Previewing Arizona St.’s Defense

Arizona St.’s defense is capable of creating havoc for opposing offenses, but they also have major weaknesses, giving up an average of 447 yards per game, which ranks 102nd.

Junior defensive end JoJo Wicker is the leader of the Sun Devils D-Line, earning 2nd Team All-Pac 12 Honors for the second straight year, collecting 12 tackles for loss and 6 sacks.

The Sun Devils have couple of stud linebackers. Junior weak side linebacker Christian Sam leads the team with 127 tackles, and has added 9.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, one interception and one forced fumble. Sam earned All-Pac 12 Honorable Mention. Senior middle linebacker D.J. Calhoun stats are equally impressive, boasting 94 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks.

Arizona St. has proven they can get to the quarterback in 2017, racking up 35 sacks, which ranks 17th in the FBS. Alain Latu has 7.0 sacks to go along with Wicker’s 6, and D.J. Calhoun has 5.5.

Working in NC State’s favor is the fact they are strong where ASU is strong. The Wolfpack offensive line have only allowed 12 sacks all season long.

Arizona St.’s secondary is a glaring weakness, but RS Freahman cornerback Chase Lucas earned 2nd Team All-Pac 12 Honors, accumulating 53 tackles, seven pass breakups and two interceptions. Other than that, the Sun Devils secondary is a mess. They allow 268.1 through the air per game, which ranks 115th in the NCAA. They also give up 6.3 yards per play, which ranks 110th.