ASU Football: Spring Practice Report (2/22)

It was back to the bubble on Friday night for ASU. The quarterback competition was in full force, and all four guys got reps in 7-on-7’s and 11-on-11’s.

On defense, both Chase Lucas and Merlin Robertson were back to work after Robertson had been missing from the last few practices, and Lucas missed on Wednesday.

Last practice: Wednesday, February 20

Next practice: Saturday, February 23

Injury update

DL D.J. Davidson, WR Ryan Newsome, LB Tyler Johnson, LB Stanley Lambert, DE Mark Walton, CB Dom Harrison, DB Preston Liger, WR Paul Lucas, DL Shannon Forman, RB Demetrious Flowers, WR Angel Ruiz

Not in attendance: CB Kobe Williams

What went on:

Kalen Ballage was in attendance to take in practice on Friday. Prior to practice, he was talking with junior running back Eno Benjamin and he was making his way up and down the sideline to talk with fans and former teammates alike.

As for the actual work on the field, ASU got to work early on. In the first play of 11-on11’s, Dillon Sterling-Cole hit Frank Darby on a deep ball over the middle. The ball was thrown somewhat short, but Darby came back to the ball to make the reception.

Freshman quarterback Joey Yellen also looked confident, making a variety of passes. In his time on 11-on-11’s, Yellen completed a pass to Darby, and he also made a couple of short passes.

As for Ethan Long, he had some tough moments, including an interception that he threw to cornerback Darien Cornay early on. The running game looked good, as both redshirt junior running back Isaiah Floyd and junior half back Eno Benjamin had a variety of good chunk plays with blocking in front of them.

The team also had a focus on special teams throughout practice, working on punt returns and field goals. Senior wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk was the primary return man, and redshirt sophomore punter Michael Turk had a couple booming punts while working on punt coverages.

To end practice, ASU focused on red zone situations. Sterling-Cole found senior wideout Kyle Williams on a 5-yard out route near the 10-yard line and Williams caught the pass and turned it upfield and into the end zone.

The final play of 11-on-11s at the end of practice was a pass that was nearly picked off by redshirt senior linebacker Khaylan Kearse-Thomas. However, it just slipped through his hands. Those were just some of the notable highlights.

First-team offense:

QB: Dillon Sterling-Cole, Joey Yellen

RB: Eno Benjamin/Isaiah Floyd

WR: Brandon Aiyuk, Frank Darby, Tyerell Baldonado-Kaelopu, Geordon Porter

TE: Tommy Hudson, Curtis Hodges

OL: Roy Hemsley (LT), Alex Losoya (LG), Cohl Cabral (C), Cade Cote (RG), Steven Miller(RT)

First-team defense

DL: Jermayne Lole/Michael Matus, Corey Stephens, George Lea

LB: Khaylan Kearse-Thomas, Merlin Robertson, Darien Butler

CB: Timarcus Davis, Chase Lucas

Tillman: Aashari Crosswell, Tyler Whiley (Whiley took a few reps on first team)

S: Evan Fields, Cam Phillips

Second-team offense

QB: Dillion Sterling-Cole, Joey Yellen

RB: A.J. Carter/Tavian Gould

WR: C.J. Jarmon, Tannor Park, Keith Davis

TE: Jared Bubak

OL: Ralph Frias (LT), Dohnovan West (LG), Jarrett Bell (C), Marco Salas (RG), Spencer Lovell (RT)

Second-team defense

DL: Case Hatch, Corey Stephens, George Lea

LB: Ely Doyle, Merlin Robertson, Khaylan Kearse-Thomas

CB: Darien Cornay, Terin Adams

Tillman: Tyler Whiley

S: K.J. Jarrell, Langston Frederick/Tyler Whiley, Alijah Gammage