William Sutton
DL, 6-2, 275 LBS, ESPN Grade = 75
Fr. Corona, California (Centennial HS)
Shh...go to sleep.
Overview:
One of the premier defensive lineman in the state of California, played for one of the nation's elite prep programs - which seems to be developing into a nice pipeline for ASU. An active, athletic and powerful lineman. Was a teammate of fellow ASU signee Vontaze Burfict, as well as current Sun Devils Ryan Bass, Shelly Lyons and Brandon Magee at Centennial. Will be one of five Sun Devils to have played at Centennial High, the most teammates outside the state of Arizona to be on a Sun Devil roster in school history.
Scouting Report:
Scouts -
Sutton is bigger than you would think. On paper his size is a worrisome issue, but on film he looks to be a thickly built kid who can hang in the trenches. If he truly is 250 pounds he will still need to add some good bulk, but he is a big 250! Has a solid get-off, but needs to be more consistent in his initial explosiveness. Does a good job of protecting his legs. Will flash the ability to come off the ball, shoot his hands, derive power from the hips, and stand a blocker up and hold his ground. Displays good natural strength, but needs to be more consistent in bringing his hands and staying low. An area where his size may be an obstacle is with his reach and his ability to separate and shed from bigger blockers. Does a good job of being able to slant across a blockers face and rip and get penetration. Looks comfortable when asked to do a line twist and will stay square and come off the penetrators butt. Will telegraph though when he is getting ready to run a twist. He is an active kid who will work to get free and get to the ball. Reads blocks fairly well and can get flat and down the line of scrimmage. Has solid speed and takes good pursuit angles, but needs to work on that some. Shows very adequate short-area change-of-direction skills. He is a solid tackler. As a pass rusher he will work to get to half-a-man and works to try and dip and rip. Can bull rush. Needs to work on counters as he can get stuck if he can not get to the blockers shoulder. Sutton is an interesting kid. Size will be a bit of an obstacle, but he does some things that intrigue you. At worst should be able to develop into a good wave player. (Note, he is not 250 as was listed on the scouts roster - he is actually 275).
Accolades:
Ranked as the No. 33 defensive tackle in the country by Scout.com. Regarded as the top defensive tackle in the state of California by ESPN Scouts, Inc. Listed as the No. 42 defensive tackle in the nation by Rivals.com, also labeled by Rivals.com as the No. 2 defensive tackle in the state of California and the state's No. 40 overall recruit. Played in the 2009 Offense-Defense All-American Bowl in Myrtle Beach, S.C., along with fellow Sun Devil signees Jamal Miles and Fred Thornton.
High School Career, Senior Year 2008
101 tackles (23 solo) as a senior. Led the Huskies with 11.5 QB sacks. Blocked four punts and recovered one fumble.
Totaled six or more tackles in 11 games on the year. Registered a season-high 11 tackles (three solo) against Norco on Nov. 14, 2008. Tallied a season-high 4 quarterback sacks and seven total tackles against Chaparral on Dec. 12, 2008. Totaled nine tackles on two occasions and collected 1.5 quarterback sacks four times on the year.
Junior Year, 2007
48 tackles, 2.5 sacks and one fumble recovery.
Sophomore Year, 2006
11 tackles.
The Decision
Chose ASU over Arizona, Boise State, Fresno State, Nebraska, UNLV and Washington, among others. Verbally committed to ASU on Dec. 14, 2008.
The Verdict:
Adds to our burgeoning DL core. Unsure of where he will play, if he will be at DE or DT since he can play both. I would not be surprised to see him get some time at both spots. Should see some time in 2009 - a DL of English, Guy, Adams and Sutton is young, talented, athletic and has the potential to be beastly in a few years - if not immediately. Good sign.