Category: Arizona State Sun Devils

Arizona State QB Jaden Rashada opens eyes with transfer portal move

Jaden Rashada can’t seem to find a situation he likes.

The Jaden Rashada story has taken another wild turn. Rashada, who had signed with Florida before reversing course and choosing Arizona State, has entered the transfer portal and left second-year Sun Devil head coach Kenny Dillingham. It’s another plot twist in a journey which has been more interesting off the field than on.

Gators Wire offered background on Rashada when he originally went to Arizona State:

“He signed with UF during the early signing period, but a reported $13 million name, image and likeness deal fell through before he ever enrolled in classes. That’s when Rashada asked to be released from his letter of intent and set off to find a new home.

“In the end, perhaps Rashada wound up where he should be. He’ll still find success in the NIL market wherever he goes, and playing under the pressure of a $10 million-plus contract might have ruined him before he even got started in the Swamp. There’s also class of 2024 quarterback DJ Lagway to consider. The five-star recruit would be coming in a year after Rashada and competing with him after a year of Graham Mertz or Jack Miller III as the starter.”

Everyone will be intensely interested in Rashada’s next landing spot.

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Jose Perez’s strange college basketball journey ends with him quitting on Arizona State

The Arizona State Sun Devils will compete in the Pac-12 Tournament without Jose Perez, who abruptly ended his college basketball career after the team’s win over USC.

We should have known Jose Perez’s college basketball career would end with one final confounding headline.

Perez dropped 25 points for Arizona State on Thursday in the loss to USC, and after participating in postgame activities he vanished – like a thief in the night – leaving the Sun Devils short handed in an eventual 59-47 loss to UCLA on Saturday.

‘Personal’ was the reason given by school officials, and Pac-12 Network broadcaster Cavan Malayter was told he is pursuing professional opportunities.

So ends the final season of Perez’s tumultuous college basketball career, which began back in 2018-19 at Gardner-Webb in the Big South – where he posted back-to-back 15 point per game seasons. That led to him spending one season at Marquette, where he only appeared in 10 games due to injury.

What followed was another transfer and an outstanding season at Manhattan (18.9 points per game) and then – you guessed it – another transfer, this time to West Virginia. He left Manhattan due to his coach getting let go, and despite the NCAA normally granting a waiver in these cases he was not, forcing him to sit for the 2022-23 season.

Perez planned to return to WVU and finally see the floor, even after coach Bob Huggins was fired, but a messy academic dispute resulted in Perez suddenly leaving the Mountaineers and ultimately ending up in Tempe with Arizona State in September.

The 6’5 guard finished his final collegiate season averaging 13.5 points for the Sun Devils – second on the team behind Frankie Collins – and some of his final words to the press came after the team’s surprise win over then No. 21 Washington State two weeks ago:

“We gotta go out with pride,” Perez said. “Our pride gotta get in the way. We go, win out, get the best seed possible and see the standings, who we match up with. It’s all about matchups in March.”

Arizona State earned the No. 11 seed in the Pac-12 Tournament and will square off against No. 6 Utah on Wednesday – and they’ll have to make their run without their second leading scorer.

USC men’s basketball loses fourth straight Pac-12 game, fades late at Arizona State

Turnovers doomed USC in the desert.

In another disappointing performance in the desert, the USC Trojans endured a tough defeat against the Arizona State University Sun Devils, losing 82-67. This marks the Trojans’ second consecutive 15-point loss and extends their losing streak to four games in the Pac-12 Conference. With this defeat, USC’s overall record now stands at 8-11, with a conference record of 2-6.

The ongoing challenge for USC coach Andy Enfield in this game was the continued absence of star guard Boogie Ellis and freshman phenom Isaiah Collier. Bronny James had 7 points, 4 rebounds and a team leading 5 assists, but he looked hesitant and a step slow due to the incessant pressure on the ball by ASU that led to his three turnovers.  Without a proven point guard, USC struggled to find its rhythm on both ends of the court.

The game started with promise for USC. The Trojans shot a remarkable 54% from the field and 57% beyond the arc in the first half. However, their success was marred by sloppy ball-handling and passing, leading to a staggering 15 turnovers.

Arizona State’s coach, Bobby Hurley, implemented a full-court press that capitalized on USC’s lack of ballhandlers. Despite a double-double effort by Vince Iwuchukwu, who contributed a game-high 14 points and 12 rebounds, the Trojans were unable to overcome ASU’s defensive pressure.

Turnovers continued to haunt the Trojans, reaching a season-high of 22. These turnovers translated into fast-break points for ASU, with a significant +16 advantage. Furthermore, the Sun Devils capitalized on USC’s mistakes, scoring 24 points off turnovers.  The discrepancy in steals was notable, with ASU recording 12 steals compared to USC’s 3. This issue plagued the Trojans in their previous game against the Arizona Wildcats, resulting in an identical score and similar loss.

