ASU football's Saturday road conference opener versus No. 7 UCLA will be a homecoming of sorts for current ASU and former UCLA wide receiver Devin Lucien.
For Paul and Bryce Perkins, it will be a brief family reunion.
The Sun Devil defense's biggest focus will likely be on Paul, the UCLA redshirt junior running back and local product with more than one tie to the ASU program.
Bryce is a freshman backup quarterback at ASU.
The father of the two boys, Bruce Perkins, is a former ASU and NFL running back who ran for 751 yards and four touchdowns in the maroon and gold.
Both Paul and Bryce are Chandler High School alumni, with each putting their own stamp on the program.
In Paul's case, it was a viral video against Mesquite High School that put him, as well as the school, on the map. Paul took the handoff and earned a solid gain before flipping against an oncoming tackler in a cartwheel-like motion, landing on his feet and going the rest of the way for the score.
Paul ran for 1,297 yards and 20 touchdowns during his senior season at Chandler, garnering a three-star ranking from Rivals.com and choosing UCLA. ASU did not offer.
Bryce, on the other hand, led his team to their first win over rivals Hamilton in 2013, then followed that performance up by setting the Arizona high school record for completion percentage and passing touchdowns en route to leading the Wolves to their first state championship since 1949.
Now, the two brothers face off on opposite sides for the first time.
"It's going to be a different experience," Bryce said. "Growing up, I always rooted for him and in high school my freshman year was the last year we were together. Coming in this week knowing my parents are going to have to choose, it's a different feeling. It's weird, but it's going to be fun competing against him."
Bryce said the communication between the two brothers has gone quiet in anticipation of game week.
"I shut him off for this week," Bryce said. "I treat him like an opponent, so I just try not to talk to him."
Paul is in the midst of a Heisman-caliber start to his season, rushing for 514 yards and six touchdowns through his first four games.
Bryce said there's one key to stopping his older brother — tackling.
"Come ready to hit him," he said. "He's a hard runner, so you've got to hit him."
Paul Perkins' ability as a runner should present challenges to the ASU defense. Defensive coordinator Keith Patterson said that one of the biggest challenges to facing him will be how difficult he is to bring down.
"He has great balance and he has great vision," Patterson said. "He's a very patient runner. He just kind of takes what the defense gives him, and is very patient on the inside zone. You can just tell he's very strong and you've got to tackle him. He makes you tackle him every down, and a lot of time in 1-on-1 situations he's going to make you miss."
ASU head coach Todd Graham said during his Monday press conference that Paul has been working at a "MVP caliber."
"There's not anybody that I would rank in front of him," Graham said.
Practice Notes:
- Today's stretch song: "March Madness" by Future.
- Wednesday's team tempo session was a standard two-minute drill.
Redshirt junior Gump Hayes lined up at cornerback for the second straight day of practice, this time with the first team.
He made the play of the day during the session open to the media, picking off a poor pass by redshirt senior quarterback Mike Bercovici in the corner of the end zone.
- Redshirt senior cornerback Lloyd Carrington appeared to be a full participant at Wednesday's practice after being limited Tuesday.
Reach the reporter at fardaya@asu.edu or follow @fardaya15 on Twitter.
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