Chase Lucas stood just a few hundred feet away from where his teammate announced his decision just one week earlier.
On Monday, in the middle of the school's courtyard, Lucas followed his footsteps.
Lucas, a 4-star athlete prospect out of Chandler High School (Chandler, Arizona), announced Monday that he will join 5-star wide receiver and teammate N'Keal Harry and commit to ASU football.
The 6-foot, 170-pound prospect chose the Sun Devils as one of 15 reported offers and ASU beating out Washington and UCLA. He is the 122nd-best player in the country and third-ranked player in the state according to Rivals.com.
Lucas said he knew what his college decision would be after visiting Washington in September.
"Loyalty is a big thing to me," Lucas said. "ASU offered me as a sophomore after my sixth game, and I already knew what I wanted to do. I kept trying to see if I wanted to do something more, but I feel like home is best for me and I feel like I need to be here and do something great."
Lucas said that the opportunity to play with Harry was a large factor in his decision.
"With N'Keal next year and Bryce (Perkins) and hopefully Byron (Murphy), it's just going to be crazy," Lucas said. "We're going to do what we need to do to get to that (national championship)."
Primarily used as a running back for much of his high school career, Lucas is expected to play either wide receiver or defensive back at the next level. Lucas said coach Todd Graham and defensive backs coach Chris Ball told him he'd play primarily free safety, with an opportunity to earn reps as a slot receiver.
ASU's next in-state target will be Saguaro High School (Scottsdale, Arizona) defensive back Byron Murphy, who is currently a 4-star prospect and the No. 2 prospect in the state according to Rivals.com.
"I'm trying to get BJ, but at the end of the day I just want him to go wherever he feels like he could shine the most and get to the next level," Harry said. "But he knows he should he should throw them 'Forks Up.'"
Lucas has appeared in just five games this season after suffering a sprained medial collateral ligament (MCL) in his team's second game of the season against national No. 1 Bishop Gorman High School (Las Vegas, Nevada). He has ran for 201 yards and one touchdown this season, catching 15 passes for 139 more yards.
During his junior season, Lucas helped to lead Chandler to its first state championship in 65 years behind 1,126 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns while also catching 28 passes for 368 yards and three touchdowns.
Lucas and Harry are both former teammates of current ASU freshman quarterback Bryce Perkins, who was a 3-star prospect from the class of 2015. Chandler is currently the 17th-best team in the country according the the MaxPreps/CBS "XCellent 25" Poll and the MaxPreps computer poll.
Chandler coach Shaun Aguano said he's glad to see some of his top players stay in state.
"I can see Bryce Perkins and I can see N'Keal and I can see Chase 10 minutes down the road," Aguano said. "It's heartwarming that I can spend the time with their family and watch all their games as well."
Aguano said Lucas' energy will be among his biggest contributions to the program.
"He likes the limelight a little bit, and he's going to make some spectacular plays," Aguano said. "Chase is a very social guy. He's a leader and everybody likes to follow him because he's a 'rah-rah' guy and of course he makes big plays."
Related Links:
ASU football trying to reverse bad luck in close games to close out season
ASU vs. Washington State: By the numbers
Reach the reporter at fardaya@asu.edu or follow @fardaya15 on Twitter.
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