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Video by Logan Newman
The impending bowl game puts ASU football in a unique position: the team is figuring out the best way to fight Duke while taking a look into the future.
“It just gives you an opportunity to get out here and work with some of our young guys, go back to the fundamentals that you may fall off throughout the course of the season,” defensive coordinator Keith Patterson said. “It just gives us a chance to kind of restart and get a jump-start on spring season.”
Today, with head coach Todd Graham in El Paso for the Sun Bowl press conference, the veterans received a day off of practice. In their place were the newcomers, taking the field at Sun Devil Stadium for a scrimmage.
The offensive point system was normal as it would be in a game. The defense received points for plays such as takeaways and tackles for losses.
The defense won 48-27.
Freshmen Manny Wilkins and Coltin Gerhart switched off drives at quarterback. Neither of them threw a touchdown, in large part due to the trench battle.
Patterson said the discrepancy of the lines didn’t portray the ineptitude of the offensive line. They haven’t played together much, which caused problems. However, a large piece was the defensive line showing their potential.
He listed players such as freshman defensive linemen Renell Wren, Emanuel Dayries and Connor Humphreys, and freshman linebacker Ismael Murphy-Richardson as rookies that will make an impact in the future.
“It’s been really good to get a look at them and… we’ll continue to put them in situations here in the next three or four days to continue to evaluate those guys, make sure we’re headed into the right spot going into spring play,” Patterson said.
Wilkins singled out Murphy-Richardson as a freshman that was tough to play against.
“He is another freak of nature,” he said. “His body is built as a wide receiver or something like that but he is very muscular and very quick off the line and can do some damage up there.”
Freshman Jalen Harvey also put on a good show. In high school he was a safety, but upon entering college, switched to wide receiver. He’s been in the process of transitioning back to a defensive role that he said is a “linebacker-type safety.”
Primarily at spur backer, Harvey broke into the backfield with ease. He still needs to refine his tackling and work on instincts, though. On a play that looked like he was going to either sack Wilkins or deflect his throw, Harvey whiffed and allowed Wilkins to make a run of more than 20 yards.
Harvey said his defensive role is “more of breaking down, getting my tackle instead of going in just with my natural instinct… I have to use more structure to it.”
He said he has to work on his short tackling game instead of playing recklessly. Wilkins gave him praise after practice.
“He’s an athlete, he’s a playmaker, he’s somebody that doesn’t have to know exactly everything he’s doing but he has instincts and he can react quick,” he said.
Harvey intercepted a Gerhart throw in which the quarterback rolled left and tried to throw on the run with his right hand. This pick ended the scrimmage.
It was a reflection of the poor passing day. The only touchdowns came from junior running back De’Chavon Hayes and freshman running back Jacom Brimhall, who each had a pair of rushing touchdowns.
"(Hayes) can run like no other,” Wilkins said. “I don’t think I’ve seen somebody get through a hole and just break like that in a long time.”
With at least two running backs ahead of him on the roster and possibly a third if Foster returns next season, Hayes may not get much playing time. The team appears to have pieces for the foreseeable future on both sides of the ball. Wilkins said he thinks the defense next year will be one of the best in the nation.
“We got a lot of talent,” he said. “I think there are a lot of guys on this team that can do some special things.”
Reach the reporter at logan.newman@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @Logan_Newsman
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