Staff Predictions: Baylor Heads West to Face Arizona State in Late-Night Showdown

TEMPE, Ariz. – The SicEm365 Staff gives its predictions for Baylor’s (3-1, 1-0) road matchup against Arizona State (2-1, 1-0). Kickoff is set for 9:30 p.m. CDT on Saturday, Oct. 3, at Mountain America Stadium.

• Spread: Arizona State (-3.5)
• O/U: 49.5
• Moneyline: Arizona State (-185), Baylor (+154)
• ESPN Matchup Predictor: Baylor (52.4%)

Colt Barber (4-0) — Arizona State 23, Baylor 20

I’m really anxious to see DJ Lagway in this game. He should take a big step forward, and if he does, things will be set up well for the next four games, even with a loss. Right now, I’m expecting improvement, but not enough to push this team over the top on the road. That said, I think Baylor will still have a chance to win this one late, and they come up just short. 

Ashley Hodge (4-0) — Arizona State 23, Baylor 17

I would love to pick Baylor here; I just don’t trust this offense to move the ball and put up enough points. Arizona State will have the “edge” in energy. I think Baylor’s defense is legit, but the offense won’t carry its end of the equation.  

Grayson Grundhoefer (4-0) — Arizona State 26, Baylor 24

I took Arizona State to win this game in the preseason, and I am going to stick to that. I get the sense Baylor can win this game, and the vibes point that way, but I just can’t pick them to go on the road and win a game like this. The Sun Devils offense has a unique passing attack, and the defense is solid. This is a prove-it game for me, but I expect it to be close and a toss-up.

Levi Caraway (3-1) — Baylor 27, Arizona State 24

I respect head coach Kenny Dillingham a ton, but I think the Sun Devils are still trying to put all the pieces together after losing so much from last season. It probably helps the Bears that they face them earlier in the year, and they’re two weeks removed from their London trip. Whichever team plays the cleanest brand of football finds a way to win.

Jack Mackenzie (4-0) — Arizona State 28, Baylor 17

I’m sticking to my guns (preseason prediction) that this will be a loss. Last week's ineffective offense shook my confidence in the team, and they showed zero progress on the penalty issue. The defense will play well but succumb to the ASU offense in the fourth quarter. Honestly, I’m envisioning a similar game to last week, just with a better first half for ASU (14 points), then no late offensive surge to keep up with a pair of fourth-quarter TDs from the Devils.

Sam Bradshaw (4-0) — Arizona State 27, Baylor 20

Baylor and Arizona State both have good defenses that make life bearable for offenses with weapons and upside, but they haven’t really gelled all year. Arizona State will make Baylor execute consistently, and I don’t know how confident I am that this offense is up to the task. If this were at a normal time or if Lagway was 100%, I might feel different, but the road game, against a team with two weeks to prepare, playing much later than what Baylor is used to, against a team that can easily do a lot of what CU did to limit BU, sounds like a tough night out west.