Sun Devils, Wildcats appear in SI.com’s Top 25 college football rankings
Aug 5, 2015, 2:08 PM
The state of Arizona, at least in terms of college football, is really in a golden age.
After all, how often have both the Arizona State Sun Devils and University of Arizona Wildcats been viewed as top-25 teams at the same time?
But that’s exactly where things are, and a look at SI.com’s preseason college football Top 25 not only shows both teams ranked, but both listed inside the top 20.
At No. 15 they have the Wildcats.
Anu Solomon gained national attention after passing for 3,793 yards (and 28 TDs) as a redshirt freshman in 2014. But his coaches are focused on a different number: 85%, the rate of successful decisions, from deciphering coverages to the timing of handoffs, they expect their QB to make. “For me to tell you he was hitting 85—no, not last year,” co-offensive coordinator Rod Smith says. “We understood it because of the s—storm he was in as a freshman [starter].”
Arizona won 10 games last season on the way to a Pac-12 South title as well as a berth in the Fiesta Bowl. The ‘Cats lost a decent amount of talent — especially in the secondary — as starters Jared Tevis, Jourdan Grandon, Jonathan McKnight and Tra’Mayne Bondurant all ran out of eligibility. However, they return most of their skill position stars, including Solomon, running back Nick Wilson and receivers Cayleb Jones, Samajie Grant and Trey Griffey. Oh, and they also bring back linebacker Scooby Wright, the reigning Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year who won most every award he was eligible for last season.
As for the Sun Devils, they came in not far behind Arizona at No. 17.
With fifth-year senior QB Mike Bercovici, a veteran defense and a new leader for special teams, coach Todd Graham aims to improve on last year’s 10-3 record, which included a 36-31 Sun Bowl victory over Duke. “We should be the best we’ve been,” says Graham, who’s entering his fourth year in Tempe. The Sun Devils scored more than 50 points three times in 2014. In Bercovici’s three starts—he totaled 1,243 yards and nine TDs—they averaged 182 more yards passing; twice he threw for more than 485.
Arizona State is coming off back-to-back 10-win seasons and appears poised for another. Along with Bercovici, the offense will feature D.J. Foster, who is moving from running back to receiver, as well as a plethora of running backs. The Devils’ strength, though, may lie in a defense that returns nine starters from a team that finished second in the Pac-12 in turnover margin.
Last week, the Pac-12 media picked Arizona State to finish second and Arizona to finish fourth in the Pac-12 South. The Sun Devils were also ranked 16th in the preseason Amway Coaches Poll, with the Wildcats coming in at No. 22.
