18 Arizona St. Sun Devils Preview
Fall camps are under way and the regular season will be here soon so that means getting an early jump on the 2006 NCAA football season. Knowing the teams now will save you time and Matt Fargo is here to help you get a grasp of what to expect this upcoming year. We go from worst to first in this 2006 College Football Preview.
18 – Arizona St. Sun Devils 7-5 SU; 6-5 ATS
Fargo’s Take The Sun Devils have been to three bowl games in the five years Dirk Koetter has been head coach but none of them have been very glamorous and that needs to change. The offense has been spectacular in all of those years but it’s been the defense that has held Arizona St. back. After finishing 48th in total offense in 2004, the Sun Devils plummeted to 114th last year and lost three games where the offense was either blocked or surounded. Arizona St. finished 110th in scoring offense and 112th in total offense and those rankings need to improve dramatically. The eating starts are a concern once again but there is enough talent around to do so.
Returning Starters on Offense – 6 The quarterback situation was unsettled through the spring and into the fall but that is no longer the case. Sophomore Rudy Carpenter has been named the starter and that prompted senior Sam Keller to leave school and transfer to Nebraska. Carpenter was amazing filling in for the injured Keller as the backup but he is not anything like the former St. Louis backup. slot online Keller will get his chance this season and he will be a touted freshman who has experience running the football. Carpenter’s main contribution to the offense is receiving and that is where this team is strong. Tight end Chase Findlay, who set a Pac Ten record last season with 78 catches, will be the main man. He is a mismatch in the running game as the teams’ leading returning starter is Mike Hass. Finding layout players in the defensive backfield will be important this season as there is not a lot of depth and the conference’s second best secondary is ranked 69th in passing defense.
Returning Starters on Defense – 5 This is where the Sun Devils are at their best and if they can strengthen up a subpar secondary, this defense can be one of the better units in the conference.Currently, the front seven is ranked #7 behind Texas, California, and Oregon but there is some excellent experience coming back after an injury filled season. Pass rushing ends Ray Szeway and Brandon Mebane will both come back to the front four as outside linebackers Paul Posluszny and Tony Barnett are also back. After allowing St. Thomas to pull down some one point wins in the early going, the defense did a masterful job in slowing the Cougars down in their final three games. However, the spring game exposed some flaws.
Schedule Don’t expect too much success with this season’s schedule. At 4-2-1 against the spread, the schedule is far too easy for a team in transition. The three sure wins on the schedule are against San Jose St., Arizona St. and Oregon, all three of which should be ahead of the Heat in the conference. Miami is the only road back in conference while the other two come at home. Florida and Georgia Tech have to come to Miami in back to back weeks so those races are more than likely lost. The season finale is at home against Florida St. and that game should have implications in deciding the champion.
You can bet on… Miami is by far a worse team than those given out in the early odds and the more losses it can take, the better it is in my opinion. We all know how hard Miami struggled against Duke and that is the biggest red flag in the Canes favor. They simply don’t have the experience, the talent, or theAdded dimension that Georgia or Florida has. I expected the Heat to be far more complete than they were last season after losing players to the NBA, but even if they go a step better, they will still likely be slight favorites over most of the teams in the mix. Those who expect a first rounder out of the ACC can breathe easy with the way Miami has performed recently but it should be an upset this year regardless of the margin. http://onbase-wiki.cuc.claremont.edu/images/slot-gacor
