This story was originally published on April 15, 2023.
One team wore two uniforms at Sun Devil Stadium on Saturday afternoon in the Arizona State Football Spring Game.
Ultimately, in a game filled with gimmicks, guest coaches and potential, the “Maroon” squad walked away victorious over the “Gold” squad, but the latter showcased just as much as the eventual winning team.
The Gold team showcased some of ASU’s high-potential offensive weapons, primarily quarterbacks Drew Pyne and Jaden Rashada.
Pyne, a redshirt sophomore and transfer from Notre Dame, discussed how difficult it can be to play against teammates on the football field in a non-practice setting.
“You practice with different guys all spring and we all have different combinations with who we practice with and [passing game coordinator Ra’Shaad Samples] did a great job of getting us all together and having few plays with some wrinkles,” he said.
In what will likely be a competition between three players for the QB position in the fall, Pyne had a level of poise and pocket presence that was not there for ASU in the 2022 campaign.
Perhaps the best play of the game for either team came on a passing down where Pyne stood in the pocket despite pressure and hit redshirt junior tight end Jalin Conyers over the middle for a 60-yard touchdown.
“The safety was even with [Conyers] and he was able to score a touchdown and he’s a tight end,” Pyne said. “He’s incredible.”
Rashada, the coveted four-star recruit who was flipped by coach Kenny Dillingham, struggled in his first competitive showing as a Sun Devil.
“I wish I could have put on a better showing, but that doesn’t take how much I developed this spring and how much better I got walking in here,” he said.
After completing his first pass attempt of the day on an easy out route, Rashada struggled with accuracy and his issues culminated with a nice scramble out of the pocket and under thrown deep ball on first down which was picked off by redshirt junior defensive back Ro Torrance.
Dillingham pulled Rashada aside after the play and described the conversation to the media after the game.
“I just said it’s first and 10, you had great pocket movements, you worked up in the pocket, go run for seven, slide and we’re going to call the same play again,” he said.
Gold’s offense hung around in the game until Pyne was sacked on the two-yard line on the final drive.
The two teams played very different styles offensively, with Maroon going with a more up-tempo, spread-the-field style and Gold going with more traditional running plays and passing plays to fit Pyne’s playstyle along with junior tailback/receiver Javen Jacobs.
The defense struggled at times, particularly against the Maroon run attack, but the defensive backs stepped up in some crucial moments and showcased some tenacity and grit missing last year.
Freshman defensive back Montana Warren contributed with some nice plays in coverage, including a pass breakup in the corner of the endzone to save a touchdown.
“I should have taken it,” he said. “It always feels good just to play football and then when you make a play, it feels even better.”
While Warren couldn’t haul in an interception, Gold teammate redshirt junior Xavion Alford snuffed out one of three double pass plays by Maroon and hawked the ball in the red zone in the fourth quarter.
“[The pick] made me feel good. I could have made more plays, I had one earlier I could have made, but I kind of got the next play mentality,” he said.
Alford also described some of the issues the defense faced against the Maroon offense and said the team will be back in the film room soon to address them.
“Small details we could have done could have prevented some of their explosive plays, but it’s all fun and games,” he said.
Both defensive backs and Dillingham enjoyed the presence of free agent NFL tackle and podcast host Taylor Lewan, who along with Will Compton, worked as “guest coaches” for Gold and Maroon respectively.
The Sun Devils learned a lot about both sides of the ball on Saturday and continue to embody the growth mindset of their head coach.
Now, the team has a short break from football before summer and fall camps start and the 2023 campaign gets underway.
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