Hey guys,
Arizona State returned to the Kajikawa Practice Fields this morning. The practice was fully open for members of the media, so we have a little bit more of a practice report than usual. However, the Sun Devils didn't do a ton. This wasn't a Camp T practice, and understandably so. It was mostly just walkthrough stuff. There were a few team periods. Other than that, just standard drills.
We've reported on stretch music before. ASU actually plays music almost the entire time. It seems to strengthen the overall vibe.
Now, before the actual report, I'll address the elephant in the (forum??).
Todd Graham. He looked fine at practice. He was taking notes on players, doing the usual. Obviously, it's probably been difficult for him. It didn't seem like a somber atmosphere or anything of the sort. If I had to describe practice, I'd say it was more laid-back, as you may be able to understand.
So, to practice. I'll just get straight into the personnel stuff. There were a couple changes but nothing major.
BRADY WHITE WAS THE ONLY PLAYER I SAW IN GREEN. ALSO, THERE ARE NO MORE SCOUT TEAM JERSEYS.
CHARTING THE TEAMS:
First team offense: QB Manny Wilkins, RB Demario Richard, WRs N'Keal Harry/Kyle Williams/Jalen Harvey, TE Ceejhay French-Love, LT Cohl Cabral, LG Sam Jones, C A.J. McCollum, RG Steven Miller, RT Quinn Bailey/Zach Robertson
Second team offense: QB Blake Barnett, RB Eno Benjamin, WRs John Humphrey/Curtis Hodges/Ryan Newsome, TE Tommy Hudson, LT Tyson Rising, LG Cade Cote, C Marshal Nathe, RG Alex Losoya, RT Mason Walter
First team defense:
DL: Tashon Smallwood, Renell Wren, JoJo Wicker
LB: Jay Jay Wilson, Khaylan Thomas, Deion Guignard
SPUR: J'Marcus Rhodes
DB: CB Chase Lucas, CB Kobe Williams, S Chad Adams, S Demomte King
Second team defense:
DL: Shannon Forman, Jordan Hoyt, Jalen Bates
LB: A.J. Latu, Kyle Soelle, Malik Lawal
SPUR: Tyler Whiley
DB: CB Alex Perry, CB Darien Cornay, S Das Tautalatasi, S Langston Frederick
Notes: I didn't see DJ Calhoun or Christian Sam taking reps in team sessions. Could just be to get the younger guys some more run. Christian Sam spoke to the media after practice, so he was there. Wouldn't read into this any.
So, now for a couple of cool notes throughout practice:
-There was a young fan there watching with his family. If you remember, Graham ran out with a young boy before the Arizona game. The two sprinted out of the Tillman tunnel together. Graham said he likes doing stuff like that.
Many ASU players and coaches greeted this young fan, a cool sight:
-A couple cool plays:
When running skeleton drills, Frank Darby caught a ball over Darien Cornay. The offense went nuts. He was hyped, too, and asked media members if anyone had taken video of the catch. It was a great reception in the end zone, classic play of what we've come to expect from Darby.
-We saw Jay Jay Wilson get in passing lanes at times this season, especially as he grew more comfortable with Devilbacker. Today, he swatted a Manny Wilkins pass into the air and then Deion Guignard intercepted it. The defense was real excited about that one.
As I noted before, there wasn't as much to report as there would be for a Camp T practice. There was full access, but it was a pretty chill vibe and there wasn't much urgency. The focus was obviously on getting better, but also on helping the young guys get some reps.
I left practice with about 40 minutes to go because I had to get to the facility for interviews. However, Jack Harris was there. Here are his notes:
Notes from second portion of practice:
-Starting offense:
QB: White
RB: Smith
WR: Darby, Chatman, Newsome
TE: Tyler Johnson (I think)
OL: Tyson Rising, Cohl Cabral, Marshal Nathe, Corey Stephens, Mason Walter
2nd team offense:
QB: Sterling-Cole
RB: Smith
WR: Tyler Eggers, Trent Gilbert, Trevor Russell
TE: Josh Pokraka
OL: Kyle Breed, Jonathan Sanchez, Corey Stephens, Jesse Cozens, RT Not listed roster (#86)
-White and offense moved the ball well on two drives during team drills. Had first drive stall inside the 10-yard-line on a failed 4th down conversion.
-Sterling-Cole hit Pokraka for a long catch-and-run touchdown.
-Kevin Brown threw a pick-six to Kordell Caldwell on final play of practice.
Starting defense:
DL- Jalen Bates, Shannon Forman, DJ Davidson
LB- Thompson(Devil), Thomas, Guignard, King(Spur)
DB-Perry, Cornay, Fields, Frederick
2nd team defense:
DL-Bailey Huggins, Jamie Diaz, Dougladson Subtyl
LB-Kyle Soelle, Ochuko Duke, Parker Higgins, Demonte Kind(Spur)
DB- Perry, Cornay, Fields, Frederick
-Soelle had a 4th down tackle on Trelon Smith in front of the sticks.
-Cornay had a INT during route running drills
Drills:
-Positional drills
-Route running
-Inside Run
-Pass Protection
-7v7 play
-11v11 play
After practice, we spoke to players / coaches as I previously mentioned. I'll give a little thread of tweets right now that should give you a good idea of how it went:
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936656026375413760
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936659123537567744
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936664694298853376
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936665360270426112
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936667643372638209
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936668162912763904
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936668357801132032
That's it for today's report. Stay tuned for continued coverage over the weekend.
