ASU sophomore defensive tackle William Sutton and redshirt freshman linebacker Anthony Jones have been ruled academically ineligible for the 2010 season.
The ruling was announced after Friday’s mock game at Sun Devil Stadium.
Sutton was a standout freshman last year and figured to be a big part of the Sun Devils’ rotation on the defensive line.
“It does hurt our depth at defensive tackle,” said coach Dennis Erickson. “But we will have five tackles when it is all said and done and that is better than we’ve ever had.”
Erickson said that sophomore defensive tackle Corey Adams (torn meniscus) could be back in two to three weeks after knee surgery and defensive tackle Toa Tuitea (elbow) should be back this week.
Erickson implemented a 3-4 defense in the spring and, given Sutton’s ineligibility, will have even more reason to use it this fall. Junior Jamaar Jarret can play defensive end in a 3-4 and defensive tackle, if needed, in a 4-3.
Offensive Line Mystery
Erickson told reporters Sunday that outside of redshirt juniors center Garth Gerhart and tackle Dan Knapp, the starting offensive line has not been established. Redshirt junior transfer Aderious Simmons is likely to start at one of the tackle positions, but Erickson said he is most unsure about his guards.
“We have to figure out combinations,” Erickson said. “We have about eight guys that are pretty good.”
Preparing for the unknown
Erickson said Sunday that ASU doesn’t have any game film to study on its season-opening foe Portland State.
“We have an idea of what they do on both sides of the football,” Erickson said. “They are very similar to Oregon State on defense and offensively they are in the pistol.”
The “pistol” is recognized as the offensive formation used by PSU, a combination of the shotgun and single back offenses. This will be the Vikings’ first season utilizing the pistol offense.
Four true freshmen
Erickson indicated on Friday that four true freshman —cornerback Alden Darby, running back Deantre Lewis, receiver Kyle Middlebrooks and defensive end Junior Onleayi—will not be redshirted in 2010.
Erickson spoke highly of Onleayi last Monday.
“He has such great explosiveness and speed and he can fly,” Erickson said. “He will be a big impact pass rusher for us this year in our nickel. We thought he would be pretty good, but he is better than we thought.”
Onyeali hails from Denver and, at 5-feet-11-inches and 230 pounds, is similar to the Denver Broncos diminutive Pro-Bowl linebacker Elvis Dumervil.
Reach the reporter at nick.ruland@asu.edu
