By Richard Cirminiello
CollegeFootballNews.com
First-year coordinator Paul Randolph wants the ASU defense to be stylish this fall, sporting uniquely different looks to suit the situation. Fans will see their Devils in a lot of 4-3 sets, the occasional 3-4 and even some 3-3-5. Versatility will be a key to getting on the field, which is why hybrid positions such as Devil and Spur will be utilized.
Seven starters are back from a defense that underachieved in 2011, often at the least opportune times. While Randolph doesn’t inherit much in the way of star power, he does have enough key pieces at each level to construct a foundation. DT Will Sutton is about to emerge as an inside force; physical and emotional leader Brandon Magee returns at linebacker after missing all of last year to injury; and the secondary offers hope for improvement with the likes of CB Osahon Irabor and S Alden Darby. While those players won’t be enough to completely carry the defense, ASU has a chance to be improved from a season ago.
RETURNING LEADERS
Tackles: Alden Darby, 51
Sacks: Davon Coleman, Will Sutton, 2.5
Interceptions: Alden Darby, 3
Star of the defense: Senior LB Brandon Magee
Player who has to step up and be a star: Junior DE Davon Coleman
Unsung star on the rise: Junior CB Osahon Irabor
Best pro prospect: Junior DT Will Sutton
Top three All-Pac-12 candidates: 1) Magee, 2) Sutton, 3) Irabor
Strength of the defense: The interior of the line, team speed and athleticism, third-down D, takeaways
Weakness of the defense: Proven pass rushers, linebacker, pass defense, stuffing the run
DEFENSIVE LINE
ASU was home to a pair of honorable-mention All-Pac-12 linemen a year ago. Both have since graduated. The new linchpin of the line should be 6-2, 271-pound junior Will Sutton, a penetrating defensive tackle set to begin his second season as a starter. The former high-profile recruit has tremendous upside, possessing a nonstop motor, the strength to remain inside and the quickness to rush the passer as a 3-4 end. He only scratched the surface of his ability in 2011, making 33 tackles, 5.5 stops for loss and 2.5 sacks as a 12-game starter.
Behind Sutton is 6-4, 280-pound junior Jake Sheffield, who easily has the best story on the roster. The 26-year-old former Marine did two tours of duty in Iraq, eventually choosing Arizona State because of the impact of Pat Tillman. He’s already been penciled in as a part of the rotation.
At the nose, the staff has high hopes for 6-3, 283-pound senior Corey Adams despite the fact that he’s yet to evolve into more than a spot starter. He still shows flashes of being the five-star recruit he was coming out of high school, busting through to disrupt the flow of a running play. The Devils hope he can bring it on a more consistent basis in his finale.
Coming out of spring, the team’s most capable pass rusher was 6-3, 269-pound junior Davon Coleman, a second-year transfer out of Fort Scott (Kans.) Community College. With the right combination of size to defend the run and get-off to rush the passer, he’s a breakout candidate in 2012. In his debut season, he started just three games yet managed to chip in 42 tackles, five stops behind the line and a pair of sacks.
When camp opens in August, 6-0, 237-pound sophomore Carl Bradford will be in the driver’s seat at Devil, a hybrid position between an outside linebacker and a speed rusher coming off the edge. He impressed the coaches throughout the spring with his burst, closing speed and range, key elements of this role. He had a dozen tackles, 3.5 stops for loss and 1.5 sacks as a reserve but promises to be far more active in 2012.
Watch out for ... the fate of junior DE Junior Onyeali . It was just two years ago that Onyeali was being talked about as a budding star in Tempe, the Pac-10 Defensive Freshman of the Year. However, it’s been all downhill since, as he dealt with injuries in his sophomore season and then was suspended from the team for the Las Vegas Bowl and again in the spring. In a best-case scenario, he’ll return in the summer to push Bradford at Devil.
