I’m hesitant to make it public lest angry Arizona fans hurl vicious insults (or possibly rotten tomatoes) my way.

This setting is hotter than your steering wheel if you forget to put up the sunshade on a July afternoon in Tucson. It’s spicier than the “Reaper” heat setting at Dave’s Hot Chicken.

I’m rooting for Arizona State in the Peach Bowl on Wednesday.

I stand with the Sun Devils and am fully aware that this is blasphemy. Most UA fans would never go there. ASU isn’t just a century-old rival; It is Arizona’s nemesis.

Chuck Cecil doesn’t like the “Scummies” – him despised them. When he spies maroon and gold, he sees red. The Territorial Cup is a blood feud. The hate is real.

The disregard for ASU is so immense that some refuse to acknowledge it by name. It is derogatorily referred to as “The School in the North”. I’m not even sure these words should be capitalized.

I am neither a UA graduate nor a native Tucsonan. I started coming here regularly in the early 2000s when I was dating my future wife, who is both. It took a football game – the 2016 Territorial Cup, my first – to understand the hostility. Feeling the hostility. To embrace the bitterness.

Many of you will never choose ASU. They will always wish the Sun Devils the worst. You took an oath when you were born or became a wildcat in this city. They view any favor shown to ASU as a betrayal. I respect your commitment to the bit.

But please understand what will actually happen on Wednesday when Arizona State takes on Texas in the Peach Bowl, which is also a College Football Playoff quarterfinal:

I won’t support ASU so much as I will support what ASU stands for.

Normally, UA vs. ASU means “us vs. them.” In this maiden voyage of the 12-team CFP, ASU Is us.

The Sun Devils represent the Big 12 against the Big 2. It’s no secret that the SEC and Big Ten look down on the rest of college football. Look no further than the point spread between the Sun Devils and Longhorns. It started with Texas as a 13.5-point favorite. At the time of writing it is at 12.5. It’s an obvious sign of disrespect. It’s a clear example that the oddsmakers – whose statements reflect the public’s feelings – think the Big 12 sucks.

Another example: In the discourse over who should make the CFP – a never-ending debate that unfortunately resurfaced and clouded the games’ opening weekend – no one brought up BYU. Only mighty Alabama of the mighty SEC could have given Notre Dame or Penn State a fight.

It doesn’t matter that the Cougars went 10-2 in the regular season, with losses totaling nine points. Or that one of them was against eventual Big 12 champion ASU. Or BYU won on the way against the possible CFP major entrant SMU.

None of that mattered since BYU plays in the Big 12 and not the SEC or Big Ten. The CFP committee ranked all three three-loss SEC teams — Alabama, Ole Miss and South Carolina — ahead of BYU. It was the ACC’s Miami Hurricanes – who had the same 10-2 record – four digits before BYU.

The CFP committee also ranked Alabama ahead of ASU despite its 24-3 loss to Oklahoma, which then lost its bowl game to Navy and finished 6-7. This came a day after ASU wiped out Iowa State in the Big 12 Championship Game.

What’s that supposed to mean? Brand bias. It’s about promoting SEC teams simply because they play in the SEC. The point is to praise the Crimson Tide for its history, not its merits.

So yeah, I’m not just for ASU on Wednesday. I’m a Big 12 and BYU fan. And I admit against The oligarchy of college football.

Plus – and this is the part that should probably be said in a whisper – this Sun Devils team is kind of likable.

First of all, they are the ultimate underdogs. The media picked ASU to finish last in the 16-team Big 12. The Sun Devils finished first.

Their best player, running back Cam Skattebo, is also an outsider. Although he rushed for 6,192 yards in three high school seasons on varsity – including 3,550 as a junior; Not a typo – Skattebo had zero stars and zero FBS scholarship offers. He began his college career at FCS Sacramento State before transferring to and playing at ASU. He ended up receiving the fifth-most votes for the Heisman Trophy.

Skattebo is not only good at football, he’s also fun to watch. It never goes down on first contact. He pushes potential tacklers aside. He puts the Sun Devils on his sturdy back and averages 23 touches of the ball per game.

ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham has won over the skeptics, including me, who initially found his frat-boy atmosphere annoying. There’s no denying his accomplishments, taking the Sun Devils from 3-9 to 11-2 in two years. There is no denying the effectiveness of his approach – open, energetic, enthusiastic, uplifting.

Are the 2024 Sun Devils a one-off? We’ll see. UA fans know how this can work. But it seems highly unlikely that Dillingham, a Valley kid and ASU graduate, will opt for a “better” job when one comes along.

The long-term viability of Arizona’s biggest opponent is another topic for another time. I’m locked up on Wednesday. ASU vs. Texas. Big 12 vs. Big 2. Upstart vs. Blue Blood. Us against them.