A Sun Devils Rooting Guide During Bye Week
If you've been living under a rock: The Arizona State Sun Devils don't play football this week, as the team looks to regroup during their bye and prepare for Washington State on Saturday, Oct. 30.
For many fans, that means a weekend full of other priorities that could range from household chores to taking trips out of town.
Yet for the diehard football fan who will still be parked on their couch from sunrise to sunset, plenty of other games are of interest for Arizona State.
A Sun Devils Rooting Guide During the Bye Week
Arizona vs. Washington: This is a no-brainer, right? For as much let down as the Sun Devils have experienced already, the team down south continues to be a great reminder that things could always be worse.
Arizona State fans should have no problem cheering the Huskies on when they travel to Tucson on Friday night as the Wildcats could extend their record-breaking losing streak to 19 games against the Huskies.
Utah at Oregon State: The Sun Devils, along with needing to win the rest of their games, also need Utah to drop a few games in order to reclaim the top spot in the Pac-12 South.
The Utes begin a tough stretch of games this week when they travel to Oregon State, a team many believe could upend Oregon for the Pac-12 North title. The Beavers are talented and catching Utah at home, spelling only good news for ASU fans rooting for Utah to drop pivotal games.
Sun Devils and Beavers have always been likely allies, and now Oregon State can pay ASU a huge favor on its off day.
BYU at Washington State: This matchup carries a curious rooting interest around it, as there's multiple angles a fan could take.
On one side, you could root for BYU in order to make Arizona State's loss look "stronger" on paper. On the other hand, revenge is a dish best served cold by Washington State.
ASU fans may also not be keen on catching a potentially hungry WSU squad looking to get back in the win column after a potential loss to BYU.
Choose your fighter wisely.
Oregon vs UCLA: This is shaping up to be the Pac-12 game of the week, as both teams can classify this as a "must-win" game. The Bruins look to keep pace in the Pac-12 South race while Oregon simply looks to keep its head afloat after struggling all season against lesser competition.
Ultimately, it may be in Arizona State's best interest for UCLA to win. Since the Sun Devils hold the tie-breaker over the Bruins (and trail the Utes in that area), ASU would benefit much more greatly competing with UCLA in the standings.
Plug: To see how ASU can win the Pac-12 South, click here.