Phil Steele Reveals His Prediction for West Virginia vs. Arizona State

It's a chance for three in a row this afternoon for West Virginia, which would be the longest winning streak since September 2023, when they beat Duquesne, Pitt, and Texas Tech.

Arizona State is coming off a bye week in which they took the week off from football activity. Could that play a factor? Will there be any rust? College football expert Phil Steele joined the In the Gun podcast for his weekly appearance to break down this week's game.

Phil's analysis and best play

“Well, I’ll be honest with you, if Sam Leavitt was playing and Jordyn Tyson was playing, I would take Arizona State by 24 in this game. They have a hell of a defense, and that offense would get it done. But as you mentioned, Jeff Sims is a turnover machine in every spot — Georgia Tech, Nebraska, wherever he’s been. And if that happens again, they’re in trouble. I don’t like the red zone factor (for Arizona State). So I think my favorite play in this game is going to be under 48. I like that Arizona State defense, and I think offensively, they’ve got to know the key here is don’t let Jeff Sims turn the ball over. Let’s run a conservative game plan, let’s run Raleek Brown, let’s run Jeff Sims, and tell him to hold onto the ball. If that’s the case, I think this one goes under the total. Arizona State’s back to the wall with that defense, you got to figure they have a good shot of winning this one at least straight up.”

The Mountaineers and Sun Devils will get the action started at 1 p.m. ET on TNT/HBO MAX. Following the game, be sure to stop over to our YouTube page (West Virginia On SI) for the Mountaineer Postgame Show with former WVU running back Eugene Napoleon and me. We'll offer our initial thoughts on what went down in the desert and discuss what needs to be fixed moving forward.

Phil's analysis and best play

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