ASU football’s offense will heavily rely on the running backs with Demario Richard and Kalen Ballage, but there’s more talented running backs behind them.
ASU football is kicking off their season in less than three weeks, but as fall practice continues, a couple of running backs have been catching the eyes of the coaches.
No, that duo is not Demario Richard and Kalen Ballage.
We all know what they can do as they both combined for a large portion of ASU’s offense last season with 1,766 total yards and 19 total touchdowns.
It’s a couple of freshmen running backs who have impressed in Eno Benjamin and Trelon Smith.
Benjamin was a surprise commit for Arizona State as he also had offers from Utah, Baylor, Texas, Michigan and Oklahoma State among 28 schools to offer a scholarship.
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The freshman running back has stood out in practice so far for the Sun Devils with Benjamin and the coaches not expecting to redshirt him this year.
He showed out in the scrimmage at Camp Tontozona finishing (unofficially) with nine carries for 46 yards and one touchdown.
Offensive coordinator Billy Napier has said this week because of how far along he is in his development as a freshman and with the unpredictability a football season brings, it’s unlikely Benjamin would redshirt.
While not having the same kind of output in the scrimmage (five rushes, 13 yards and one touchdown), Trelon Smith is another one to keep an eye on this season as he’s impressed the coaching staff as well.
Throwing in Nick Ralston as well into the running back fold, Arizona State is very comfortable with its depth at the position leading for Napier to be more creative in his play calling and personnel packages.
Head coach Todd Graham raved about Ballage’s receiving skills at Pac-12 Media Days, and that could be an option the Sun Devils deploy through the season, especially given the wide receivers’ lack of experience behind N’Keal Harry.
Ballage could be used similarly to how the Arizona Cardinals use running back David Johnson by incorporating him into the passing game on screens and as a slot receiver.
The depth at running back will be extremely beneficial for the Sun Devils to keep Richard and Ballage fresh throughout the season and keep them healthy after both have battled injuries the last couple of seasons.
An effective running back will also open up the passing game as Manny Wilkins can use his dual-threat skills to exploit opposing defenses.
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With the coaches expressing the faith they have in Benjamin and the running back depth, the possibilities are endless in what could be a dynamic offensive unit for the Sun Devils.