By James Romo for DieHardDevil.com

The Sun Devils head back out on the road this weekend to a place that has been notoriously unwelcoming for the maroon and gold. This ASU team has been all business at home, but now will have to carry some momentum with them into Berkeley’s Memorial Stadium to face a Cal Golden Bears team that has their back against the wall. This game is extremely important for both Pac-12 teams on Saturday.  ASU (3-1, 1-0 in Pac) looks to stay undefeated in conference play and keep their grip on first place in the South Division.  On the other sideline, Cal will come out scratching and clawing attempting to even their conference record as they currently sit 1-3 (0-1 in Pac), a record that belies the level of talent across their roster.

Cal Offense vs. ASU Defense

Offensively for the Bears, junior quarterback Zach Maynard has completed 78-of-123 passes for 927 yards in 2012, with four passing touchdowns and four interceptions. Maynard is a true dual threat quarterback who has also run for a touchdown, and can extend plays making throws on the run similar to Taylor Kelly.  ASU has already prepared for two other very dynamic dual threat signal callers this season, although they were spared having to deal with them due to injury. Despite the beating that Maynard took in last week’s game against USC, he is expected to be ready to go on Saturday, and will be a handful for the Sun Devil defense outside contain. He is also complimented by an explosive trio of running backs in Isi Sofele (53 carries, 228 yards, 57.0 ypg, 1 TD), Brendan Bigelow (10 carries, 206 yards, 51.5 ypg, 2 TD) and CJ Anderson (28 carries, 157 yards, 39.2 ypg, 1 TD). Bigelow is an all-purpose back that had touchdown runs against Ohio State of 81 and 59 yards. Cal is currently rushing for 175.8 yards per game, ranking fourth in the Pac-12, while the ASU defense is ranked sixth in the Pac for rushing yards allowing 134.2 per game. Maybe more so this weekend than at any point this season, the Sun Devils will need a repeat performance of stopping ball carriers on first contact because Cal will look to establish their “run first” offense in order to open up their passing game. One thing to keep a close eye on is Cal’s propensity to give up tackles for loss, which lends itself to the ASU philosophy of getting guys into the backfield where they lead the nation with an average of 9.75 tackles for loss per game.  Look for Sun Devil Chris Young to have another productive game.  ASU will be putting a priority on bottling up the Cal run game and forcing the Bear O-line to pass protect as they have allowed a league high 17 sacks.  ASU has only given up an average of 139.8 passing yards per game, good for a #1 ranking in the conference.

Even if ASU can effectively stop Cal on the ground, the Bears have an aerial attack that isn’t without weapons of its own. Standout wide receiver Keenan Allen, who is on numerous pre-season watch lists is Cal’s leading receiver with 29 catches for 309 yards on the year. The Bears also have two talented freshman receivers in Bryce Treggs and Chris Harper who round out a speedy set of play makers for Maynard to target.  Ultimately, the ASU defense is going to have to play a complete game against a Bear offense that has the personnel to score an average of 27.8 points per game with dynamic offensive players. All the stats in the world mean nothing when dealing with a talented team who started the season with high expectations of themselves, yet have underachieved to this point. Cal will be looking to right the ship, and now have ASU squarely in their crosshairs knowing the success they’ve had at home against the Sun Devils. To date, ASU has not had to face a team that is nearly as multi-dimensional as Cal, and big plays are a definite possibility if there are any lapses in coverage or run defense assignments.

ASU Offense vs. Cal Defense

The good news for Sun Devil Nation is that ASU has been a juggernaut on offense averaging 41.2 points per game (2nd in the Pac), while Cal is allowing 31 (11th in the Pac).  On paper, this game should produce a shoot-out that comes down to the better conditioned and mentally prepared team.  This game might be just what the doctor ordered for Cameron Marshall.  Cal gives up 189 rushing yards per game, which ranks them dead last in the conference, and may serve as a springboard for the ASU power run game to finally be a factor in the outcome.  We may finally see what was thought at the outset of the season to be superior depth running back and the strength of the ASU offense come to life.  Similar to ASU, Cal runs a 3-4 defense, but tends not to take as many chances blitzing.  They rely on a heavy pass rush from defensive ends Deandre Coleman and Aaron Tipoti.  With the future NFL talent that the ASU O-line has faced in the last two consecutive weeks, look for ASU to put a premium on running the ball between the tackles more effectively than they have in the first four games.  Safety Josh Hill, ILB Robert Mullins, OLB Brennan Scarlett, and CB Steve rank in the top 15 in tackles in the conference despite the yardage and points that Cal gives up this season.

If the Sun Devils are able to get the Cal linebackers to commit to stopping the run, it should open up the short to intermediate passing routes that have been the bread and butter of the ASU passing attack.  Stretching the field again this week will also go a long way in keeping the Cal defense off balance and allow for big play potential from several offensive weapons ASU has on the field.  A key match-up to watch will be the down field battle between ASU receiver Rashad Ross and cornerbacks Steve Williams (two interceptions in 2012) and Marc Anthony.  Ross had a break-out game last week against Utah and should be a big target for Taylor Kelly again this week.

The ASU kick return game has yet to produce the big plays this season that we’ve come to expect after several huge plays last season.  With a high-scoring game predicted on Saturday, good field position or a special teams score will go a long way in giving ASU momentum in a tough road game.  Jamal Miles has been relatively quiet thus far, but I can foresee at least a few big returns that will set the Sun Devils up for some short scoring drives.

ASU has had many challenges in the last decade on their past visits to Strawberry Canyon to play the Cal Bears.  However, those were different times, different teams, different players, and a different coaching staff.  Saturday is a new opportunity for Head Coach Todd Graham and the 2012 Sun Devils to start a new streak of their own by beating a Pac-12 team in California.  Sun Devil Nation can expect the new version of ASU Football to be focused and ready for battle as they invade the Bay Area with a quiet confidence and a sense of urgency for the task at hand.