ASU Football: Pac-12 releases shortened 2020 season schedule

(Photo: Marlee Smith/WCSN)

Arizona State football will open the 2020 season against USC on Nov. 7 at 10 a.m. MST in Los Angeles, the Pac-12 conference announced Saturday.

The announcement was made during the league’s schedule release for the 2020 season, which was postponed on Aug. 11 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Just over a month later, the conference announced its return to play after a breakthrough in COVID-19 testing was found, clearing a major hurdle in the conference’s quest to play.

The Sun Devils will play a seven game schedule – five against its Pac-12 South divisional rivals (USC, Colorado, Utah, UCLA, Arizona) and one against California from the Pac-12 North.

ASU’s last game of the regular season will either be the Pac-12 Championship Game or a game against the North’s corresponding divisional seed (i.e. the South’s No. 2 seed will play the North’s No. 2 seed, and so on).

ASU’s schedule could be chalked up among the easier gauntlets in the league, as they avoid conference powerhouses like Stanford, Oregon and Washington thanks to their geographic location in the South.

However, USC presents a challenge in Week one, as the Sun Devils will travel to Los Angeles to battle sophomore quarterback and Arizona-native Kedon Slovis.

Slovis was a revelation during the 2019 season, taking over for injured starting quarterback J.T. Daniels and throwing for 3,502 yards, 30 touchdowns and nine interceptions.

ASU opens at home in Week 2 against Cal, who returns redshirt junior quarterback Chase Garbers despite losing key pieces defensively (linebacker Evan Weaver and safety Ashytn Davis) to the 2020 NFL Draft.

Garbers was excellent in 2019 before suffering a broken collarbone against in a Week five loss to ASU. He returned later in the year and led Cal to a 35-20 Redbox Bowl win over Illinois.

When Garbers starts, the Golden Bears are a force. The team was 7-0 in games Garbers started and completed in 2019.

Next up is a trip up to Boulder to face a Colorado squad that experienced multiple losses to its roster and coaching staff over the tumultuous offseason.

Head coach Mel Tucker left to take a job at Michigan State while quarterback Steven Montez and star wide receiver Laviska Shenault Jr. declared for the NFL Draft.

Former UCLA head coach Karl Dorrell took over for Tucker, and options to replace Montez are limited and unproven with junior quarterback Tyler Lytle and freshman Brendon Lewis.

A two-game home stretch follows with the Sun Devils first hosting Utah and then UCLA. Like the Buffaloes, Utah suffered heavy losses to the NFL. Star tailback Zack Moss and key defensive contributors like cornerbacks Jaylon Johnson and Julian Blackmon and defensive ends Bradlee Anae and Leki Fotu were all drafted. Additionally, quarterback Tyler Huntley signed as an undrafted free agent with the Baltimore Ravens.

The Utes have revamped though. Former South Carolina quarterback Jake Bentley transferred to Utah over the lengthened offseason, bringing a big arm and questionable decision-making to the table. After years of low yardage seasons, Huntley led a more explosive offense in 2019 for Utah. Bentley will be looking to continue that on.

ASU concludes their two-game home-stand with UCLA in Week 5. The Bruins are a bit more experienced than the Sun Devils’ previous two opponents. Head coach Chip Kelly and junior quarterback Dorain Thompson-Robinson are both back. But the NFL stole running back Joshua Kelley and tight end Devin Asiasi, weapons that Thompson-Robinson relied on heavily in 2019.

It’s been a tough stint for Kelly since returning to the college coaching ranks with just seven wins in two seasons, but the Bruins aren’t a group that the Sun Devils should gloss over, even with the next’s week looming opponent.

Within the Pac-12’s decision to play a fall 2020 season came the shifting of Rivalry Week. Initially scheduled for Week 1, ASU would have traveled to Tucson to open the season against the Wildcats.

However, Saturday’s schedule release realigned the showdown to its normal place in the calendar. A Friday night game – a new wrinkle compared to past years – will pit one sophomore quarterback in ASU’s Jayden Daniels against another in Grant Gunnell. Gunnell was electric in just three starts last season for Arizona, and his arm could help offset the loss of running back J.J. Taylor to the NFL.

Opt-outs, transfers and other moves have hit the Wildcats hard on both sides. Stud linebacker Colin Schooler moved on to Texas Tech and safety Scottie Young Jr. transferred to West Virginia. Kahlil Tate, once considered a Heisman candidate in 2019, declared for the draft.

ASU will have the chance to head into the final scheduled week of play on the right track and fresh off a third straight Territorial Cup win. With a schedule full of teams in transition, the final week could represent a chance to play for the conference’s crown.