The Arizona State Sun Devils are set to face the Washington Huskies this weekend. Check out our college football odds series, which includes our Arizona State-Washington prediction, odds, and pick.

Arizona State and Washington are both limping to the finish line in 2021. Neither team will win a division championship, which was a bottom-line expectation for each team in the Pac-12 Conference. Neither team will win 10 games in the regular season, which was also a central goal at the start of the regular season.

Moreover, both Arizona State and Washington are likely to have new coaches in 2022. Herman Edwards of ASU and Jimmy Lake of Washington are both expected to be gone before year's end, due to insufficient performance but also off-field problems. In Arizona State's case, COVID-19 recruiting scandals will almost certainly sink Edwards, depriving him of the leverage needed to survive an underachieving season. Keep this in mind when making an Arizona State-Washington pick.

In Washington's case, Jimmy Lake got himself in trouble for not only striking a player this past Saturday against Oregon, but then denying he did so after the game. Purely based on wins and losses, Lake was still in a position to survive this season, given that his tenure in Seattle has not lasted very long. This off-field controversy robbed him of that benefit of the doubt, troubling administrators and raising fresh concerns about his overall status as the public face of a respected university.

Lake was suspended for this game for that incident against Oregon. This comes shortly after Washington fired offensive coordinator John Donovan. Bob Gregory, a UW assistant coach, will be the acting temporary head coach for Washington. Junior Adams will fill in for Donovan as offensive coordinator. There's a lot for college football odds analysts to think about.

Here’s how the bookmakers have set the Arizona State-Washington odds:

College Football odds: Arizona State-Washington Odds

Arizona State: -6.5 (-106)

Washington: +6.5 (-114)

Over: 45.5 (-110)

Under: 45.5 (-110)

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Why Arizona State Could Cover the Spread

The best argument for picking either team in this game is to highlight the flaws of the other side, and to also question the level of motivation each team has. Washington is going through a miserable week, having just lost to archrival Oregon at home. An offensive coordinator got fired. The head coach got suspended and is expected to be fired soon. This is clearly a situation which could unravel. Arizona State might not be an especially good team, but Washington could fold the tent. That would be more than enough to enable ASU to win by a comfortable margin.

Why Washington Could Cover the Spread

The weaknesses of Arizona State, and the lack of motivation the Sun Devils might have, offer legitimate reason to pick Washington. ASU seemed to quit on Herm Edwards two weeks ago in a blowout home-field loss to Washington State. The Sun Devils beat USC the next week, but that was against a hollowed-out USC team which lacked its best player, receiver Drake London. ASU had trouble putting away USC until the final minutes. Nothing about this team looks convincing or formidable.

Final Arizona State-Washington Prediction & Pick

Washington needed fresh voices in its locker room, and it definitely needed a new play caller. Junior Adams could give this offense a boost. Getting rid of John Donovan could unlock the potential of the Washington offense enough to give the Huskies an outright win.

Final Arizona State-Washington Pick: Washington +6.5