ASU Football: Sun Devils to play in Las Vegas Bowl against Wisconsin

(Photo: Brendan Belfield/WCSN)

Arizona State Football (8-4, 6-3 Pac-12) will play Wisconsin (8-4, 6-3 Big Ten) in the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl on Dec. 30 at Allegiant Stadium, as announced by Las Vegas Bowl executive director John Saccenti on Sunday.

The appearance is the Sun Devils’ highest bowl placement since reaching the 1996 Rose Bowl Game.

The Badgers finished their regular season with a 23-13 loss to Minnesota, ending a seven-game winning streak. Meanwhile, the Sun Devils are coming off a 38-15 win over rival Arizona and have since received headlines.

Immediately after the win, both defensive coordinator Antonio Pierce and senior cornerback Chase Lucas confirmed that head coach Herm Edwards would be returning next season.

“I told [ASU senior associate athletic director, media relations] Mark [Brand] a long time ago when I took this job – there’s an elevator you can go up where I go up into the stadium – but I take the stairs,” Edwards said after the game. “I told him, ‘the day I don’t have the energy to walk up those stairs, I’m going to walk back down and I’m done.’

“I’ll walk again tonight. I’m the coach. I’m going to be the coach.”

The news would not stop, as redshirt senior running back Rachaad White announced the next day that he would skip ASU’s upcoming bowl game to prepare for the NFL Draft. The Sun Devils will be even more depleted at the position for the game, as sophomore running back DeaMonte Trayanum reportedly entered the transfer portal on Nov. 29.

The Sun Devils can take solace, however, in knowing that their quarterback will be returning. Junior Jayden Daniels announced on Twitter on Dec. 2 that he will come back for his senior season. Daniels has been inconsistent primarily through the air in 2021, throwing for 2,222 yards with 10 touchdowns and nine interceptions.

He will match up comparably to another struggling quarterback in sophomore Graham Mertz, who has thrown for 1,821 yards with nine touchdowns and 10 interceptions for the Badgers this season.

Both teams are anchored by a dominating defense. Wisconsin is first in the Big Ten in yards (240.8) allowed and second in points allowed (16.4). The Sun Devils rank second in both categories in the Pac-12 Conference.

The Las Vegas Bowl will be ASU’s ninth bowl appearance in the last 10 seasons (not counting 2020, where ASU only played four games due to COVID-19 protocols and declined a bowl opportunity). It will also be Edwards’ third bowl game in his four-year tenure and his second time in the Las Vegas Bowl, which the Sun Devils lost 31-20 to Fresno State in 2018.

The game can be seen on ESPN at 8:30 p.m MST.