14th-ranked ASU Sun Devils open Pac-12 slate vs. Colorado Buffaloes

The Colorado Buffaloes are 4-23 in conference games since joining the Pac-12 in 2011.

Furthermore, they’ve never beaten the Arizona State Sun Devils in five meetings on the gridiron.

Those are two trends Mike MacIntyre’s team would like to reverse when the 14th-ranked Devils visit Folsom Field in Boulder Saturday.

The teams first played back in 2006, when CU was still a member of the Big 12 Conference. The Sun Devils won that game, in Boulder, 21-3. They followed it the next season with a 33-14 thrashing in Tempe.

Since the Buffs joined the Pac-12, it’s been much of the same. Arizona State has won the last three matchups by an average score of 51-14. Last year’s game in Tempe was the most one-sided in the rivalry, with the Sun Devils waltzing to a 54-13 win. But don’t expect that spanking to give the home team extra motivation.

“We don’t have to remind them about that. They know about that. We severely got beat last year from the opening whistle to the end. Our kids know that,” CU head coach Mike MacIntyre said. “I know they’ll come out ready to go from the beginning and play them extremely tough. So, I don’t think you need any motivation on that side of it.”

Colorado got its first win of the 2014 campaign last week on the road against UMass, overcoming an 11-point third-quarter deficit in the process. Sophomore quarterback Sefo Liufau, who incidentally saw his first college action in last year’s game at ASU, spearheaded the comeback with two touchdown passes to receiver Nelson Spruce.

A win is always nice. But considering it was a three-point victory against the Minutemen, who are 2-24 since moving up to the FBS ranks in 2012, it shouldn’t instill too much confidence for Colorado.

The Sun Devils’ win over New Mexico was dotted with inconsistency, especially in the first half. But after halftime, everything clicked. ASU’s young defense allowed just 83 yards and the Sun Devils outscored the Lobos 26-2 on their way to the win.

Liufau is wary of ASU’s new-look defense.

“They’re a very athletic defense. They’ve lost some key guys from, last year. But, I think they have some really good young guys stepping up,” he said. “(There isn’t) many weak spots on their defense. So, we have to be consistent and be able to run and pass the ball on them because nothing is going to come easy.”

When Colorado chooses to run the football, they’ll likely do so behind junior tailback Christian Powell, who is a load at 230 pounds. Powell ran for 80 yards and a touchdown against UMass.

Liufau has plenty of options to throw to, but Spruce is the most dangerous. The junior leads the conference and is eighth in the nation with 249 receiving yards through two games. His four touchdown catches are tied for the second-most in FBS.

Freshman Shay Fields is also developing into a threat for the CU offense. He’s got 14 catches for 139 yards and a score in his first two college games.

What to watch for

• Turnovers – After forcing a turnover in 29 straight games under Graham, the Sun Devils failed to get one in the season opener against Weber State. They bounced back last week, forcing three in the New Mexico win. Colorado, on the other hand, has taken good care of the ball this year, coughing the ball up just once in 162 offensive plays.

Since 2012, the Sun Devils are 13-4 when winning the turnover battle.

• D.J. Foster – ASU’s junior running back has been one of the best players in the Pac-12 dating back to the latter part of the 2013 season.

Foster has set a new career-high in rushing in each of the his last three games, starting with a 132-yard performance against Texas Tech in the Holiday Bowl last December. Against Weber State, he rumbled for 147 yards and three touchdowns on just 15 carries. And last Saturday in Albuquerque, he torched the New Mexico defense for 216 yards and a score on 19 carries.

“I feel like I’m finally getting into my rhythm every week,” Foster said. “I feel like I’ve just got to stay focused, keep practicing hard during the week and keep being a student of the game.”

Colorado has proven to be susceptible to the run. Last season, the CU defense was anything but “buff,” allowing 226 yards per game on the ground — the sixth-worst mark in FBS.

In their season-opening loss to Colorado State, they allowed both Dee Hart (139) and Treyous Jarrells (121) to run for over 100 yards. Look for Foster to have a big day in Boulder, and possibly set another new career high.

• Special teams – This hasn’t been a strength for either team. Colorado has struggled on kick and punt coverage early in 2014. They allowed Colorado State an average of 29.0 yards per kick return in the opener and UMass two kickoff returns of over 34 yards and a punt return for 31.

“We’re not working on it at all,” MacIntyre joked. “No, we’re working on it. Just on our kickoff coverage, we didn’t fit a couple things up right and kind of stayed on some big blocks on the backside. Your backside has got to get there. We didn’t get off blocks well. We’ve got to design a little bit better with that. Then, we’ve made some changes on some guys. We feel like we can do better with that. We’re working at it and we’ll keep pushing at it.”

Meanwhile, ASU had two extra points blocked, a missed field goal, averaged 2.3 yards per punt return and had a 21-yard punt of their own against New Mexico.

In other words, there could be plenty of opportunities for both teams to make game-changing plays on teams.

Follow @Vincemarotta