Arizona State returned to the Kajikawa Practice Fields this morning. The practice was fully open for members of the media, so we have a little bit more of a practice report than usual. However, the Sun Devils didn't do a ton. This wasn't a Camp T practice, and understandably so. It was mostly just walkthrough stuff. There were a few team periods. Other than that, just standard drills.
We've reported on stretch music before. ASU actually plays music almost the entire time. It seems to strengthen the overall vibe.
Now, before the actual report, I'll address the elephant in the (forum??).
Todd Graham. He looked fine at practice. He was taking notes on players, doing the usual. Obviously, it's probably been difficult for him. It didn't seem like a somber atmosphere or anything of the sort. If I had to describe practice, I'd say it was more laid-back, as you may be able to understand.
So, to practice. I'll just get straight into the personnel stuff. There were a couple changes but nothing major.
BRADY WHITE WAS THE ONLY PLAYER I SAW IN GREEN. ALSO, THERE ARE NO MORE SCOUT TEAM JERSEYS.
CHARTING THE TEAMS:
First team offense: QB Manny Wilkins, RB Demario Richard, WRs N'Keal Harry/Kyle Williams/Jalen Harvey, TE Ceejhay French-Love, LT Cohl Cabral, LG Sam Jones, C A.J. McCollum, RG Steven Miller, RT Quinn Bailey/Zach Robertson
Second team offense: QB Blake Barnett, RB Eno Benjamin, WRs John Humphrey/Curtis Hodges/Ryan Newsome, TE Tommy Hudson, LT Tyson Rising, LG Cade Cote, C Marshal Nathe, RG Alex Losoya, RT Mason Walter
First team defense:
DL: Tashon Smallwood, Renell Wren, JoJo Wicker
LB: Jay Jay Wilson, Khaylan Thomas, Deion Guignard
SPUR: J'Marcus Rhodes
DB: CB Chase Lucas, CB Kobe Williams, S Chad Adams, S Demomte King
Second team defense:
DL: Shannon Forman, Jordan Hoyt, Jalen Bates
LB: A.J. Latu, Kyle Soelle, Malik Lawal
SPUR: Tyler Whiley
DB: CB Alex Perry, CB Darien Cornay, S Das Tautalatasi, S Langston Frederick
Notes: I didn't see DJ Calhoun or Christian Sam taking reps in team sessions. Could just be to get the younger guys some more run. Christian Sam spoke to the media after practice, so he was there. Wouldn't read into this any.
So, now for a couple of cool notes throughout practice:
-There was a young fan there watching with his family. If you remember, Graham ran out with a young boy before the Arizona game. The two sprinted out of the Tillman tunnel together. Graham said he likes doing stuff like that.
Many ASU players and coaches greeted this young fan, a cool sight:
-A couple cool plays:
When running skeleton drills, Frank Darby caught a ball over Darien Cornay. The offense went nuts. He was hyped, too, and asked media members if anyone had taken video of the catch. It was a great reception in the end zone, classic play of what we've come to expect from Darby.
-We saw Jay Jay Wilson get in passing lanes at times this season, especially as he grew more comfortable with Devilbacker. Today, he swatted a Manny Wilkins pass into the air and then Deion Guignard intercepted it. The defense was real excited about that one.
As I noted before, there wasn't as much to report as there would be for a Camp T practice. There was full access, but it was a pretty chill vibe and there wasn't much urgency. The focus was obviously on getting better, but also on helping the young guys get some reps.
I left practice with about 40 minutes to go because I had to get to the facility for interviews. However, Jack Harris was there. Here are his notes:
Notes from second portion of practice:
-Starting offense:
QB: White
RB: Smith
WR: Darby, Chatman, Newsome
TE: Tyler Johnson (I think)
OL: Tyson Rising, Cohl Cabral, Marshal Nathe, Corey Stephens, Mason Walter
2nd team offense:
QB: Sterling-Cole
RB: Smith
WR: Tyler Eggers, Trent Gilbert, Trevor Russell
TE: Josh Pokraka
OL: Kyle Breed, Jonathan Sanchez, Corey Stephens, Jesse Cozens, RT Not listed roster (#86)
-White and offense moved the ball well on two drives during team drills. Had first drive stall inside the 10-yard-line on a failed 4th down conversion.
-Sterling-Cole hit Pokraka for a long catch-and-run touchdown.
-Kevin Brown threw a pick-six to Kordell Caldwell on final play of practice.
Starting defense:
DL- Jalen Bates, Shannon Forman, DJ Davidson
LB- Thompson(Devil), Thomas, Guignard, King(Spur)
DB-Perry, Cornay, Fields, Frederick
2nd team defense:
DL-Bailey Huggins, Jamie Diaz, Dougladson Subtyl
LB-Kyle Soelle, Ochuko Duke, Parker Higgins, Demonte Kind(Spur)
DB- Perry, Cornay, Fields, Frederick
-Soelle had a 4th down tackle on Trelon Smith in front of the sticks.
-Cornay had a INT during route running drills
Drills:
-Positional drills
-Route running
-Inside Run
-Pass Protection
-7v7 play
-11v11 play
After practice, we spoke to players / coaches as I previously mentioned. I'll give a little thread of tweets right now that should give you a good idea of how it went:
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936656026375413760
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936659123537567744
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936664694298853376
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936665360270426112
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936667643372638209
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936668162912763904
https://twitter.com/JustinCToscano/status/936668357801132032
That's it for today's report. Stay tuned for continued coverage over the weekend.
