The Sun Devils have a new light shining on them with the hire of Head Coach Herm Edwards. Edwards also brings with him a ton of NFL talent in guys like Antonio Pierce and Kevin Mawae to held turn the Sun Devils program around. The Sun Devils aren’t here to just play but play to win the game.
Prestige Ranking ( If NCAA 19 Existed) 3*
They get a three star ranking from me because, first off, they have awesome uniforms. Getting a high profile coach like Herm Edwards will attract kids who want a chance at the NFL. Edwards may not be the brightest guy, but he knows how to build tough players. The last thing that gives them a three star ranking is that they are truly just a legendary party schools.
Last year record: 7-6 (6-3 Pac 12)
Projected Returning Starters:
Offense: 9 – QB Manny Wilkins, WR N’Keal Harry, WR Kyle Williams, WR Jalen Harvey, OL Quinn Bailey, OL Steven Miller, OL Cohl Cabral, OL Zach Roberstson
The Sun Devils should be excited for this upcoming season with maybe one of the best QB-WR tandems in Manny Wilkins and future NFL player N’Keal Harry. Harry is on the award list for the Biletnikoff, Hornung and Maxwell, as is Wilkins. The Sun Devils are also returning four offensive lineman with at least 10 starts under their belt, meaning they have played alongside each other and the chemistry of the group will only become better. Williams and Harvey coming back will provide Wilkins with a solid trio of receivers that will look take some pressure of Harry. One thing to take a note on is the addition of grad transfer offensive lineman Casey Tucker from Stanford, who started 21 games for the Cardinal in his career.
Defense: 6 – DT Rennel Wren, Edge Jay Jay Wilson, Edge Koron Crump, CB Chase Lucas, CB Kobe Williams, S Dasmond Tautalatasi
The Sun Devils bring back a lot of experience. You can’t really look at this defense by the number of starts because 12 linebackers and defensive backs return with over 10 games of experience from last year. Guys like Jay Jay Wilson and Chase Lucas will look to be the stars of the defense. They also get back Koron Crump from an ACL injury. Crump led the NCAA with four sacks in two games last year. My last thing to know is that they are bringing in Darius Slade who comes in from Ohio State and will have an immediate impact on the defensive line.
Specialists: 2 – K Brandon Ruiz, P Michael Sleep-Dalton
Ruiz went 49 for 50 on PAT’s last year and connected on all of his field goals from inside the 39.
Key Losses:
RB Kalen Ballage, RB Demario Richard, LB Christian Sam, LB D.J. Calhoun, DB J’Marcus Rhodes, DB Chad Adams, DT JoJo Wicker, DE Alani Latu, NT Tashon Smallwood
Ballage and Richard last year combined for 1,696 rushing yards. It will be hard for the Sun Devils to replace not one, but two running backs. They lose three of the four starters on the defensive line, which made up about 15% of their tackles. The loss of both inside backers is tough, but Antonio Pierce will have things figured out for the newcomers. In the secondary, they lose their two lead tacklers as well. The Sun Devils are going to have difficulties on defense this year, player and personnel wise.
Five Year Recruiting Rank (Bill Connelly): 28
Herm, during the last recruiting cycle, flipped the Sun Devils from ranking in the 70s to the 30s. Edwards doesn’t even know how to use Twitter, but when a kid knows he can learn from the guy that scooped up the ball at the Miracle at the Meadowlands, how could you not go play for him? It’s only a matter of time before the Sun Devils are landing 5 stars more often than not.
Tyroil Smoochie-Wallace All Name Team Member: TYERELL BALDONADO-KAEIOPU
Alcohol Prediction for fans by seasons end: Devil’s Ale
Nothing witty, just flip Devil and you get lived…seemed cool.
Outlook:
The Sun Devils may have lost a lot of defensive talent, but their offense is one of the top in the nation. Wilkins and Harry are going to carry this team on their shoulders and may even have to use that fork or spear the guy with the mustache has and wake up their teammates. I like the defense, even with a lot of losses, because of guys like Darius Slade and Koron Crump coming into the fold. I think Arizona State will improve, but still finish second in the PAC 12 South behind USC.
