Arizona vs San Diego State Prediction, Game Preview

Arizona vs San Diego State prediction and game preview.

Arizona vs San Diego State Broadcast

Date: Saturday, September 11
Game Time: 10:00 ET
Venue: Arizona Stadium, Tucson, AZ
Network: Pac-12 Network

Arizona (0-1) vs San Diego State (1-0) Game Preview

Why San Diego State Will Win

Running the ball on New Mexico State is about as easy as ordering Chick-fil-A, but after a rough start in the 28-10 win, the offensive line took over.

Chalk it up to the Aztecs needing to warm up a bit, but the ground game worked. Greg Bell ran for 161 of the team’s 248 yards as the offense pounded away and let the great defense take care of the rest.

Arizona isn’t going to be able to run the ball on this San Diego State defensive front, and it’s going to take a whole lot of passes to try getting things moving. New Mexico State tried that, threw three picks – and that was that.

As long as the Aztecs don’t make the big mistakes like they did last week – three turnovers and way too many penalties – they should be able to control the tempo.

But …

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Why Arizona Will Win

The San Diego State passing game is a problem.

Arizona might have found its guy in the first game of the Jedd Fisch era. Gunner Cruz threw for 336 yards in the 24-16 loss to BYU, spreading the ball around well and showing glimpses of what might be coming.

If New Mexico State’s Jonah Johnson could throw for 326 yards on the Aztec secondary, Arizona should be able to wing it around.

Meanwhile, the Wildcat secondary should have a relatively easy day. Jordan Brookshire only hit 7-of-20 passes for 115 yards and a pick against the bad Aggie D, and no, the running game won’t rip off yards in chunks on a slowly improving Arizona defensive front.

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What’s Going To Happen

Arizona actually outgained BYU.

The offense threw well, the defense was good on third downs, and the team wasn’t bad outside of allowing a few big plays. San Diego State doesn’t have the pop to hit the throws the Cougars did.

However, it’s going to come down to which D will have a bad drive or two.

San Diego State will generate more of a pass rush and bigger plays behind the line, stalling Arizona just enough to get out with a tough, low-scoring win.

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