Arizona State at Kansas
Arizona State (1‑1) travels to Kansas (1‑1), with Arizona State favored by 5.5. The model gives Arizona State a 67% shot.
How they got here
Last two games
Arizona State · 1-1
Picked #54 in the preseason · now #46 — about right.
1-1 in its last two — but nothing on this résumé beats a top-40 team yet.
L 20–48 @ Texas A&MTop 25 #6 of 669
lost by 28 as a 15.5-point underdog
W 70–7 vs Morgan State #225 of 669
won by 63 as a 43.5-point favorite
Last two games
Kansas · 1-1
Picked #87 in the preseason · now #77 — about right.
1-1 in its last two — but nothing on this résumé beats a top-40 team yet.
L 21–38 vs MissouriTop 25 #39 of 669
lost by 17 as a 4-point underdog
W 51–6 vs Long Island University #164 of 669
won by 45 as a 44.5-point favorite
What’s at stake
Arizona State
- Arizona State sits at 2% to make the CFP field — 2% with a win here, 1% with a loss.
- Arizona State is still shaking off a 28-point loss.
Kansas
- Kansas is still shaking off a 17-point loss.
The series
Arizona State leads the series 1-0
1 meeting since 2024 · Arizona State won the last meeting
- 2024Arizona State 35–31
Face-off
What each fanbase carries into this one.
Arizona State
The chip · vs the national mediaSun Devil fans say the sport picked them last in 2024 and treated the title that followed as a fluke all season — they say the preseason polls still won't take Tempe seriously, and they relish being the team nobody respects until kickoff.
What this game touches
The 2025 comedown after the dream. The year after the Playoff run, Arizona State slid to 8-5 — Sam Leavitt broke his foot against Baylor, had season-ending surgery and entered the transfer portal, Cam Skattebo was gone to the NFL, and a Sun Bowl loss to Duke (42-39) closed a season that asked whether 2024 was the start of something or a one-off.
Kansas
The chip · vs the national mediaFans are tired of being told their school only cares from November to March — that football is a hobby in a basketball town. They point at the Orange Bowl banner and the Leipold revival and ask to be taken seriously between the whistles, too.
What this game touches
The long fall after the 2008 Orange Bowl. Kansas won the Orange Bowl to cap a 12-1 season in 2007, then collapsed into one of the bleakest stretches in major-college football — a decade-plus of double-digit losses before Lance Leipold arrived. The 2025 team's 5-7 finish, missing a bowl for a second straight year, was a reminder of how thin the margin still is.
Best players
Arizona State
- Reed Harris (WR) · 326 receiving yards
- Cutter Boley (QB) · 641 passing yards — Heisman odds: 51st (+15000)
- Adrian Wilson (S) · 11 tackles
Kansas
- Nik McMillan (WR) · 182 receiving yards
- Trey Lathan (LB) · 12 tackles
- Isaiah Marshall (QB) · 414 passing yards
The line, and the room
Arizona State fans are feeling it more than most fanbases this week (58th percentile) — the mood matches the numbers.
Home +5.5 · O/U 51.5
Conditions
67°F · 14 mph wind · Cloudy
Recent games
Kansas
- Wk 1Wvs Long Island University51-6
- Wk 2Lvs Missouri21-38
Arizona State
- Wk 1Wvs Morgan State70-7
- Wk 2Lat Texas A&M20-48
Trajectory
The market
Spread: +6.5 → +5.5 · Total: 53 → 51.5
Book hold: 4.2%
Conference standings
- Kansas#40-0
- Arizona State#150-0