Tonight’s session was a shorter practice at the Kajikawa Practice Field, running from approximately 6:50 to 8:00 p.m. The offense continued to ride a wave of momentum that began during Tuesday’s session, scoring numerous touchdowns through the air and making progress on the ground. Junior quarterback Jayden Daniels and Co. are beginning to make better strides in the right direction but still found themselves several times matched up with a formidable ASU defense that won’t back down.
A quick personnel note – freshman offensive tackle Sione Veikoso returned to practice after he was spotted in a boot last Thursday. His ankle was heavily taped, he was not in pads, and he was very limited in participation in both team and individual reps.
First-team offense
QB Jayden Daniels
RB DeaMonte Trayanum
OL left to right Kellen Diesch, LaDarius Henderson, Dohnovan West, Henry Hattis and Ben Scott.
WR Bryan Thompson
WR Johnny Wilson
WR Geordon Porter
WR Ricky Pearsall
TE Curtis Hodges took reps with the first team.
RB Rachaad White split reps with Trayanum.
Second-team offense
QB Trenton Bourguet
RB Daniyel Ngata
OL left to right Isaia Glass, Triston Miller, Jarrett Bell, Ben Bray, and Spencer Lovell
WR LV Bunkley-Shelton
WR Elijhah Badger
TE Jalin Conyers
TE/H Case Hatch
WR Chad Johnson Jr. came in for Hatch in three and four WR looks.
TE Curtis Hodges and WR Geordon Porter both took reps with the second team along with the ones.
OL Armon Bethea split reps with Miller at left guard.
Wednesday’s practice, the seventh of fall camp, was a shortened, slimmed down version with most of the general reps and practice that we have already seen thus far through the first week of camp; however, the communication and chemistry are shifting amongst the ranks on both sides of the ball.
The practice began with a skeleton install on the far opposite side of the field from where we were standing. Zak Hill was introducing new calls and schemes to the offense, which the entire sideline echoed after the call was made by the offensive coordinator. Following this, the offense broke up into individual work, with the offensive line emphasizing pushing, sealing, and turning their opponent to set the edge on a sweeping run behind them. The quarterbacks worked on their various step drops through dummies and pads swung by nearby coaches and assistants. The tight ends ran corner routes, while the receivers caught passes directly to them from five yards out and the running backs worked on running to and edge and making one move before booking it to the endzone.
Next, the skill players received over the shoulder passes from the quarterbacks on go routes, which would later come in handy during team periods. In routes-on-air, they worked on comeback, out, and in routes. The quarterbacks made smooth connections with their receivers without any defensive pressure.
The offensive line reverted to their base three-on-three drills for picking up different fronts and players on numerous levels. Offensive line coach Mike Cavanaugh was frustrated with the group’s effort, so he yelled at his men – “I need you to go fast!”
During the first team period, Daniels connected with Hodges for a short gain before finding the standout receiver of the session and fall camp thus far, junior Ricky Pearsall, who caught the ball on a slant and took it to the house, throwing up a Tyreek Hill-esque peace sign as he scampered towards the endzone. Daniels connected with Johnny Wilson on an out route to put the ball inside the five. Trayanum was stopped by senior linebacker Darien Butler in the backfield, drawing an emphatic “You’ve gotta frickin go!” from running backs coach Shaun Aguano. Ultimately, the drive was stopped on 4th and 4 on a Chase Lucas PBU.
Amongst the second group, Badger made a strong diving catch on the sideline for a short gain before Bourguet found Conyers for a double-digit gain as he rolled out into the flat. Ngata juked out redshirt sophomore linebacker Will Shaffer for a small gain before Badger added a 20+ yard gain on a jet sweep and made another sideline grab on a comeback route. Bunkley-Shelton also had a nice catch on a slant route through the middle.
Shortly into the final team period, Herm Edwards was heard bantering with one of the referees, saying, “We ain’t kicking no field goal on this drive now, c’mon ref!” For the first several plays, the going got tough for the offense, as bubble screens and inside runs were stopped by the stifling Sun Devil defense; however, once they were placed in the red zone, things took a turn for the better. On a go route, in an identical situation to the individual work earlier, Bourguet floated a ball over the shoulders and into the grasp of Porter, who beat freshman Tommi Hill in coverage. Porter, Pearsall, and the entire offense celebrated in the endzone. Porter shrugged and slyly remarked, “Too fast!”
The remaining plays of the session went entirely the way of the defense, with a missed throw from Bourguet and multiple PBU’s from the likes of graduate cornerback Chase Lucas and redshirt freshman corner Macen Williams.
