College football bowl projections: Arizona State slotted for Sun Bowl vs. Syracuse
With one more victory, the Arizona State football team will be bowl eligible for the first time since 2021.
The Sun Devils (5-1) are coming off a program-defining 27-19 victory over Utah in which they beat the Utes at their own game. Cam Skattebo led a rushing attack that gained 176 yards on the ground - 205 if you don't count the kneel downs - and Caleb McCullough spearheaded a defensive effort that forced three turnovers and held the Utes to 140 yards rushing.
After being picked to finish last in the Big 12, Kenny Dillingham's program is the biggest surprise of the 2024 college football season. And now the Sun Devils are getting some national attention.
Arizona State received 39 votes in the Week 8 AP Top 25 college football poll, which equates to a national ranking of No. 28. They fared even better in the Coaches Poll, receiving 49 votes which puts them at No. 27.
With bowl eligibility now looking very likely, they're also being included in the latest college football bowl projections from CBS Sports' Jerry Palm. In his updated projections, released Sunday, Palm has Arizona State going to the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas, to play Syracuse on New Year's Eve.
The Sun Bowl is in the final year of six-year contracts with the ACC and Pac-12. Even though the Pac-12 has disbanded, the 10 teams who left the conference will still play in Pac-12 affiliated bowls the next two seasons and not in bowl tie-ins with their new conferences. That means Arizona State will be eligible to be selected for the Alamo, Holiday, Las Vegas, Sun, Los Angeles and Independence bowls.
The Sun Devils have played in the Sun Bowl seven times, with their most recent appearance coming in 2019 when they beat Florida State 20-14. In the 2023 Sun Bowl, Notre Dame beat Oregon State 40-8.
In other bowl projections, Palm has Kansas State playing USC in the Alamo Bowl; Notre Dame vs. Texas Tech in the Pop-Tarts Bowl; Utah vs. Pittsburgh in the Holiday Bowl; West Virginia vs. Arkansas in the Liberty Bowl; and Arizona vs. UNLV in the Los Angeles Bowl.
Ben Sherman has been covering the sports world for most of his journalism career, including 17 years with The Oregonian/OregonLive. One of his favorite memories was covering the 1999 Fiesta Bowl - the first BCS National Championship Game - at Sun Devil Stadium.