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arizona state sun devils By Dan Murphy very year, Notre Dame seems to schedule a team that is a little better than its brand name and has the potential to shock Irish fans with an upset win. Arizona State might be that team in 2013. These are charted waters for second-year head coach Todd Graham, who came to South Bend and beat Notre Dame with an underdog Tulsa team in 2010 and almost tripped them up again at Pittsburgh in 2011. Graham's exit from the East for the desert sparked a public relations wildfire, but he has since made quick work of winning the hearts of Sun Devils fans, according to AZCentral. com beat reporter Doug Haller. Graham installed a sense of discipline at a program that led the country in penalty yards per game in 2011. Last season, they had the eighth fewest ( 34.9 yards per game). "At first no one was really happy. A lot of the issue was because they really weren't sure who he was," Haller said. "People didn't know what they had. He's really energized the program; he has no limits to his energy level." Redshirt junior quarterback Taylor Kelly helped add some of that energy. Kelly threw for 3,039 yards and 29 touchdowns in his first season as a starter despite having a so-so group of wide receivers at his disposal. Hback Chris Coyle lines up all over the field for the Sun Devils offense and will likely be Game 6 • oct. 5 • cowboys stadium E Strength: Pass Rushers Between Arizona State and Stanford, Notre Dame plays the top two pass-rushing defenses in the country in 2013. The Sun Devils finished first in tackles for loss (nine per game) and second in sacks (four per game) in 2012. That group received a huge boost when All-American senior Will Sutton opted to return for a final year. He and second-year starter Carl Bradford make a dangerous duo near the line of scrimmage. Bradford had 11.5 sacks playing the "Devil backer" position, a combination of a rush end in some formations and a middle linebacker in others. Weakness: Wide Receivers Wide receivers caught less than 50 percent of Taylor Kelly's 241 completions last season. When defenses figured out they could slow down the Sun Devils' passing attack by limiting its running backs out of the backfield, the offense struggled. This year the team is scheduled to bring in five new faces at the wide receiver position — two junior college transfers and three freshmen — that will have an immediate impact. "It's a huge question mark," AZCentral.com's Doug Haller said. "It's the card that might cause the house to collapse if they don't address that." Junior college receivers Jaelen Strong and Joe Morris offer some hope for Kelly this season, but neither has taken a Division I snap. X-FACTOR: Consensus All-American Will Sutton surprised a lot of scouts by returning to Arizona State for a final year of college ball. The 6-1, 290-pound defensive tackle has 16.5 career sacks and 32 career tackles for loss. He gives the Sun Devils one of the most dangerous pass rushes on the West Coast. photo by jason wise/courtesy arizona state Kelly's top target again this year after catching a team high 57 passes last season. Arizona State also made the most of running backs Marion Grice and D.J. Foster in the passing game. They combined for 79 catches last year, and were the team's second and third-leading receivers, respectively. Both of those backs return in 2013 and are expected to have a major role in pushing the offense to a higher tempo than they were during Graham's first season. On defense, the Sun Devils thrived with the third-best pass coverage in the nation (167.9 yards allowed per game). Four-year starter Osahon Irabor and emotional leader Alden Darby are two experienced playmakers in the secondary with 117 tackles and four interceptions between them in 2012, but a lot of their success stems from the aggressive and talented pass rush from the front seven. The pin-your-ears-back approach created a lot of problems for Arizona State's opponents, but it also made stopping the run a difficult task. Improving the 182.9 yards per game they allowed on the ground a year ago was a major focus in spring practice. 2013 Schedule DateOpponent 2012 Result Sept. 5 Sacramento State — Sept. 14 Wisconsin — Sept. 21 at Stanford — Sept. 28 USC L, 38-21 Oct. 5 vs. Notre Dame* — Oct. 12 Colorado W, 51-17 Oct. 19 Washington — Oct. 31 at Washington State W, 46-7 Nov. 9 at Utah W, 37-7 Nov. 16 Oregon State L, 36-26 Nov. 23 at UCLA L, 45-43 Nov. 30 Arizona W, 41-34 * at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas Prediction Notre Dame 31, Arizona State 21 — Notre Dame catches the Sun Devils at the end of a brutal stretch. They play Wisconsin, Stanford and USC before joining the Irish in Texas to start October. Arizona State's weakness is stopping the run, and that should play right into Notre Dame's hands as a team that has the ability to grind out wins on the ground. Quick Facts All-Time Series: Notre Dame leads 2-0 Last Meeting: Notre Dame 48, Arizona State 17 (Oct 9, 1999, at South Bend, Ind.) Head Coach: Todd Graham, 8-5 (2nd year) and 5734 overall (8th year) 2012 In Review: 8-5 overall, 5-4 Pac-12 (3rd South) Final 2012 Ranking: Unranked 2012 Stat Rankings: 25th total offense (464.5 yards per game) and 27th total defense (350.8 yards allowed per game) Returning Starters: 14 (6 offense and 8 defense) Key Losses: RB Marion Grice (679 yards) and LB Brandon Magee (113 tackles) 2013 Preseason Rankings: No. 23 by Athlon, No. 27 by Phil Steele's and No. 37 by Lindy's Last Bowl Appearance: 2012 (Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl, Navy, W 62-28) Did You Know?: Todd Graham will be coaching against Notre Dame for the third time with his third different team (Tulsa in 2010 and Pitt in 2011) … The Sun Devils defense finished tied for second in the nation in 2012 with 51 sacks (only Stanford with 57 had more) … Quarterback Taylor Kelly spends his summers drag racing cars at a track in his hometown of Eagle, Idaho … Notre Dame has outscored its opponents 153-41 in its four previous Shamrock Series games. Returning Leaders Rushing: Taylor Kelly (516 yards, 1 TD) Passing: Taylor Kelly (3,039 yards, 29 TD) Receiving: Chris Coyle (696 yards, 5 TD) Tackles: Chris Young (82) Sacks: Will Sutton (13) Interceptions: Alden Darby (3) Blue & Gold Illustrated 2013 Football Preview ✦ 121 116-127.Opponent Previews.indd 121 6/25/13 2:57 PM