Opposing quarterbacks aren't safe in the pocket as ASU's defense wreaks havoc while leading the Big 12 in sacks.
Last season, the Sun Devils finished with 24 sacks total. Through five games this season, they already have 19. ASU's defensive line has seen massive improvement that impacts the way games are won. The Sun Devils not only sit first in the Big 12 in sacks, but also tied for fourth in the NCAA.
Head coach Kenny Dillingham has seen the work his players have put in, and it's showing up on gameday.
"For me, that's why you coach is to have guys who put in work, see the reward," Dillingham said about the pass rush. "Our guys (who) put in the work are seeing the rewards. That's awesome to see."
The leaders on the defensive line with the most sacks this season are similar to those who led last season. Redshirt senior Clayton Smith is tied for first on the team after he finished as the leader in 2024. The difference between the two seasons is that he finished last season with 4.5 sacks, and this year he already has four through five games.
Along with Smith at the top is senior linebacker Keyshaun Elliott, who has four of his own. He has already doubled his sack numbers from last season. Other names who have been successful in bringing down the quarterback are redshirt senior Prince Dorbah with three sacks and fifth-year Elijah O'Neal with two.
After the struggles with getting to the quarterback last season, Dillingham decided to work on it in-house rather than going outside of the team.
"We're not going to fix it by adding people," Dillingham said. "We're going to fix it by guys getting bigger, stronger, better with each other, and now we've accomplished that through development."
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One of the key coaches behind the development of these players is defensive line coach Diron Reynolds. Reynolds is a former Super Bowl Champion as a part of the Indianapolis Colts' coaching staff. Most recently, he was the defensive line coach at Michigan State for a year after spending seven years at Stanford in the same role.
Through this season, Reynolds has been able to raise the level of intensity and the attention to detail of his unit. As the group has developed, they continue to fit better into the defensive mold that the Sun Devils run.
One of the main things Reynolds has seen is how the defensive line has worked on their bodies, which has led to better play.
"Strength breeds confidence," Reynolds said. "Our guys have gotten strong and faster. You can see it. You can see they play with more confidence. That helps with the pass rush and playing the run."
The pressure the defense generates has taken over games this season. In the Sun Devils' most recent win over TCU, they had six sacks and 13 tackles for loss. One of the most important plays of the game was Dorbah's strip sack to set up the go-ahead field goal.
Following the big comeback win, Elliott highlighted how the defense has grown together over the past two seasons with so many returners together.
"Our relationship with each other, and even with our coaches, it's tremendous," Elliott said. "This is our second year all playing together. We all transferred here, (Martell Hughes) came out of high school here. (We have) utmost confidence in each other, we rock with each other."
For the next couple of weeks, the Sun Devils' pass rush has difficult matchups against Utah and No. 9 Texas Tech. Utah's only given up three sacks all season, and Texas Tech's allowed five.
With these difficult matchups, it will be even more important that the pass rush can get to the quarterback. If it becomes frustrating for the defense, Reynolds has instilled what the guys rushing the passer need to know going forward.
"It all comes back to technique," Reynolds said. "When everything falls out the window, even if you get your behind whooped, if you go back to your technique, at some point, it'll show up in a positive way in the game for you."
Edited by Alan Deutschendorf, Henry Smardo and Ellis Preston.
Reach the reporter at niall.rosenberg@gmail.com and follow @RosenbergNiall on X.
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Niall Rosenberg is a lead Sports Reporter at the State Press. He has previously worked with sports teams such as the Rockford Rivets of the Northwoods League. He is in his 2nd semester with the State Press with the chance to cover football and other sports.
