ASU Football: Paul Lucas’ name spotted on Sun Devils’ roster

A rather interesting development surrounding Arizona State football is in the works this weekend.

The name of Paul Lucas surfaced on the Arizona State Sun Devils’ roster, and was brought to the attention of the fanbase by Joe Healey of Devils Digest and The Speak of the Devils’ Podcast on Saturday night.

Lucas is a former multi-sport star who attended local Mountain Pointe High School.

Rated a four-star prospect by ESPN, originally, Lucas verbally committed to play football for the Sun Devils on Christmas Day of 2014, spurning Notre Dame, UCLA, Utah, Washington, Oregon State and Tennessee in the process.

However, Lucas later recanted on his commitment to ASU on National Signing Day just over a month later, pledging to play for Oregon State.

Lucas totaled 285 yards on 56 carries along with six catches for 83 yards across two years with the Beavers. He also returned two kickoffs for 41 total yards. However, following his sophomore season at Oregon State, Lucas transferred out of the program to join the ASU track & field team in January.

Lucas, a former state champion in the 100-meter dash (10.44 as a sophomore), ran in three events for the Sun Devils track & field team upon transferring in. He twice knotted a personal-best time of 6.88 in the 60-meter dash this past season at the Don Kirby and at the MPSF Championships.

Upon joining the ASU track & field team, Lucas was granted immediate eligibility as a redshirt freshman since Oregon State does not have a track & field program. However, if Lucas were to join the ASU football team, he would have to sit out a season, per NCAA guidelines.

Lucas is currently listed as a junior member of the Sun Devils’ football team. He’s also termed as a running back, however he’s often considered a hybrid receiver/running back, or an offensive weapon. Hod Rabino speculates Lucas could be utilized as a receiver.

Regardless of where he’s used, this is a development to certainly keep an eye on in the coming weeks with ASU officially kicking off preseason practices on July 25.