In 2014, neither Arizona nor Arizona State football had sold the naming rights to its stadiums to Casino del Sol or Mountain America Credit Union. 

Additionally, Sun Devils head coach Kenny Dillingham was a 24-year-old offensive assistant under former head coach Todd Graham, while Arizona head coach Brent Brennan served as Oregon State's wide receivers coach.

Also, 2014 marked the last time Arizona and ASU were both ranked in the College Football Playoff Top 25 heading into their yearly clash, when the No. 11 Wildcats outlasted the No. 13 Sun Devils 42-35 in Tucson.

Flash forward to 2025 and Friday, Nov. 28, and No. 20 ASU welcomes No. 25 Arizona to Tempe to wrap up the regular season.

Both teams enter play at 8-3, yet the Sun Devils lead the Wildcats by a game in Big 12 play – ASU is 6-2 in conference action, while Arizona is 5-3.

For the first time since 2023, the Wildcats are in the CFP Top 25 after a 41-17 win over Baylor. Conversely, the Sun Devils rose five spots from last week’s rankings after racing past Colorado on the road, 42-17.

Friday night will be the 99th meeting between the two arch rivals, with Arizona leading the overall series 51-45-1. However, ASU currently holds the Territorial Cup trophy after a blowout 49-7 victory in 2024.

On the field, the Sun Devils turn to senior quarterback Jeff Sims, who enters Friday riding a three-game win streak after taking the reins due to a season-ending injury to sophomore quarterback Sam Leavitt.

In those three starts, Sims has thrown for 196.7 yards per game while averaging 107 yards rushing per game.

Across the sideline, Wildcats junior quarterback Noah Fifita has racked up 2,677 yards passing and 25 touchdowns while leading the third-best offense by points per game in the Big 12 (33.5).

Both offenses have been backed up by solid defensive units all season, with Arizona and ASU ranking in the top five in yards allowed per game in the Big 12.

There’s also more to this year’s matchup than pure hatred, as the Sun Devils can still advance into the Big 12 Championship on Saturday, Dec. 6, in Arlington, Texas.

However, they need some help.

On top of a win over the Wildcats, ASU needs one of the following situations to play out:

• No. 11 BYU loss to UCF + No. 13 Utah loss to Kansas
• No. 5 Texas Tech loss to West Virginia + Utah loss + BYU win
• Texas Tech loss + BYU loss + Utah win

Although the road to the Big 12 title game is a very long one for the Sun Devils, they won’t be running out of motivation anytime this week.

The Territorial Cup has become notorious as one of the most fiery rivalries on the West Coast. Just last year, a brawl broke out at midfield postgame after Sun Devils senior defensive lineman Jacob Rich Kongaika planted Sparky’s signature pitchfork right in the middle of the Arizona logo after the decisive win.

Additionally, the game counts toward the annual Territorial Cup Series between the two schools. Since the 2009-10 athletic season, results from 22 sports have been tallied to determine the yearly cup champion.

The Wildcats have won the cup three straight seasons and lead the Sun Devils in the overall record, 10-6.

While the Thanksgiving holiday brings many people together across the country, Black Friday is known to create a rift spanning the entire Grand Canyon State.

Just ask Scottsdale native Dillingham.

“You eat Thanksgiving, you eat leftovers and you watch the Territorial Cup," Dillingham said.