Arizona State
Arizona State

Arizona State Team Report

Updated: April 22, 2012 04:19 EST

When Brock Osweiler, who would have been one of the top quarterbacks in the Pac-12 next season, jumped to the NFL after his junior season, the position became a clean slate for Arizona State.

There was little experience behind him, and new coach Todd Graham isn't going to run the same one-back spread offense used by the Sun Devils in the past two years under coordinator Noel Mazzone, so spring practice is a fresh start for everyone.

Nothing is likely to be resolved through the April 21 spring game, but the trio of contenders spent the first part of spring drills splitting reps and jockeying for position.

Technically, the guy who is next in line is sophomore Michael Bercovici, who won the backup job last season but was little-used. He wowed the previous coaches with his big arm -- which looked good in the passing spread -- but Graham is going to ask his quarterbacks to run some read-option and make plays with their feet.

That's not Bercovici's strength, but it's also not all of the equation. While Bercovici might have been able to nicely rifle the ball on quick outs in the old offense, Graham also has a downfield component to his attack, so Bercovici's arm wouldn't go to waste.

Bercovici last season beat out Taylor Kelly for the second-string job. Kelly, also a sophomore, does have a background in the read-option and looks like the best of the trio right now in that part of the game.

The other candidate is redshirt freshman Michael Eubank, who is impressive physically with an NFL body (6-foot-5, 242 pounds). He also should be a good fit for the offense; after all, Graham recruited Eubank when the coach was at Pitt.

Just don't expect a decision on a starter anytime soon.

"The hardest position out here is the quarterback position because everything out here they've done is speeded up, like warp speed," Graham said. "They're having to call protections, they're having to call the play, they're having to get the signals. There is a lot on their plate."

--First-year coach Todd Graham will be working with a new athletic director, Steve Patterson, who assisted Lisa Love with the football coaching search last winter. Love was fired on March 28.

Graham said in a statement: "I am ultra excited about the future of Sun Devil football. Steve Patterson is a proven leader and his vision is in line with mine for this university and Sun Devil Athletics. Lisa Love is a great person and I enjoyed working with her. I wish her nothing but the best and I know she wants the same thing for Sun Devil athletics."

--Graham gave his team a spring break after three practices, letting the players catch their breath, so to speak, before pushing ahead for the final four weeks of spring ball, starting March 27. Graham said the fast pace of his practices take some getting used to, so the break was for a physical recovery, as well as a time to mentally digest new information.

"It's not easy to run the amount we're asking them to run and the rigor of the discipline we're asking them to do," Graham said, according to the Arizona Republic.

SPRING MOVERS:

LB Brandon Magee -- The coaches won't push Magee, who is recovering from an Achilles tendon injury suffered last August. He sat out the season when he would have been the team's best, most stable linebacker. He had 73 tackles in 2010, ranking second on the team, and he will certainly be a defensive leader as an outside linebacker in 2012.

TE Darwin Rogers -- The tight end position likely will be featured more than it was last season (when tight ends caught just 12 passes at ASU), and Rogers is one who stepped up early in spring camp as a target. The junior-college transfer -- who once committed to Illinois as a quarterback -- is 6-foot-4, 240 pounds. "He definitely is a good physical threat," QB Michael Bercovici told the Arizona Republic. "He is in the learning stage, and he's getting a lot thrown at him, but he's taken it real well. He's got soft hands, and he's very fast for his size, so he's going to be a weapon for this offense."

LB Anthony Jones -- With three starting linebackers gone, ASU lacks experience at the position and is need of players to fill the void. Jones, a junior who made six tackles last season, is one who stepped up through the early part of spring practice, with coach Todd Graham calling him a "shining light" who was getting it done on the field and in the classroom.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "What surprised me about the first day? That Coach Graham actually meant it. A lot of coaches can talk a good game. This is different." -- Senior LB Brandon Magee, in the Arizona Republic, on coach Todd Graham's fast-paced practices.

2012 OUTLOOK: The Sun Devils squandered their chance to win the Pac-12 South when they had the horses last season (and USC was ineligible). With the Trojans running well ahead of the pack, it will be a battle for second place in the division. Arizona State will need a young quarterback to come through to make a serious run, although not having to play Washington or Stanford from the North is a plus.

SCOUTING THE OFFENSE: The big question is at quarterback, but ASU will be inexperienced here no matter which of three competitors wins the job. That, combined with a switch to a no-huddle, read-option system, could lead to growing pains on offense in 2012. The running game, however, should be more than solid, with 1,000-yard rusher Cameron Marshall returning as a junior and recruits D.J. Foster and Marion Grice joining the mix. Also look for redshirt sophomore Deantre Lewis, who is back this spring after missing all of last season when he was injured in a random shooting. ASU loses a trio of productive receivers but returns versatile Jamal Miles (a threat in the return game and on laterals), Kyle Middlebrooks and speedy Rashad Ross.

SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: Coach Todd Graham says he likes the middle of his defense, but other than LB Brandon Magee (who is returning from an Achilles injury), there is a lack of proven stars and playmakers. Getting DE Junior Onyeali back from suspension would help the outside pass rush. ASU loses standouts Clint Floyd and Eddie Elder from the safety positions but returns its top three cornerbacks, led by rising junior Osahon Irabor.

SCOUTING THE SPECIAL TEAMS: PK Alex Garoutte is back after an uneven redshirt freshman season, which included a missed field goal at the end of the UCLA game, a pivotal game in the Pac-12 South race. He was 15 of 22 last season. P Josh Hubner was solid after transferring from junior college, averaging 41.3 yards. The player to watch here is Jamal Miles, a superstar in the return game, scoring once on a punt return and twice on kick returns last season.

TOP NEWCOMERS:

RB D.J. Foster -- Coach Todd Graham hopes Foster's signing is a statement in terms of the in-state recruiting battles that are already heating up between ASU and the new coaching staff at Arizona. "That's a giant leap forward," Graham said of landing Foster. "That's knocking a block out instead of a chip." Foster, ranked as the fifth-best all-purpose athlete nationally by Rivals.com, rushed 234 times for 3,058 yards and 54 touchdowns as a senior. He and JC transfer Marion Grice could take time away from incumbent Cameron Marshall.

LB Steffon Martin -- The transfer from Arizona Western College could replace Vontaze Burfict at middle linebacker after ranking as the No. 3 junior-college linebacker according to Rivals.com. Martin made 108 tackles, including 17 for loss, and he should find ample playing time in a decimated linebacker corps.

DT Mike Pennel -- The transfer from Scottsdale Community College could be the big man in the middle of a new three-man front. Pennel is 6-foot-5, 340 pounds, and he made 13 tackles for loss last season. "He absolutely epitomizes power," coach Todd Graham said. "You build your defense from the inside out, so we're really excited about what his potential is."

ROSTER REPORT:

--Sophomore DL Joita Te'i was suspended indefinitely in late March for what coach Todd Graham said was a failure to meet "the standards of the program."

--Redshirt freshman DL David Moala was dismissed from the team in mid-march for a violation of team rules.

--DE Davon Coleman was suspended for a couple of weeks, starting on March 15, but returned to practice. Coleman made 42 tackles last season, including five for loss, often filling in for DE Junior Onyeali (injury, suspension).

--DE Junior Onyeali, who was suspended for the bowl game last season, has remained on suspension, but coach Todd Graham said in late March that Onyeali -- the 2010 Pac-10 Defensive Freshman of the Year -- was making progress toward a return to the team.