USC has to play late-night game at Arizona State on Sept. 23 — which is great news
The Pac-12’s television selections have been announced for Week 4 of the season on September 23. USC plays at Arizona State, the Trojans’ first road game of their 2023 season.
We know that USC fans and Pac-12 fans hate the late-night kickoffs at 7:30 p.m. in Los Angeles, Seattle, Corvallis, Berkeley, and all other Pacific time zone locations. The Trojans will have to wait until 7:30 p.m. in Tempe, Arizona, for the Week 4 battle against the Arizona State Sun Devils. USC was placed in the late-night slot on Fox Sports.
USC fans might groan and grumble about the late-game placement for September 23, but we are here to tell you this is a good thing for the Trojans.
A night game being good? On the road? In this economy? This is actually one instance in which a night-game kickoff for USC is beneficial to the Trojans. The explanation is not complicated at all.
Let’s go through the details and give you other Pac-12 football information for Week 4 on September 23:
ARIZONA STATE HOME GAME ON AUGUST 31
Arizona State’s August 31 home game against Southern Utah was delayed multiple hours by storms. August 31 is part of the monsoon season in the greater Phoenix area. Monsoon season generally lasts from late June through mid-September. When USC comes to Tempe on September 23, monsoon season should be over. The long-range forecast for Tempe indicates calm conditions for that Saturday night in the desert.
ARIZONA STATE HOME GAME ON SEPTEMBER 9
Arizona State hosted Oklahoma State on Saturday, September 9. Kickoff was just after 7:30 p.m. local time. The temperature was 104 degrees in Tempe. The high for September 9 in Phoenix (reached in the middle of the afternoon that day) was 114 degrees, the hottest recorded temperature for September 9 in the history of the city. There was simply no way for that game to be played in the daytime. Can you imagine a game starting with a 114-degree temperature? That’s unsafe.
FORECAST FOR SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23
The current (September 12) Weather Channel 14-day outlook for Phoenix has a forecast of 94 degrees for the high on September 23, when USC comes to the Valley of the Sun for the ASU game. With kickoff being at 7:30 local time, the temperature should be in the high 80s, which is very mild in late September without the humid monsoon conditions of July or late August. If that forecast pans out and the game-time temperature is indeed in the high 80s, the temperature should drop into the low 80s after halftime. Those are very comfortable conditions and a lucky break for USC. The late-night start time is, in this case, great news for the Trojans.
USC HISTORY IN TEMPE
October 1, 2005.
That was the day when USC went to Tempe for a 12:30 p.m. game with a temperature close to 100 degrees at kickoff in a broiling afternoon desert sun. USC trailed Arizona State 21-3 and looked very uncomfortable in the first half. That was one of the toughest, most difficult games of the season for Pete Carroll’s crew, but the Men of Troy rallied in the second half for a 38-28 win.
Avoiding the hot sun in Phoenix/Tempe is undeniably great news.
OTHER PAC-12 TV SLOTS FOR SEPTEMBER 23
Colorado visits Oregon in the showcase game of the day. The game starts at 12:30 p.m. Pacific time on ABC.
Follow Buffaloes Wire and Ducks Wire for complete coverage of that game.
UCLA AT UTAH
The other really big Pac-12 game on September 23 is in Salt Lake City. UCLA-Utah is also a 12:30 p.m. Pacific time kickoff. This game is on Fox.
OREGON STATE AT WASHINGTON STATE
It’s the battle of the Pac-2!
The two teams left in the Pac-12 Conference play each other in what should be a good game and a very emotional day for fans of both schools.
Kickoff is 4 p.m. Pacific on Fox.
ARIZONA AT STANFORD
Stanford hosts Arizona at 4 p.m. Pacific in Palo Alto. The game is on Pac-12 Network.
CAL AT WASHINGTON
The other late game on September 23 — alongside USC-ASU — is Cal at Washington. Kickoff in Seattle is 7:30 p.m. Pacific on ESPN.
