Arizona State quarterback
Jeff Van Raaphorst looked uncomfortable in the first two games of the season, wins over
Michigan State and
SMU. He threw five interceptions in the third game of year against
Washington State, which ended in a 21–21 tie.[1] A 16–9 win for Arizona State over
UCLA in Pasadena on October 4 later proved to be the deciding game in the race for the Pac-10 Conference title. The Sun Devils then defeated
Oregon in
Eugene and returned to
Southern California to defeat
USC at the
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, becoming the first Pac-10 team to beat both
Los Angeles area conference members on their home turf.
With three straight wins at home over former
WAC nemesis,
Utah,
Washington, and
Cal, combined with a UCLA loss to
Stanford, Arizona State clinched the Pac-10 title and a Rose Bowl berth on November 8.[1] The Sun Devils dropped their final game of the regular season to in-state rival
Arizona, 34–17, in the annual battle for the
Territorial Cup.
The Sun Devils then defeated Michigan 22–15 on January 1, 1987, for their first Rose Bowl Game.