A hot start to the second half for ASU’s Frankie Collins — who scored eight straight points — stretched the lead to 51-40 for the Sun Devils. In a game of runs, ASU went on a final 17-2 run down the stretch to push its lead near 20 inside the final three minutes, sealing USC’s fate.

Jose Perez emerged as a key player for the Sun Devils, leading the way with impressive 50% shooting from the floor. He contributed 20 points to his team’s victory.

Next up for the Trojans is a home game against their crosstown rival, the UCLA Bruins.  The game tips off just after 5 p.m. local time at USC’s Galen center.  It will be televised on ESPN2 and the radio broadcast is on KABC 790 AM.

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Arizona State gets commitments from a pair of Class of 2022 standouts

Former USC RB Raleek Brown and former Florida safety Kamari Wilson were both within 247Sports’ top 75 prospects in the 2022 class.

Arizona State got two commitments from top-75 prospects in the Class of 2022 on Saturday as former USC running back Raleek Brown and former Florida safety Kamari Wilson both announced they would continue their careers with the Sun Devils. On3’s Hayes Fawcett reported both commitments.

Brown was the No. 3 running back prospect in the class. He served as a Swiss army knife for head coach Lincoln Riley in his freshman season. He toted the ball 42 times for 227 yards as a runner, he caught 16 passes for 175 yards as a receiver, and he scored six touchdowns. He even returned kicks, running back 24 kickoffs for 517 return yards.

The 5-foot-8 utility player changed positions ahead of the 2023 season to play as a wide receiver, but he couldn’t recapture his same usage. He only touched the ball in two games. He finished the season with six touches for 34 yards from scrimmage, and he only scored a single touchdown.

Wilson, the No. 74 overall player and No. 9 safety in 247Sports’ Class of 2022 rankings, also had his best season with the Gators as a freshman. He made 39 total tackles, forced a fumble, and broke up a pass in 2022. He only played in three games in 2023, eventually redshirting the season, and he recorded a single tackle.

Both Brown and Wilson have three years of eligibility remaining. Their announcements come less than a week after former Michigan State quarterback Sam Leavitt announced he would join the Sun Devils for 2024.

After whirlwind 18 months at West Virginia, Jose Perez is enjoying his time at Arizona State

Jose Perez spent 18 months waiting to get back on the floor at West Virginia, which never happened. Now he’s thriving at Arizona State in his final season of college basketball.

On March 8, 2021, Jose Perez dropped 21 points with five assists and four steals for Manhattan in a loss to Rider in the first round of the MAAC Tournament.

That ended up being the last game action for Perez across a whopping 975 days, a time period where he entered the transfer portal following his coach’s sudden firing, landed at West Virginia, was deemed ineligible for the 2022-23 season, remained with the Mountaineers after coach Bob Huggins was let go, and then was back in the portal late this offseason after an academic issue ended his tenure at West Virginia before he was ever even able to play a game.

Perez’s saga is among the strangest in recent memory, which hits many of college athletics’ biggest hot button issues: NCAA overstepping, transfer portal limits, academic issues, and coach misbehavior.

Fortunately for Perez, he was able to once again enter the transfer portal very late in the offseason and landed with Bobby Hurley and the Arizona State Sun Devils, who needed insurance in the guard room in case LSU two-time transfer Adam Miller was denied eligibility for the 2023-24 season.

(As of this writing, Miller has not been cleared by the NCAA to play at Arizona State this year.)

The 6’5 senior guard from the Bronx is just happy to be back on the hardwood, rather than the sidelines, and he’s provided exactly what Arizona State wanted from him: averaging 13.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in nine games, playing about 33 minutes per night and shooting 48.5% on two pointers and 33.3% from beyond the arc.

“It’s fun to be back,” Perez said last week after dropping a season-high 24 points at home against Sam Houston. “Just trying to stack wins and get to the NCAA Tournament again.”

Perez has topped 20 points already in three of his nine games with the Sun Devils, and while the program is off to a rocky start – with a 6-3 record after a loss to San Diego – it would be much worse if Perez wasn’t in the picture.

More importantly, Perez gets to finish out his collegiate career on a high note after spending 18 months frustratingly waiting for the NCAA to let him get back onto the floor and do what he loves.

Arizona State will host TCU on Saturday, December 16 at 10:00 PM ET on ESPNU, followed by Northwestern four days later on December 20 at 8:30 PM ET on ESPN2.

Former Michigan State QB Sam Leavitt announces commitment to Arizona State

The former four-star prospect will still have four years of eligibility remaining after he spent just one season with Michigan State.

Former Michigan State quarterback Sam Leavitt announced he’d committed to Arizona State on Monday.

In a report by 247Sports’ Brandon Huffman, Leavitt said Sun Devils head coach Kenny Dillingham and the Arizona State coaching staff were a big reason for his decision.

