Arizona State receiver D.J. Foster looks ahead to his team's matchup against Oregon and how the Sun Devils are staying on task. (4:45)

Arizona State brought in retired Lt. Gen. Benjamin Freakley on Monday to speak before coach Todd Graham's news conference about the school's "Salute to Service 2015" campaign, two weeks of events honoring veterans and active members of the U.S. military, starting with Oregon's visit to Sun Devil Stadium on Thursday night. Arizona State players will wear specially designed cleats to honor the military and former Sun Devils star Pat Tillman.

After about 1,600 words split between the two men praising the sacrifice of those who volunteer to serve our country, which included the general predicting an ASU victory -- "I assure you this week we will beat Oregon" -- a reporter asked a question about the Sun Devils' struggling offense.

Replied Graham, "Well, that was a mood-killer question right there after that. I was feeling really good until that question there."

That evoked laughs and grins, but the mood surrounding both teams is hardly jovial at present.

As programs, Oregon and Arizona State do a lot to honor the military, and for that they both should be lauded. Yet when attention turns to the field, both teams know that defining their seasons as successful probably hinges on the result Thursday night.

Before the season, both teams were highly ranked and viewed as contenders in their respective Pac-12 divisions. The Ducks were overwhelming favorites in the Pac-12 North and the Sun Devils were in the midst of a South troika that included USC and UCLA. Yet both teams are coming off a bye week unranked and laden with three losses overall and two conference defeats. It's an extreme long shot that either could win their division with three conference defeats.

Ergo, desperation.

But, by the same token, there's opportunity. The winner will remain in the Pac-12's big picture, which means a potential berth in the Rose Bowl.

Vernon Adams Jr. has had another week to get healthy with Oregon coming off a bye week. Otto Greule Jr./Getty Images

While both teams have gone 4-3, which should be a revealing sample size, both also are enigmas, filled with "what-ifs?" For Oregon, that centers around the health of quarterback Vernon Adams, the celebrated Eastern Washington transfer who's been battling a broken finger. He returned to the field to lead the Ducks to a victory at Washington, but his performance was inconsistent. It will be interesting to see how he responds after an off week, both mentally and physically.

"He's the guy," Graham said of Adams. "I mean, he's the guy that makes it work."

For the Ducks, it's a matter of getting Adams to use his obvious playmaking ability within their offensive system, a process that had been waylaid by Adams reporting late to preseason camp even before getting hurt.

"He has a really good, playground-type angle to his game," Oregon coach Mark Helfrich said. "But [he needs to] trust in the progression a little more, in getting [his] eyes to the right spot to begin with, then letting [his] natural ability to take over. That's always something with a quarterback like him, that fine line of -- you want to harness [it] in and get them focused on something but still let them do what they do best."

Adams must contend with an aggressive Sun Devils defense, one that leads the nation in tackles for a loss (9.9 per game) and ranks No. 1 in the Pac-12 in sacks (24). But that defense also is vulnerable. The Sun Devils rank eighth in the Pac-12 in scoring defense, ninth in pass-efficiency defense and 10th on third-down defense.

Graham sees one prevailing key: turnovers.

"If we take care of the football, we're going to win," he said. "That's how simple it is."

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The Sun Devils haven't won the turnover battle consistently this year. They rank last in the Pac-12 in turnover margin (minus-4). They've lost 13, which is second-most in the conference, and gained just nine, which is the third-fewest.

The teams haven't played since the Ducks rolled 43-21 in Tempe in 2012 (it was 43-7 at halftime), a Ducks victory made easier by winning the turnover battle 4-2, with the Sun Devils hurling four interceptions.

"For the few that are still here, we do remember that game," Arizona State senior quarterback Mike Bercovici said. "We have a little bitterness in our mouth the last time that they came here and they took care of business against us."

Whether it be Pac-12 positioning, military tributes or bitterness from the past, both teams need to dig deep into the motivational reservoirs. This is a meaningful game, as the loser almost certainly will see its status as a Pac-12 contender end.