The ASU Misconception

I have needed to get this off my chest for awhile. I was raised in Tucson but have lived the past four years in the Phoenix-area. It didn’t take long for me to realize that the majority of ASU fans and the local media here have a serious misconception: they believe that ASU is a “football school”. They look down at the Arizona football program as inferior and for some reason they believe that ASU football is a national power. Whether it’s from co-workers, neighbors, or through the local media, any UA fan that lives up here knows exactly what I am talking about. “Arizona is a basketball school and ASU is a football school”, they often say. The level of arrogance is sickening. I have had enough and have decided to take on this misconception. My weapon of choice will be none other than the kryptonite to any ASU fan: facts.

Wins since 2000 – I have chosen to examine wins this decade because ASU fans love to talk about how terrible Arizona has been this decade.
ASU – 61
ASU’s 61 wins since 2000 is good enough for 9th in the ACC; 8th in the SEC; 7th in the Big-10, 7th in the Big-12; 6th in the Big-East; 5th in the Pac-10; and 2nd among independents, behind Notre Dame. In other words, of the 66 football teams that make up the BCS conferences and Notre Dame, 37 of them, or 56%, have won more games than ASU this decade. That is hardly the record of elite, or even above average, football programs.

Record vs. top-25 and top-10 teams
Since 2004 ASU has gone just 2-14 against teams that were ranked in the top-25 when they played and 0-8 against teams in the top-10. During this same five year stretch, USC has gone 21-2 against teams in the top-25 and 8-2 against teams in the top-10. Oregon has defeated nine top-25 teams, two of which were in the top-10. Cal, Oregon St., and Arizona (yes, Arizona - ASU’s “inept” rival to the south) have each defeated seven teams in the top-25. In fact, only Stanford, Washington, and Washington St. have won fewer games against top-25 teams than ASU. Each has won one. However, Stanford’s win was against #2 USC. ASU, Washington, and Washington St. are the only teams in the Pac-10 without a win in the past five seasons against a top-10 team. For the record, Arizona has defeated three top-10 teams in the past five years.

Wins since 1978 – When the Pac-8 became the Pac-10 due to the inclusion of UA and ASU
ASU has 208 wins since 1978. That’s good for 4th place in the Pac-10. USC (262), Washington (227), and UCLA (224) have more. Arizona ranks 6th in the conference with 190 wins. So, in the 31 seasons that ASU and UA have been in the Pac-10, ASU has averaged 6.7 wins per season and Arizona averaged 6.1.

Bowl Games
ASU has been to 24 bowl games in its history. That’s certainly better than Arizona’s 14. However, how do ASU’s 24 bowl games stack up when compared to the rest of the BCS schools and Notre Dame? ASU is tied with NC State for 30th place. To give us an idea of elite football schools: Alabama has 56, Texas has 48, and USC has 47.

Head to Head vs. Arizona
Arizona leads the all-time series with ASU 45-36-1. We all know this fact. But were the bulk of Arizona’s 45 victories achieved back in the old days, when leather helmets were still used? No. Going back to 1978, when the two Arizona schools joined the Pac-10, Arizona is 17-13-1 against the Devils.

ASU fans love to bring up the fact that prior to last season’s defeat their Devils had defeated our beloved Wildcats three years in a row. However, a little research reveals that 2005-2007 is the only time span in the past 31 seasons that ASU has defeated Arizona more than two seasons in a row. Conversely, during that same time span Arizona has defeated ASU three or more seasons in a row three times. Two of those times came in the span of nine years (’82-’90) when the only thing separating an Arizona five-year win streak and an Arizona three-year win streak against ASU is a tie.

The purpose of this blog was not to show that ASU has a terrible football program: it does not. But it does not have an elite program either. It doesn’t even have an above average program. ASU football is an average football program that has a losing record to its bitter rival. Those are the simple, unbiased facts.