“I knew it was the place for me after spending four hours in a position meeting going over everything and seeing the enthusiasm and excitement and creativity for the game that they bring,” Leavitt said in the article.

The four-star high school prospect was 247Sports’ No. 18 quarterback in the class of 2023. He spent just one season in East Lansing, appearing in four games. He completed 15 of his 23 passes for 139 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

He got the most of his work in a game against Minnesota. He attempted 12 passes against the Golden Gophers, completing eight of them for 73 yards and tallying a touchdown and an interception. He also threw seven passes against Michigan, with four completions for 32 yards and an interception.

Leavitt will have stiff competition for the starting job. Fellow class of 2023 quarterback Jaden Rashada, 247Sports’ No. 6 passer in the class, played in three games for the Sun Devils last season. He completed 53.7% of his attempts and threw for 485 yards, four touchdowns, and three interceptions

Arizona State wide receiver Elijhah Badger won’t play against Arizona

The redshirt junior leads the Sun Devils with 713 receiving yards and three touchdowns this season.

Arizona State will get back freshman quarterback Jaden Rashada on Saturday, but he won’t have one of his top weapons.

Junior wideout Elijhah Badger won’t play against Arizona after he suffered an injury last week against Oregon.

Badger leads the Sun Devils with 713 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns so far this season. No other member of Arizona State has more than 351 yards this season, and junior Troy Omeire is the only other Sun Devil with multiple receiving touchdowns.

Badger has surpassed 100 yards twice this season, including a 12-reception, 134-yard game against Colorado in October.

Arizona State kicks off against Arizona at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday.

UPDATE: Freshman QB Jaden Rashada will not start for Arizona State but will play

The freshman was late for a team meeting, according to a Saturday report, meaning he’ll miss at least the opening drive due to team policy.

After a Friday report that freshman quarterback Jaden Rashada would start for Arizona State this weekend, a Saturday report from 247Sports’ Chris Karpman says Rashada will play but won’t start the game for the Sun Devils.

Karpman’s update says Rashada was late for a team meeting, which prohibits a player from starting due to a team policy. Trenton Bourguet will start instead.

Previous Sun Devils have violated the same policy, and Karpman says the punishment usually only lasts one series. However, Rashada’s time will come down to how well Bourguet plays at the start of the game. The junior has played in eight games this season, completing 60.9% of his passes for 6.0 yards per attempt. Bourguet has thrown one touchdown and four interceptions this season.

Arizona State plays Arizona at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday.

REPORT: Freshman quarterback Jaden Rashada to start for Arizona State on Saturday

The freshman, who still leads the team with three touchdown passes despite playing two games, will start after dealing with an injury.

Arizona State’s offense will be led by freshman quarterback Jaden Rashada on Saturday in the Territorial Cup against Arizona, per reports from 247Sports’ Chris Karpman.

Rashada started the first two games for Arizona State but hasn’t played since with an undisclosed injury. Head coach Kenny Dillingham did not specify the nature of the injury at the time but said it was something that had bothered the quarterback since high school.

Rashada, a four-star quarterback prospect in high school, showed flashes of his potential in his first two games this year. He completed 34 of 60 passes for 403 yards, and he still leads the Sun Devils with three touchdown passes this season.

The in-state battle is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday.

Arizona State ends its season with no AD, but Ray Anderson is still around

This is different.

The news just keeps coming in college sports, and one notable story from a few weeks ago involved the Pac-12 Conference. Arizona State athletic director Ray Anderson, who had been the subject of some questionable decisions, decided to step down from that particular post, per the release from the program.

Anderson released a lengthy statement as well: “It has been a privilege to serve as ASU’s athletic director for nearly a decade,” he said. “We have entered an unprecedented era where the number and magnitude of changes in the college sports landscape are astounding. As I approach my seventh decade of life, these are not matters that my leadership would be able to corral during my tenure. Continuity of leadership will be needed, and I am choosing to step aside to let the university find that leader.”

Anderson’s time as Arizona State AD comes to an end just months after the Sun Devils decided to move to the Big 12 Conference in 2024, and his comments sure made the Sun Devils an enemy before playing their first game in the new conference.

A year after hiring Kenny Dillingham as the Sun Devils’ new coach, Arizona State is suddenly in search of another athletic director, although most fans will be relieved by this move.

However, there’s a plot twist here:

In the story from the Arizona Republic, it is noted that while “Ray Anderson resigned from his role as Arizona State’s athletic director earlier this week, (he) will remain as a professor of practice and senior adviser for the sports law and business program at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law.

“He will also continue to make the same salary he made as ASU’s AD in his reduced role, according to a report.”

Ray Anderson is gone from the athletic department, but not Arizona State. As the Sun Devils end their 2023 football season this weekend, one wonders what new development will come from Tempe.

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