Strength: The interior of the line. The two-deep at tackle consists of four upperclassmen: Sutton, Adams, Sheffield and graybeard Toa Tuitea . As a whole, it’s an undersized unit but one with enough quickness to shoot the gap and amass a bunch of plays for negative yards.
Weakness: Proven pass rushers. Onyeali would certainly help if he can tap into his rookie self, when he had 6.5 sacks during the second half of the year, but he’s hardly a sure thing these days. And no returning player on the roster had more than 2.5 sacks last season.
Outlook: The big news up front is that Sutton appears to be on the verge of busting out into an All-Pac-12 type tackle. He could warrant a lot of double teams, which would make life simpler for the linemen around him. After No. 90, the D-line won’t be especially dynamic unless some combination of Bradford, Coleman and Onyeali ignites the pass rush from the edge.
Unit rating: 7
LINEBACKERS
The ASU linebacking corps is essentially being stripped bare following the loss of four regulars who each posted at least 50 tackles a year ago. Hope for 2012 comes in the form of senior Brandon Magee, who returns on the weak side after missing all of 2011 to a ruptured Achilles tendon. The 5-11, 233-pounder is arguably the most important of the ASU defenders for what he brings to the field and the locker room. He’s one of the fastest and most disruptive players on his side of the ball, using his speed and instincts to make plays from sideline to sideline. Magee is also the emotional leader of the D, the player from whom the other Devils take their cue. His return could not have come at a more opportune time.
In the middle, the program is expected to pop the cork on recruit Kipeli Koniseti, who arrives via College of the Sequoias (Calif.). After playing sparingly in nine games behind Vontaze Burfict, the 6-3, 244-pounder could be set to take flight. He’s tough and physical, and unlike his peers in Tempe, has the desired size to excel in run defense from the second level. Currently lining up behind Koniseti at middle linebacker is 6-2, 214-pound junior Brandon Johnson who tallied 13 tackles on defense and special teams last season.
At the Spur, which is part linebacker and part safety, the program is excited to unleash 6-2, 212-pound junior Anthony Jones, one of the best size-speed combos on the roster. He can blitz off the edge, transitions well into coverage and has started to get a better feel of where he belongs on the field in various situations. He has a high ceiling.
Watch out for ... a new attitude. In large part because of Burfict's disappointing final season, there was a guilt-by-association stigma tagged to last year’s linebackers. Don’t expect this year’s group to suffer from the same issue. With Magee setting the tone, these Sun Devils will be a hard-working group that will play to the whistle.
Strength: Speed. Particularly on the outside with Magee and Jones, ASU will pursue with ferocity, closing quickly on ballcarriers. This group takes good angles and is improving in its ability to read and react.
Weakness: Holding up at the point of attack. While Koniseti is going to be a welcome exception, the program’s linebackers are largely a collection of undersized athletes prone to getting swallowed up by opposing linemen. They’re also not very tall, which could create issues in pass coverage.
Outlook: Last year’s linebackers looked as if they’d rate among the best in school history yet turned out to be a collective disappointment. The current edition, with more modest expectations, hopes to confound the experts as well. Magee is a special player who’ll contend for All-Pac-12 honors as long as his health isn’t an issue. He’ll help elevate the play of Koniseti and Jones, who will be looking to him for guidance. The Devils will have problems, however, going up against physical, north-south ground games.
Unit rating: 6.5
SECONDARY
ASU never quite recovered last year from the torn ACL suffered in the preseason by former All-American Omar Bolden (now with the Denver Broncos), finishing near the Pac-12 basement in pass defense. The good news is that the program got a jump on life without its top cornerback. Junior Osahon Irabor looks as if he might follow Bolden to the NFL in two years. After playing well as a first-time starter, notching 48 tackles and seven pass breakups, he took another step forward in the spring. The 5-11, 176-pounder still needs to add some thickness, but he plays the position with an attitude and does a nice job of recognizing routes before the ball is in the air. Irabor is on the brink of turning the corner in his third season.
