On a windy Friday night in Tempe, Arizona State’s spring schedule finally culminated in the annual spring game.
The team was divided in half into one Gold team and one Maroon team and went through a series of drills before playing in a traditional game-like format.
Both teams shared their moments of highs and lows, but after a highly competitive evening, the Maroon team came out on top by a final score of 50-45.
All eyes were on the Gold team’s quarterback, redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt, who head coach Kenny Dillingham pronounced was first on the depth chart a few weeks ago.
Leavitt has shown growth over the past few weeks of spring practice and is continuing to learn from head coach Kenny Dillingham and offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo.
“I go watch film with them one-on-one and every single time they teach me something new that I’ve never thought about before,” Leavitt said.
In the spring game, Leavitt showcased his impressive ability to extend plays with his legs and find running lanes to pick up extra yards on the ground.
The quarterback did miss a few open receivers on deep throws that were possibly affected by the strong wind gusts. Still, overall, he displayed solid accuracy and cemented himself as the leader on the depth chart.
Spring standout redshirt sophomore Jordan Tyson was on the receiving end of a few of Leavitt’s deep passes, including a 71-yard reception that led to an eventual touchdown. Tyson displayed his elite route running throughout the one-on-one and game scenario periods, as he created separation from defensive backs all night long.
On the ground, the depth and talent of the running back room showed through, with bell cow senior running back Cam Skattebo getting into the endzone multiple times.
Additionally, young tailbacks sophomore Kyson Brown and redshirt sophomore Raleek Brown also made an impact, especially in the receiving game out of the backfield. Brown lined up all across the field, including the slot, and showed his innate ability to make defenders miss with the ball in his hands.
Nonetheless, the most surprising player on offense was walk-on freshman quarterback Navi Brunzon.
Brunzon threw for a touchdown and made plays outside the pocket with throws on the run to move the sticks.
Even though he came into the spring low on the depth chart, the walk-on has made a strong impression on the coaching staff.
“I guess this is just his home field,” Dillingham said. “Navi hits this field and he turns into the Navinator. He’s been unbelievable for us. And testament to his coach in high school, testament to that staff for coaching him hard and getting him mentally to the point where he can go execute as a true freshman in a spring game.”
Despite most of the focus being on the offense, the defense still made their mark on the night with a few highlight plays especially in the secondary.
The unit forced multiple turnovers, including a pair of interceptions by redshirt seniors linebacker Caleb McCullough and defensive back Macen Williams, along with a forced fumble on the goal line by junior defensive back Myles Rowser.
“Defensively, we’re attacking the ball,” Dillingham said. “You saw some hits that were physical that I really didn’t see as much last year.”
The leadership from veterans in the secondary was noticeable, with players in the safety room like graduate student safety Shamari Simmons figuring to play a big role for the Sun Devils this season.
“They really are a special group and they’ve found a way to really glue together and unify,” defensive coordinator Ward said. “But there’s also competition in there so that competition is going to help drive our performances far.”
Overall, Dillingham says that he believes he has an improved squad from last season, but acknowledges that they still must take the next step of learning how to win once they get on the field this fall.
“The difference between winning and losing is learning how to win,” Dillingham said. “We gotta get our team to that mold where we can play in a close game and come out on top.”
Arizona State will start their 2024 season on August 31, in their opener at home against Wyoming.
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