Devils in Detail
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ASU Football: New coordinators bringing a culture change to Tempe

By Jordan Kaye

TEMPE, AZ - OCTOBER 22: Head coach Todd Graham of the Arizona State Sun Devils runs onto the field before the college football game against the Washington State Cougars at Sun Devil Stadium on October 22, 2016 in Tempe, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
TEMPE, AZ - OCTOBER 22: Head coach Todd Graham of the Arizona State Sun Devils runs onto the field before the college football game against the Washington State Cougars at Sun Devil Stadium on October 22, 2016 in Tempe, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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After a 5-7 finish to last season for ASU football, the Todd Graham critics came out in full force as the calls for his job became deafening.

Graham kept his job, but defensive coordinator Keith Patterson moved down to linebackers coach and offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey left the program for the same position at Auburn, putting holes in the two most important spots on Graham’s staff.

The voids were filled by Baylor defensive coordinator Phil Bennett and Alabama wide receivers coach Billy Napier.  And without much time in Tempe, the duo seems to be quickly getting something out of their players.

Improvement.

Throughout fall practice, players have been raving about how well they, and the rest of the team, are doing in the new systems and routines put in place by Bennett and Napier.

“Guys are coming into their own now because they’re like, ‘man, this competition, coach Bennett being on my head so hard, its creating me to be tough,'” DB Marcus Ball said.

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“I think coach Napier is doing some amazing things,” quarterback Blake Barnett said. “The offense that we’re running right now, I love it. Even the meetings that we’re going over, I feel like things are being taught extremely well.”

As new leadership emerges on both sides of the ball, so to do new ideas and a new foundation for what many players believe will turn into new results.

One of those new ideas revolves around putting those on the field in the best position to succeed. That happens by tailoring plays and formations to the strengths of the players who will essentially be running those plays in those formations.

The concept, in theory, seems like a no-brainer. But Graham and former Sun Devil coordinators have been criticized in the past for trying to force their same scheme onto different programs, teams and players.

Although Graham still sits at the helm of the program, the attitude around it seems to be different as the new coordinators instill their attitudes and put their stamp on the ASU program.

So, do the new faces and attitudes signify a culture change?

“Yeah, I mean not completely, but at the same time, yeah,” running back Kalen Ballage said. “We got some different coaches – coach Napier and coach Bennett on defense, so they’ve given us the ability to kind of switch up some things and make this team different.”

Only time will tell if the Sun Devil culture is changing before our very eyes, but for the moment, players just want stop answering questions about last year, ready to just take the field. Because when they do so on Aug. 31, their 5-7 record from 2016 will merely be another line in the media guide.

Next: ASU Football: Defense shines at Camp Tontozona scrimmage

“Another year like last year is unacceptable. It’s not something that we look forward to,” Ball said. “It’s not something that we want to live in that shadow of.”

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