Report: Jaden Rashada expected to start at QB for Arizona State vs. Arizona

Jaden Rashada is expected to start for Arizona State in the Territorial Cup game against Arizona, according to Sun Devil Source’s Chris Karpman. It would be Rashada’s first appearance since Sept. 9.

Rashada has missed most of his freshman season after suffering an injury. He last played in Arizona State’s loss to Oklahoma State in the second game of the season, only totaling 403 yards and three touchdowns on the year. He still leads the Sun Devils in passing touchdowns, though.

Since Rashada went down, Arizona State has largely turned to Trenton Bourguet and Drew Pyne at quarterback. Bourguet is the Sun Devils’ leading passer this season with 1,486 yards and two touchdowns while Pyne — a transfer from Notre Dame — has 273 passing yards and a touchdown to his name.

Jaden Rashada arrived in Tempe as a highly touted recruit, checking in as a four-star prospect out of Pittsburg (CA) High School. He was the No. 73-ranked recruit from the 2023 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies

The Sun Devils have had a rough go in the first year of Kenny Dillingham’s tenure, taking a 3-8 record into Saturday’s rivalry game. However, they’re 2-2 in their last two games, including a 17-7 victory over UCLA on Nov. 11.

Considering the nature of the rivalry game — and the fact that Arizona State has had to adjust on the fly this year without Rashada — Dillingham could throw some different looks at Arizona during Saturday’s game.

“It’s the last game of the year so you pull out all the stops,” Dillingham said, via Saturday Out West’s Derek Peterson. “Pull out everything you’ve got. Anything you’ve done all year, you pull back, you maybe grab-bag things you’ve done from Week 1 to Week 2 to Week 3 to Week 4 to Week 5 to Week 6 all the way out, you put them all together, and you put together the best way to create explosive plays.”

Arizona is a 10.5-point favorite in the game, according to FanDuel, with an over-under of 49.5. The Wildcats are still technically in the mix for the Pac-12 Championship, but they’ll need some help to get there.

Oregon can lock up a berth with a victory over Oregon State, but a Beavers victory coupled with an Arizona win would give Jedd Fisch’s group a spot in the game against Washington in Las Vegas. Although they didn’t play each other this year, the tiebreaker would move to record against common opponents.