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(09/03/13 12:08am)
Even though ASU released its fall depth chart last week, the Sun Devils are still shuffling some of their skill positions three days before their season opener against Sacramento State.
Of course, the biggest carousel on the depth chart is at field safety. While ASU coach Todd Graham and the other coordinators tested out several players at first team, it appears redshirt freshman Laiu Moeakiola will start on Thursday.
Redshirt senior defensive back Robert Nelson was practicing at field safety for the past two weeks since freshman safety Marcus Ball suffered a shoulder injury at Camp Tontozona. However, Nelson returned to getting first-team reps at field corner on Monday.
Either way, cornerbacks and special teams coordinator Joe Lorig wants Nelson to start, regardless of where he’s lining up.
“He’s a guy that can do everything,” Lorig said. “We’re just trying to get the four best defensive backs on the field, and (we're) kind of experimenting with different guys back there. He’s a swing guy, a field corner or nickel."
The shuffling at field safety may continue once Ball returns, which could be in two weeks. Graham said in his Monday press conference that Ball was the starter before he got hurt and that redshirt junior Damarious Randall should be in the hunt once he recovers from his nagging groin injury.
The other position still in question is starting punter. Although the fall depth chart listed junior Dom Vizzare as the starter, Lorig said he probably won’t name a starter between Vizarre and freshman Matt Haack until game day. Lorig expects this position battle to carry over into the regular season and didn’t leave out the possibility of having both punters play at some point of Thursday’s game as well.
“It’s ongoing, day to day,” Lorig said. “It’s not like a quarterback competition or something like that where you have to name somebody or else it will affect the whole offense. We intentionally want to do that, so those guys are competing every single day. We just have to work on consistency right now.”
Of all the positions on ASU’s roster, Graham believes punter is the only place the team has not yet improved. Whoever wins the starting job between Haack and Vizzare must replace Josh Hubner’s performance from last year. Hubner’s 47.1 yards per punt was the second highest in the nation in 2012.
“I don’t know if we’re as good as we were last year punting the football,” Graham said. “We’ve got to get better there.”
Other notes:
- Graham said Randall and junior wide receiver Joe Morris could both play. Morris (foot) could see a limited role on Thursday, but Graham doesn’t think Randall (groin) will play.
- Graham revealed the fact that his personal pre-game tradition used to involve eating a hot dog and popcorn from the stadium. Because Graham lost significant weight over the summer, however, he isn’t sure if he would continue it this season.
- Graham said over the bye weekend, he watched all of the UA, UCLA, USC, Washington and Wisconsin games in their entireties.
- Graham said wide receiver Ellis Jefferson, wide receiver Cameron Smith and kicker Zane Gonzalez are the three freshmen who are most likely to play on Thursday. There may be no freshmen playing on defense.
Reach the reporter at jnacion@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @Josh_Nacion
(09/03/13 12:00am)
It's amazing how an athlete's entire life can hit rock bottom so quickly.
(08/30/13 7:26pm)
In the clash between maroon (offense) and white (defense) jerseys at the beginning of Friday’s ASU football practice, there was a shade of green hovering in the back of the first-team defense.
Redshirt junior transfer safety Damarious Randall, who has been limited due to a groin injury, got reps at first team field safety for the first time. Randall was a three-star junior college recruit from Mesa Community College who recorded 73 tackles and nine interceptions in 11 games last year. Co-defensive coordinator Chris Ball said Randall has athleticism and that his high football I.Q. will boost the secondary this season.
With freshman safety Marcus Ball out 3-5 weeks with a shoulder injury, Randall is supposed to compete with redshirt freshman safety Laiu Moeakiola and redshirt senior defensive back Robert Nelson Jr. for the open starting field safety job.
Randall is still practicing in a green no-contact jersey and it’s uncertain whether he will recover in time for ASU’s season opener against Sacramento State on Thursday.
“It’s kind of hard to tell because I’m about 90, 95 percent right now,” Randall said. “I really don’t think I want to risk it against Sac State and we got a tough schedule coming ahead of us.”
Randall said his “unfortunate” groin injury came from participating in a skills and development camp over the summer. He jumped for the ball and he said he heard something pop and felt something pull when he came down.
“It’s kind of frustrating to not know when I could return back to action because with a groin injury, it’s just a day-to-day basis,” Randall said.
