Friday night’s matchup is the second leg of the Sun Devils’ gauntlet to start conference play. It begins with the Bears, who went 6-0 to end 2024, continues with TCU and Heisman Trophy candidate junior quarterback Josh Hoover, and concludes with the formerly ranked Utah on the road and juggernaut Texas Tech at home.

Hoover lit up No. 17 Southern Methodist last weekend in the Horned Frogs’ 35-24 win, throwing for 379 yards and five touchdowns. Three of those scores went to senior wide receiver Eric McAlister, who had a blow-up game in his own right, posting 274 yards receiving on eight catches.

“[Hoover] throws the ball so quickly,” ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham said. “His receivers and running backs are so dialed in, it's hard to touch. That's been his biggest difference from last year and this year, not many people are touching him.”

TCU’s dynamic air-raid style offense poses a challenge for a wounded  Sun Devils’ defense. All-conference senior safety Xavion Alford, redshirt sophomore defensive lineman MyKeil Gardner and redshirt sophomore safety Montana Warren are all out with injuries

“Last year, we got through the season without injuries,” Dillingham said. “This year, not so much. [We’re] dinged up pretty early with some vital players.”

Throughout the week, though, Dillingham praised senior defensive back Myles Rowser and redshirt sophomore safety Adrian “Boogie” Wilson for their performances in the absence of key starters in the secondary. Dillingham commended the duo for a tackle against Baylor that forced a takeaway.

The Horned Frogs aren’t in one piece either. Their leading rusher, senior running back Kevorian Barnes, is sidelined for the second week in a row. Barnes ran for 156 yards on 21 carries with a touchdown before suffering from a leg injury in the second game of the season against Abilene Christian.

Barnes’ absence creates one less target for TCU, but the offense runs through Hoover, who, as ASU defensive coordinator Brian Ward said, is the best quarterback the Sun Devils will have seen since joining the Big 12.

Hoover has plenty of options, though.

Second-string sophomore running back Jeremey Payne is a seamless replacement, rushing for 82 yards on 16 carries and recording 46 yards receiving on four catches and a touchdown since Barnes went down.

“[Payne is] going to have big plays, going to make the easy plays, going to block the guy he's supposed to, going to catch the ball to the back field,” Hoover said. “He’s the perfect back.”

ASU has the same confidence in its backfield, especially with junior running back Kyson Brown ready to go after tweaking his ankle in Week 2 at Mississippi State and seeing minimal action against Baylor.

“[Kyson Brown is] a big part of our group,” Sun Devils’ offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo said. “He knows the language. He's a good spark for us, a good catalyst that we need and hopefully get injected back in this week.”