There’s no doubt anymore about ASU redshirt sophomore receiver Jaelen Strong.
After Thursday's practice, Strong was adamant that he is 100 percent and will be ready to go Saturday night against OSU.
“I’m much more comfortable,” Strong said. “I don’t have to go out there worrying about hurting myself. It’s not in the back of my mind anymore, so I can just go out there and work.”
Strong injured his ankle against UW on Oct. 19 and was hobbled during the past two games, totaling just eight catches for 43 yards and a touchdown.
Strong said he wasn’t able to explode and make the cuts that pushed him to the top of the depth chart early in the season.
Wide receivers coach DelVaughn Alexander reiterated that Strong is back to full strength but said that Strong's recovery doesn’t stop there.
“Every week we go into a game with the expectation everyone is 100 percent or will give 100 percent, so him being 100 percent is a good thing for him,” Alexander said. “He’s still got to go out and make plays.”
Other receivers, like sophomore Richard Smith, have stepped up in Strong’s place, which is encouraging to Alexander.
“We talk about the depth and talent on our team with Jaelen down, and we’ve found other playmakers, and it’s definitely a positive for us,” Alexander said.
Strong has “100 percent faith” in his fellow receivers and is ready to go to battle with them against a Beavers secondary that has grabbed 15 interceptions this season.
However, Strong said he’s not worried about facing the Beavers’ opportunistic secondary.
“Just do what we did in practice,” Strong said. “We just have to read our keys, read coverages of the defense and make sure we don’t give up any indicators.”
Alexander echoed Strong and said ASU is ready to face the Beavers secondary with its top receiver finally back in form.
“In terms of the turnovers they’ve had before, that has nothing to do with us,” Alexander said. “We just want to have 100 percent ball security and we can prevent some of that stuff if we take care of the little things.”
Reach the reporter at dsshapi1@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @DsShapi