Despite not joining his teammates on the field, Randall tried hard to stay engaged throughout practice and said he took thousands of mental reps every day while watching the other safeties.
Chris Ball also had Randall yelling calls from the sideline and watching film after practice.
“Mentally, he’s really good,” Ball said. “He seems to know what he’s doing. I got to look at the tape, but at meetings and stuff (and) mentally, he’s doing really well.”
Despite Randall practicing with the first team, coach Todd Graham said after practice that redshirt freshman Laiu Moeakiola would start at field safety if the season started today. According to the official depth chart the team released Tuesday, it listed Randall and Nelson as the two contenders at starting field safety.
“(Laiu) has been the most consistent,” Graham said. “He’s got the best knowledge of what he’s doing.”
ASU eager for season opener
College football season officially started Thursday but the Sun Devils still won’t play for another week.
Graham said even though it’s a bye week, the team has already gone through game preparation three times this week.
With the upgrades ASU has had over the offseason, Graham has high hopes coming into the Sept. 5 opener.
“Me personally, it’s the most excited I’ve been in 27 years of coaching,” Graham said. “I think it’s the best team I’ve ever coached. I’ve coached some great teams and great young men. This is the most talented team I’ve ever coached.”
Still, Graham isn’t getting comfortable and the team has been itching to play, but he said he’s still trying to get his players properly prepared. Graham has been critical about how the team practiced the last couple days for a number of issues, notably about penalties and the team’s overall discipline.
“I challenged them today about if we practiced the way we did last year, you get the same result as last year,” Graham said.
Reach the reporter at jnacion@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @Josh_Nacion
(08/29/13 10:59pm)
Previewing an individual team creates many good storylines but examining a major conference in the final year of the BCS championship system is just as intriguing.
(08/28/13 10:57pm)
The ASU athletic department finished 18th in the 2012-13 Directors' Cup and Athletic Director Steve Patterson believes there is even more room to grow.
(08/27/13 10:05pm)
ASU men’s basketball coach Herb Sendek was all smiles when he introduced senior transfer guard Jermaine Marshall to the media on Tuesday.
(08/27/13 12:39am)
College football teams aren’t allowed to have two defenders wearing the same number, but an exception was made for ASU for Monday’s practice.
(08/23/13 6:13pm)
The first college football game is next Thursday. ASU’s season opens the following week.
(08/22/13 10:00pm)
Julie Latu remembers when her twin sons Viliami and Alani first tried playing linebacker at Rancho Cucamonga High School in California. Both were playing well alongside each other, but that changed when the coaches subbed one of the Tongan brothers out of the game.
(08/21/13 10:00pm)
When coach Todd Graham first arrived at ASU after the 2011 season, he gave the ASU football team a cultural overhaul.
(08/21/13 9:42pm)
For the second straight practice, redshirt freshman linebacker Salamo Fiso saw some reps with ASU’s first-team defense at Will linebacker during Wednesday morning’s practice.
(08/19/13 6:33pm)
The player carousel at first-team field safety continued for ASU football after freshman Marcus Ball suffered a right shoulder injury that will sideline him for approximately 3-5 weeks.
(08/12/13 8:18pm)
Coach Todd Graham has been looking forward to this week for months.
(08/11/13 9:53pm)
The breakout performances of ASU football’s newest wide receivers during the first week of fall camp has put a lot of pressure on the Sun Devils’ returning wide receivers for their spots on the depth chart.
(08/10/13 3:19am)
Transfer paperwork confined Jaelen Strong to the sidelines first three days of camp, but the ASU athletic department finally cleared the redshirt sophomore wide receiver to make his practice debut Friday.
(08/08/13 8:11pm)
Senior center Jordan Bachynski said it’s often a challenge for ASU men’s basketball teammates to interact with one another because everyone is constantly on their phones.
(08/08/13 3:52am)
ASU’s veteran football players had their own practice Wednesday morning, so there was no need for them to return to the Bill Kajikawa Football Practice Fields later in the evening for the newcomers’ session.
(08/06/13 5:30pm)
ASU's first fall football practice Tuesday morning was reserved for the team's veterans, but two freshmen weren't constrained to the sideline.
(08/05/13 7:39pm)
It’s finally here.
(07/31/13 11:34pm)
USA Basketball will relocate its headquarters from Colorado Springs to Tempe as part of a $350 million development project on ASU property, the governing body announced Tuesday.