How Do You Prepare for Arizona State’s New Offense, 30 Transfers?

LARAMIE -- Arizona State welcomed 30 incoming transfers to its overhauled roster this offseason.

Only Deion Sanders' Colorado squad (43), along with Georgia State (33), Texas State (32), Marshall (32,) Louisville (31) and Indiana (31) had more newcomers at the FBS level.

Twenty-five of these new Sun Devils have at least a three-star rating, according to 247sports.com. Two more have four stars next to their name. All but seven of these guys come from Autonomous-4 programs.

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Kenny Dillingham also added a new offensive coordinator and a revamped scheme after finishing 3-9 overall for a second consecutive season. There's also a new wide receiver and defensive line coach.

How on earth do you prepare to face so many unknowns?

Great question.

"It is a challenge," Jay Sawvel said. "Opening games are really hard when you don't know how people are going to use their players. And that's in traditional opening games. Now you add all the transfer elements to it."

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Wyoming's rookie head coach said he and his staff have combed through film of all the new faces in Tempe, reviewing what they did and how they were utilized at their previous institutions.

As far as prepping for what ASU's new-look offense brings to the table, Sawvel said that can pose plenty of issues, too.

Last fall, six different players took snaps under center. Injuries ravaged the Sun Devils' roster throughout the 2024 campaign. So much so two of those makeshift signal callers didn't even play the quarterback position. Inconsistency ensued. So did an average of just 17.8 points per game.

Enter Marcus Arroyo.

ASU's new play caller is a familiar one. He held the same position in Laramie during the 2009 and '10 seasons under then head coach Dave Christensen. He also served as the head coach at UNLV from 2020-22.

Sawvel prepped for that Rebels team one time as Wyoming's defensive coordinator.

That came during the pandemic-shortened slate and the Cowboys rolled to an easy 45-14 victory inside Allegiant Stadium, limiting Arroyo's offense to just 290 yards of total offense and forcing a pair of turnovers.

What does that all mean?

Not much.

"It's way different than Texas Tech," Sawvel said, referring to last season's opening-day foe. "Like a year ago, we knew Texas Tech was really good on offense and had a lot of people back. We could watch them on video, torching Ole Miss and Oklahoma, and all this, and go, OK, this is what they're going to try to do, you know?

"With Arizona State's situation, with all the new players and new coaching, you know, it does create a challenge. So it's going to be something we're going to have to get up to speed to right away."

Brian Hendricks faced an Arroyo-led offense for two years during his playing days at Wyoming. Now the team's defensive ends coach, one word comes to mind when recalling those days -- speed.

"It was an aggressive offense," Hendricks said. "They're going to find a way to get the ball to their playmakers. Right now, you know, looking at their tape, the guys that they have inherited from the change there, but also the guys they brought in from the portal, they're going to have playmakers. So, I have no doubt in my mind that he's going to try to find his ways to get them the ball and make it really difficult for us on all levels, from the front to the back end."

What else do we know about ASU's offense?

Sam Leavitt early last week was named the starting quarterback. The redshirt freshman appeared in four games at Michigan State last fall, throwing for 139 yards and a pair of touchdowns to go along with two interceptions.

Wyoming's new offensive coordinator, Jay Johnson, is responsible for getting Leavitt to sign on the dotted line to play in East Lansing.

"He's such a competitor," Johnson said. "You know, that's what I really liked about Sam, his competitiveness and then his ability to learn and learn quickly. That was really, really exceptional when he first came in as a young player. So, yeah, he's a good player."

Hendricks agreed, adding he sees similarities between Leavitt and a guy Arroyo once recruited to Laramie -- Austyn Carta-Samuels.

Named the Mountain West's Freshman of the Year in 2009, he threw for more than 3,600 yards and 19 touchdowns during his two seasons at Wyoming. He also added six more scores and 758 yards on the ground.

"He's a fiery dude," Hendricks said of Leavitt. "I can see that competitive spirit, like an Austyn Carta-Samuels. He's a guy that not only can, you know, affect the game with his arm, but with his feet. As a defensive line coach, you're saying, Oh, great. It's not only just quarterback scrambles and extending plays in the pocket, but it's also the designed quarterback-run game. So we've got to be prepared for a little bit of it all."

Cam Skattebo is a returner that is squarely on the radar.

ASU's senior running back was the first player Sawvel mentioned by name during his weekly press conference.

"I think we ought to concentrate there first and foremost, because that guy's really good," he said of the Paul Hornung Award finalist, who rushed for 783 yards and nine touchdowns last season. "So, that's what I would say first."

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Skattebo added 286 receiving yards out of the backfield and also attempted 15 passes, connecting on six, including a touchdown. The former Big Sky Offensive MVP at Sacramento State added eight punts to his 2023 résumé. He averaged 42.3 yards per attempt.

While there are few certainties about what the Cowboys will face in the desert in just eight days, Sawvel did say his team will simply have to do the little things right.

"The No. 1 thing that we talked about with the players is, you'll help yourself if we play really well," he said. "I mean, part of it is tackle well, get off blocks well, get lined up. Do those things, you know? That helps the initial process of trying to figure out how they use their people."

Shae Suiaunoa, Wyoming's middle linebacker, said he will heed his coach's warning. That's the one thing he can control, the senior added.

"You can't judge team based off last year or anything like that, because, you know, you might sink ship if you try to predict that," he said. "Obviously, they're a good team. But I think that, you know, we have a good team, as well."

Kickoff is slated for Aug. 31 at 8:30 p.m. Mountain Time inside Mountain America Stadium. The game will be televised on FS1.

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