Arizona State football predicted to make a bowl game

TEMPE, Ariz. — Last season Arizona State football went a disappointing 3-9 and missed a bowl game. Now this season it’s almost a totally different team and staff, thanks to new head coach Kenny Dillingham. The Sun Devils have to navigate the gauntlet of the Pac-12, but Brett McMurphy of Action Sports Network thinks they’ll get six wins.

It. Is. Here! My @ActionNetworkHQ Week 0 bowl projections. All 41 bowls such as @CFBPlayoff (Georgia vs. Ohio St; Michigan vs. Florida St); Orange: Clemson vs. Penn St; Cotton: LSU vs. Texas Tech; Fiesta: Alabama vs. Washington; Peach: Oregon vs. Tulanehttps://t.co/VcE0YEufv2

— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) August 21, 2023

Brett McMurphy predicts Arizona State football to make a bowl

McMurphy of Action Sports Network predicted Arizona State to make the Independence Bowl and play UCF. He gives UCF a slight nod, favoring them by a single point.

The Independence Bowl will be played on Dec. 16 in Shreveport, La.

This would be an interesting matchup. For starters, it’s a future Big 12 competition. It’s UCF’s first season in the Big 12, and Arizona State’s last season before joining their new conference.

The two programs have only met one time on the football field before. In 2002, UCF traveled to Tempe and paid the price. The Sun Devils won handily, 46-13. Arizona State was led by their defense and special teams on that evening in 2002. The Sun Devil defense picked off UCF’s quarterbacks three separate times, and two of them went for touchdowns. Runningback and kick/punt returner Hakim Hill led Arizona State in all-purpose yards that game, reaching nearly 200. He was particularly effective as a return man, gaining 157 yards in just five returns.

However, UCF has been a very different program this decade. In the last 10 years, UCF is 86-41 with one claimed national championship (2017) and three conference titles. They’ve also won four bowl games in that time.

This would be a difficult and interesting matchup for Arizona State fans.

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