While the ending may not have been great, the Sun Devils have life in the passing game thanks to the likes of Porter and Pearsall, who stood out from the rest of the pack under the lights in Tempe in the final practice we will be able to see start to finish. Since returning to action last Saturday, Badger has been flashing more and more than other wide receivers not named Porter or Pearsall.
A quick personnel note – freshman offensive tackle Sione Veikoso returned to practice after he was spotted in a boot last Thursday. His ankle was heavily taped, he was not in pads, and he was very limited in participation in both team and individual reps.
First-team offense
QB Jayden Daniels
RB DeaMonte Trayanum
OL left to right Kellen Diesch, LaDarius Henderson, Dohnovan West, Henry Hattis and Ben Scott.
WR Bryan Thompson
WR Johnny Wilson
WR Geordon Porter
WR Ricky Pearsall
TE Curtis Hodges took reps with the first team.
RB Rachaad White split reps with Trayanum.
Second-team offense
QB Trenton Bourguet
RB Daniyel Ngata
OL left to right Isaia Glass, Triston Miller, Jarrett Bell, Ben Bray, and Spencer Lovell
WR LV Bunkley-Shelton
WR Elijhah Badger
TE Jalin Conyers
TE/H Case Hatch
WR Chad Johnson Jr. came in for Hatch in three and four WR looks.
TE Curtis Hodges and WR Geordon Porter both took reps with the second team along with the ones.
OL Armon Bethea split reps with Miller at left guard.
Wednesday’s practice, the seventh of fall camp, was a shortened, slimmed down version with most of the general reps and practice that we have already seen thus far through the first week of camp; however, the communication and chemistry are shifting amongst the ranks on both sides of the ball.
The practice began with a skeleton install on the far opposite side of the field from where we were standing. Zak Hill was introducing new calls and schemes to the offense, which the entire sideline echoed after the call was made by the offensive coordinator. Following this, the offense broke up into individual work, with the offensive line emphasizing pushing, sealing, and turning their opponent to set the edge on a sweeping run behind them. The quarterbacks worked on their various step drops through dummies and pads swung by nearby coaches and assistants. The tight ends ran corner routes, while the receivers caught passes directly to them from five yards out and the running backs worked on running to and edge and making one move before booking it to the endzone.
Next, the skill players received over the shoulder passes from the quarterbacks on go routes, which would later come in handy during team periods. In routes-on-air, they worked on comeback, out, and in routes. The quarterbacks made smooth connections with their receivers without any defensive pressure.
The offensive line reverted to their base three-on-three drills for picking up different fronts and players on numerous levels. Offensive line coach Mike Cavanaugh was frustrated with the group’s effort, so he yelled at his men – “I need you to go fast!”
During the first team period, Daniels connected with Hodges for a short gain before finding the standout receiver of the session and fall camp thus far, junior Ricky Pearsall, who caught the ball on a slant and took it to the house, throwing up a Tyreek Hill-esque peace sign as he scampered towards the endzone. Daniels connected with Johnny Wilson on an out route to put the ball inside the five. Trayanum was stopped by senior linebacker Darien Butler in the backfield, drawing an emphatic “You’ve gotta frickin go!” from running backs coach Shaun Aguano. Ultimately, the drive was stopped on 4th and 4 on a Chase Lucas PBU.
Amongst the second group, Badger made a strong diving catch on the sideline for a short gain before Bourguet found Conyers for a double-digit gain as he rolled out into the flat. Ngata juked out redshirt sophomore linebacker Will Shaffer for a small gain before Badger added a 20+ yard gain on a jet sweep and made another sideline grab on a comeback route. Bunkley-Shelton also had a nice catch on a slant route through the middle.
Shortly into the final team period, Herm Edwards was heard bantering with one of the referees, saying, “We ain’t kicking no field goal on this drive now, c’mon ref!” For the first several plays, the going got tough for the offense, as bubble screens and inside runs were stopped by the stifling Sun Devil defense; however, once they were placed in the red zone, things took a turn for the better. On a go route, in an identical situation to the individual work earlier, Bourguet floated a ball over the shoulders and into the grasp of Porter, who beat freshman Tommi Hill in coverage. Porter, Pearsall, and the entire offense celebrated in the endzone. Porter shrugged and slyly remarked, “Too fast!”
The remaining plays of the session went entirely the way of the defense, with a missed throw from Bourguet and multiple PBU’s from the likes of graduate cornerback Chase Lucas and redshirt freshman corner Macen Williams.
While the ending may not have been great, the Sun Devils have life in the passing game thanks to the likes of Porter and Pearsall, who stood out from the rest of the pack under the lights in Tempe in the final practice we will be able to see start to finish. Since returning to action last Saturday, Badger has been flashing more and more than other wide receivers not named Porter or Pearsall.
