The 2024 Big 12 Championship Game will take place on Saturday and the winner will automatically qualify for the College Football Playoff. No. 12 Arizona State will take on No. 16 Iowa State. Both teams went 10-2 during the regular season and 7-2 in conference play. The Sun Devils were picked to finish last in the Big 12 after a 3-9 season in the Pac-12 a season ago, while the Cyclones were pegged for a sixth-place finish after going 6-3 in the league last year.

Kickoff from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas is set for noon ET. Arizona State is a 1-point favorite in the latest Arizona State vs. Iowa State odds from SportsLine consensus, while the over/under for total points scored is 50.5. 

Before making any Iowa State vs. Arizona State picks or college football predictions, you NEED to hear what football CBS Sports college football expert Tom Fornelli has to say.

A CBS Sports writer since 2010, the entertaining Fornelli is best known for his college football expertise. He co-hosts the popular Cover 3 Podcast and appears regularly on CBS Sports HQ. You'll get maximum access to Fornelli's picks only on SportsLine. He's also been rock solid during the 2024 college football season.

In fact, Fornelli has gone 26-20 in his last 46 college football picks, netting his followers a profit of nearly $1,400 and he's 17-5 (+1146) on picks involving Iowa State. Anyone who has followed him is way up! 

Now, Fornelli has analyzed Arizona State vs. Iowa State from every angle and just locked in his picks and predictions.

Fornelli knows that Arizona State has been one of college football's biggest surprises this season. Kenny Dillingham's squad finished its season with a flurry of big wins, beating Kansas State on the road and BYU at home before hammering in-state rival Arizona to close out the year. Quarterback Sam Leavitt and Cameron Skattebo helped give the Sun Devils a balanced unit offensively and the ASU defense only allowed 336.6 yards per game after allowing nearly 400 per contest a season ago. Arizona State went 10-2 against the spread on the year and covered every contest during a five-game winning streak to close out the season.

The expert also has taken into account that Iowa State has one of the best pass defenses in the country. The Cyclones only allowed 156.9 yards per game through the air and opposing quarterbacks only completed 52.0% of their passes while averaging 5.9 yards per attempt. Matt Campbell's squad was +9 in turnover differential and the offense was built around Rocco Becht and his two 1,000-yard receivers (Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel). Meanwhile, ASU could be without its own 1,000-yard receiver after Jordyn Tyson suffered a shoulder injury against Arizona.

Now, Fornelli has locked in a confident against-the-spread pick for Iowa State vs. Arizona State. He knows a crucial X-factor makes one side of the spread a MUST-BACK. You ABSOLUTELY need to see what it is before locking in any picks of your own.

Who wins Arizona State vs. Iowa State on Saturday? And what critical X-factor makes one side of the spread a must-back? ... Join SportsLine right now to see which side of the Iowa State vs. Arizona State spread to jump on, all from the football expert who is 17-5 (+1146) on his last 22 Iowa State picks!