With action in the transfer portal slowing down, it is time to take a closer look at how each P4 school did during this cycle. Up now are the Arizona State Sun Devils
The skinny: Heading into his second season in Tempe, head coach Kenny Dillingham has quickly become one of the more active users of the transfer portal. And with that have come some successes and failures. The Sun Devils took some blows to their roster during this off-season, losing wide receiver Elijhah Badger and defensive backs Ed Woods and Jordan Clark. Losing young quarterback Jaden Rashada to Georgia also gained plenty of attention. However, they responded by adding some intriguing talent, including young players with potential like quarterback Sam Leavitt, defensive backs Laterrance Welch and Kamari Wilson, running back Raleek Brown and defensive end J’mond Tapp.
Total # of players who entered portal: 41
Total # of scholarship players who entered portal: 25
Number of scholarship players who withdrew: 0
Key losses: DB Jordan Clark (Notre Dame), DL B.J. Green II (Colorado), WR Elijhah Badger (Florida), QB Jaden Rashada (Georgia), DB Ed Woods (Michigan State), TE Bryce Pierre (UCLA)
More Sports News
Key additions: DB Kamari Wilson (Florida), DB Laterrance Welch (LSU), QB Sam Leavitt (Michigan State), RB Raleek Brown (USC), DE J’mond Tapp (Texas), RB Alton McCaskill (Colorado)
Final thoughts: Coming off consecutive 3-9 seasons, there is still plenty of work to be done in Tempe. To put this in a broader context, the two 3-9 seasons (.250 winning %), are the worst for the Sun Devils since the 1942 season when they finished 2-8 (.200 winning %) while playing in a conference with Hardin-Simmons and West Texas State. Losing players like Badger, Clark and Woods won’t help, but Arizona State did a quality job finding replacements. Rashada’s departure made news, but his replacement was already on the roster as Leavitt was named the starter after impressing everyone since his arrival in Tempe. The secondary took a hit with the losses of Clark and Woods, but adding Wilson and Welch with SEC experience should lessen that blow. Overall, with all the roster changes it is difficult to assess the Sun Devils right now, but there is enough potential on the roster to make it an interesting season.