The favorite to start alongside Irabor at field corner is 5-11, 193-pound senior Deveron Carr, who has started 21 career games, including 13 last season. He has good size and speed but still needs to tighten up in coverage. As a junior, Carr established career-highs with 45 tackles and 10 passes broken up. Inching closer to Carr on the depth chart is 5-10, 167-pound junior Robert Nelson, a transfer from Louisiana-Monroe with the speed to stick with receivers on deep routes.
His junior season upon him, 5-10, 187-pound Alden Darby has taken a big step forward as the boundary safety. Another one of the terrific all-around athletes on the ASU defense, he has the experience and the ball skills of a cornerback. Much like Irabor, Darby is about to blossom into a more influential defender than he was in 2011, when he bounced around the depth chart and finished with 51 tackles, three picks and six pass breakups.
Leading the brigade at field safety will be 6-0, 202-pound senior Keelan Johnson, a starter in four games a year ago. He has good size and outstanding range but needs to play the position with a little more discipline and attention to detail. The past season was his most productive to date, as he posted 48 tackles and a pair of interceptions. Behind Johnson will be 6-0, 202-pound senior Kevin Ayers, who earned a letter as a backup in his first year out of junior college.
Watch out for ... Irabor and Darby to emerge as the leaders of the secondary. Both players showed signs of percolating in the spring and harbor the requisite skills to be fringe All-Pac-12 candidates this year. ASU is craving an identity in the secondary, and the juniors are capable of providing one.
Strength: Ball skills. This athletic group of defensive backs does a nice job of jumping routes and transforming into wide receivers when the ball is within their catch radius. Last year’s squad picked off 15 passes, good for third highest among Pac-12 programs.
Weakness: Softness in coverage. The Sun Devils are home to some terrific athletes, but when it’s time to shut opponents down, too often they came up short. This unit still has plenty to prove after the 2011 edition ranked 108th nationally in pass defense, and was a big why the program stood 73rd in the country in red-zone defense.
Outlook: Even with a couple new faces in the starting lineup, the pass defense will be improved this fall. The team has up-and-comers at corner and safety in Irabor and Darby, respectively, and the two-deep is dominated by upperclassmen. With a little more help from the pass rush, finishing in the top half of the league against the pass is not an unrealistic goal.
Unit rating: 7
SPECIAL TEAMS
Everyone of significance returns on special teams, lending hope that the unit will be even better in 2012. Sophomore Alex Garoutte did a solid job replacing Groza Award winner Thomas Weber, hitting 15 of 22 field goals, capped by a career-best 49-yarder. With a season behind him, the one-time highly touted recruit is capable of inching closer to becoming one of the league’s better placekickers.
ASU also broke the seal last year on senior punter Josh Hubner , who responded in his first year by averaging more than 41 yards a kick. The former juco All-American from Scottsdale Community College is a fine all-around athlete with a strong leg. The objective in Year 2 will be to improve consistency.
Watch out for ... Garoutte to take a big step forward in his development. He was a little shaky at times during his debut season, especially in a devastating loss to UCLA, but has the necessary leg strength and technique to become a valuable weapon.
Strength: The return game. In senior Jamal Miles , Arizona State boasts one of the country’s most dangerous return men. Shifty and blazing fast, he took three back for touchdowns a year ago, two on kickoffs and one on a punt. He’s one of those unique weapons who can change a game if given a seam.
Weakness: The coverage teams. The Devils are hoping to plug the holes that existed on both punts and kickoffs last season. They were especially soft on kickoffs, ranking 90th nationally at more than 23 yards per return and allowing one to be taken back for six.
Outlook: An average unit in 2011 is headed for somewhere above average this fall. First-time starters Garoutte and Hubner figure to be a little more consistent in their second seasons on the job. and Miles is a bona fide game-changer who’ll force the opposition to specifically scheme against him the return game.
Unit rating: 7.5
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