NRG Stadium - Houston, TX
Kickoff: Saturday, 7:00 p.m. ET
Line: Texas A&M -3, Total: 67

No. 15 Arizona State opens the 2015 campaign on Saturday night in Houston with a tough test versus a Texas A&M team that will have plenty of fans in the seats.

The Sun Devils won 10 games for the second consecutive year, going 10-3 SU (6-7 ATS) and rolling up 41.0 PPG in the final three contests. Although top QB Taylor Kelly and No. 1 WR Jaelen Strong are both gone, Arizona State does return 16 starters to help with the maturation of strong-armed senior QB Mike Bercovici. With Houston being a short two-hour drive from College Station, this is a virtual home game for Texas A&M, but the Sun Devils were 5-2 SU (3-4) ATS in non-road games last year. The Aggies posted their fifth straight winning season in 2014, going 8-5 SU (5-8 ATS), but they closed the campaign with five losses in the final eight games, losing those five contests by an average of 20.8 PPG. The Texas A&M defense surrendered 517 total YPG in its final three games. Sophomore QB Kyle Allen beat out highly-recruited freshman Kyler Murray for the much-publicized starting job. Allen will be asked to throw early and often in a pass-heavy offense that rolled up 37.4 PPG and 507 total YPG in non-home games last season, going 5-2 SU (4-3 ATS). While the Aggies are virtually injury-free, the Sun Devils are riddled with ailments, especially among pass catchers, as WR Cameron Smith (knee) is out, WR Jalen Harvey (collarbone) is doubtful and TE Grant Martinez (ankle) is questionable for Saturday. LB Laiu Moeakiola (foot) and OL Sam Jones (knee) are also questionable to suit up for Arizona State.

Which school will open its season with a confidence-boosting victory? For the answer, connect to College Football Best Bets for all the StatFox Experts picks throughout the 2015 regular season and bowl season.

ASU's stacked backfield will allow former RB D.J. Foster (1,081 rush yds, 9 TD; 688 rec yds, 3 TD) to now wreak havoc as a slot receiver catching passes from senior QB Mike Bercovici (1,445 pass yds, 7.8 YPA, 12 TD, 4 INT). Bercovici will also rely heavily on seldom-used WRs Gary Chambers (204 rec yds, 2 TD) and Fred Gammage (127 rec yds, 1 TD). The ground game expects to improve its middling 169 rushing YPG (56th in nation) from a year ago, as sophomore RB Demario Richard (478 rush yds, 5.7 YPC, 4 TD) has a punishing running style. Foster will still take some handoffs as a change of pace. ASU lost its two best defensive players (DE Marcus Hardison and S Damarious Randall) from a unit that surrendered 27.9 PPG (74th in FBS) and 417 total YPG (81st in nation). However, the cupboard is not bare with returning LBs Antonio Longino (94 tackles, 5.5 TFL) and Salamo Fiso (83 tackles, 11 TFL), as well as CBs Kweishi Brown (3 INT, 9 PD, 46 tackles) and Lloyd Carrington (6 PD, 58 tackles).

Texas A&M QB Kyle Allen (1,322 pass yds, 6.9 YPA, 16 TD, 7 INT) played very well as a freshman, and will continue his progression by targeting top WR Josh Reynolds (842 rec yds, 16.2 avg, 13 TD), as well as sophomore WR Speedy Noil (583 rec yds, 5 TD) and junior WR Ricky Seals-Jones (465 rec yds, 4 TD). The ground game was subpar last season with 150 YPG (82nd in nation), and was a big reason the team held the football for a mere 26:15 (4th-fewest in FBS). Senior RB Tra Carson (581 rush yds, 4.7 YPC, 5 TD) is the lead back with his 235-pound frame, and explosive sophomore RB James White (7.0 YPC) complements him nicely. New defensive coordinator John Chavis, who comes from LSU, inherits a unit with plenty of upside, but they have to make more plays after a season of only 13 takeaways (119th in FBS). The lack of turnovers allowed teams to run up 451 total YPG (102nd in nation), including 216 YPG (109th in FBS) on the ground. DT Alonzo Williams (57 tackles, 5.5 TFL) and LB Shaan Washington (64 tackles) are the leaders in the front seven. They will do their best to help a poor passing defense that recorded only five interceptions (119th FBS) and surrendered 235 YPG (80th in nation) last season.