ASU was investigated by the NCAA for recruiting violations under former head coach Herm Edwards during the COVID-19 pandemic and issued a self-imposed bowl ban last season.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!A year later, the Sun Devils have reached the six-win mark and have punched its ticket to a bowl game for the first time in three years.
This is the first season that Arizona State has been a member of the Big 12 since leaving the Pac-12, but there are six bowl games the program is eligible to play in as a legacy Pac-12 school. Unless ASU clinches one of 12 spots in the expanded College Football Playoff, the Sun Devils would play in the bowl games involving the Pac-12 for this season and the next.
Those bowl games are the Independence Bowl, Sun Bowl, Alamo Bowl, Las Vegas Bowl, Los Angeles Bowl and the Holiday Bowl. The selection process order begins with the Alamo and Holiday Bowls, then the Las Vegas and Sun Bowls and the Los Angeles and Independence Bowls choosing the teams who are left.
With the massive exodus of teams who left the Pac-12 following last season, three other legacy schools have secured bowl eligibility besides Arizona State.
Colorado, Washington State and the No. 1 ranked Oregon were all a part of the Pac-12 before Colorado and ASU joined the Big 12 and Oregon departed for the Big Ten. Oregon is nationally ranked No. 1 in the country, so unless the Ducks suffer a major collapse, they will receive a bid to compete in the College Football Playoff.
Colorado is second in the Big 12 and could also head to the College Football Playoff if results keep going its way. Boosting the Buffaloes’ chance, Iowa State suffered its first loss of the season to Texas Tech. No. 9 BYU remains undefeated atop the conference with a perfect 8-0 record overall and 5-0 in the Big 12.
Arizona State is playing with house money after reaching six wins and could jump up the standings with four games left in the season. ASU hosts 4-5 UCF, goes on the road to clash against No. 17 Kansas State (7-2), returns home to face the undefeated BYU and wraps up the season with the Territorial Cup battle against arch-rival Arizona (3-6) in Tucson.
Initial takeaways of ASU securing bowl game, annihilating Oklahoma State 42-21
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Reporter Alec Cipollini covers the Phoenix Mercury, Suns and ASU Athletics for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account, @AlecCipollini
