Previewing Arizona State-Colorado Buffaloes - Keys, Game Prediction, and More

The Sun Devils are seeking to remain in the Big 12 title race with a victory Saturday.

ASU Sun Devils head coach Kenny Dillingham yells out to his team as they play against the Houston Cougars at Mountain America Stadium in Tempe on Oct. 25, 2025. | Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

TEMPE -- The Arizona State Sun Devils (7-3, 5-2 Big 12) are shooting to remain in the Big 12 title picture later tonight against the Colorado Buffaloes (3-7, 1-6) in what is the final road game of the regular season.

The Sun Devils are coming off a 25-23 win over West Virginia last week, while Deion Sanders' team fell to the same West Virginia squad two weeks ago.

Arizona State on SI covers all of the vitals for the game below - information surrounding the battle, major storylines to watch, a game prediction, and more.

Deion Sanders walks the sidelines as the Colorado plays Arizona State at Mountain America Stadium. | Joe Rondone / USA TODAY NETWORK

Game Information

WHO: #25 Arizona State @ Colorado

WHERE: Folsom Field, Boulder, CO

WHEN: 6:00 P.M. MST

The Skinny: Colorado is relatively thin roster-wise going into this contest, as they are battling through injury issues at various positions in their own right.

A potential bright spot moving forward is Julian Lewis, a five-star quarterback from the 2025 recruiting class. Lewis flipped to Colorado from USC and just made his first career start against West Virginia before the Buffaloes' bye week, throwing for nearly 300 yards in the process.

Outside of this development, many other positional matchups and factors heading into the game favor Arizona State - these potential advantages will be explored below.

Nov 8, 2025; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Julian Lewis (10) warms up prior to their game against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-Imagn Images | Ben Queen-Imagn Images

What to Watch: Colorado Run Defense vs. ASU Rushing Attack

This is about as clear of a matchup advantage as one team can have heading into a game.

Colorado ranks last in the Big 12 in rushing defense (210.9 yards per game) - which ranks below Oklahoma State, Baylor and Kansas by a significant amount. It certainly doesn't help that the defensive line is fairly out of commission, but the group struggled long before the depth was being relied upon.

Arizona State's starting RB Raleek Brown and QB Jeff Sims will be put in prime positions to succeed in numerous ways. Sims can succeed as a scrambler, in the plus-one game, and potentially even with designed runs, while Brown will look to have his best game in weeks behind an o-line that should have their way from a physicality standpoint.

Sep 6, 2025; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils running back Raleek Brown (3) runs the ball during the fourth quarter against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

What to Watch: Colorado's Reliance on Passing Game

Colorado's purported reliance on Lewis in this game has the potential to be of great detriment to the offense as a whole.

The Buffaloes enter the game as the 15th-ranked rushing attack in the league (122.1) - just narrowly edging out TCU (122.0 ) - this is not a good omen against an Arizona State run defense that ranks as the second-best in the conference.

Colorado's leading rusher (Micah Welch) has run for just 313 yards this season, which is less than Brown, Sims, and Sam Leavitt, who have now been out for a full month. The onus is on Lewis to have a standout game - although he has the talent to do so, along with a trio of talented receivers - his offensive line has weak points, and Brian Ward's defense is traditionally in positions to take advantage of matchups such as this.

Oct 18, 2025; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils quarterback Jeff Sims (2) against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Mountain America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Prediction: Arizona State 34, Colorado 20

Colorado looks to have new life after Deion Sanders moved to the freshman Lewis as the starting quarterback for the final three games of the team’s season.

Wide receiver Omarion Miller has developed an incredible rapport with Lewis recently as well - the Sun Devil secondary will be challenged.

Sep 12, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders shakes hands with wide receiver Omarion Miller (4) before the game against the Houston Cougars at TDECU Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

However, the lack of a run game from Colorado (51 yards on 38 carries in their last game), along with a porous defense (second worst in the Big 12 ahead of Oklahoma State), might pose too much to secure victory.

The recent standout play from senior QB Jeff Sims should also instill more confidence in Arizona State fans that an efficient offensive showing is in the cards. The Sun Devils should run away with the win at some point in the second half.

Read more on why the Arizona State men's basketball team will exceed expectations in the 2025-26 season here, and on how the culture that has been cultivated by coach Dillingham showed up against West Virginia here.

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