Arizona State
vs.
Washington
College Football Pick
11/19/16
Even with Washington’s recent loss, the Huskies still have a chance to not only win the Pac 12, but also reach the College Football Playoff. It starts by getting back on track against an Arizona State team that has battled injuries all season. The Huskies were -26 point home favorites early in the week at 5Dimes Sportsbook.
Everything was going great for Washington and then they ran into a USC team that was firing on all cylinders. One of the best offenses throughout the season, the Huskies were clamped down by the Trojans and on the other end, USC did enough to get the win. The good news is that UW can still win out and maybe even get revenge on USC in the Pac-12 title Game. That would make the recent loss almost invisible come the final CFP rankings.
Things don’t look as great for Arizona State, although they only need one more win to make it to a bowl Game. The Sun Devils have lost Four of their last five Games, with the two most recent ones being a 23-point loss to Utah and 19-point loss at Oregon. This line is sitting at 26 because Washington is better than those teams.
There’s almost no reason to look at last year’s result in which the Sun Devils won 27-17. Jake Browning threw for 405 yards for the Huskies, but he also threw three picks, which ultimately cost the team.
If you’re betting Washington, you must know of Browning’s success this season, a complete improvement from a year ago. He has thrown for 35 touchdowns and only five interceptions all season, while adding five more TDs on the ground. While struggling against USC, he’s still completing close to 65% of his passes. Browning should once again get back to big numbers as Arizona State has one of the worst defenses around, allowing 37.8 points per Game.
In addition to Browning, the Huskies will likely find success through Myles Gaskin and LAvon Coleman on the ground. Reaching 40 points should be expected for the Huskies, with 50 or even 60 (as they had against Cal and Oregon) in sight.
The cover will depend on what the Sun Devils can do offensively. They’ve struggled at times against better defenses, but part of that reason was because of injuries to starting quarterback Manny Wilkins. He returned against Utah and threw for 309 yards, but also had two picks and finished with -42 rushing yards (sacks included).
Wilkins’ playing time has been too inconsistent for his numbers to be better, but this won’t be a fun matchup for him. There’s still a chance for a backdoor cover with this team, though. Wilkins has some help in the running Game between Kalen Ballage and Demario Richard, but neither have done much in recent Games.
While Washington only has one loss this season, it’s notable that they have the same ATS record as Arizona State, 5-5.
The Sun Devils have failed to cover in their last Four road Games, but are 7-2 ATS vs. a team with a winning record. The Huskies don’t have many relevant trends, and ASU gets the edge in this matchup. Arizona State has covered in the last seven meetings played in Washington with them also being 13-2-2 ATS in the last 17 overall. However, the favorite is 9-1 ATS in the last 10 meetings.
Our Pick – Just a weak lean towards Arizona State +27