’ own defense continues to underperform.
Best Bet: Arizona State +15.5 (-110)
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