CAMP TONTOZONA, Ariz. -- ASU football entered Thursday's practice knowing one thing — it still has no idea who will line up at each of the linebacker spots for their Sept. 5 opener against Texas A&M.
Things didn't get any easier Thursday, as several linebackers shone in an extended 11-on-11 session.
One player that head coach Todd Graham made note of was sophomore Christian Sam, who excelled in working with the second team at the "Sam" linebacker spot for most of the morning practice.
"I think Christian Sam's had his best day yet," Graham said. "Showed emotion. Played with emotion."
Graham said Sam has always had the physical ability, but something mentally has clicked in his play in recent days.
"His athleticism, his power you see, just looks completely different," Graham said. "He's very explosive, but I just want him to turn it loose and not play cautious and today he really made a giant step in that. He's got all the tools."
Redshirt sophomore Marcus Ball, who has been hampered by nagging injuries for most of his time at ASU and moved from safety to linebacker this offseason, worked well with the first-team defense at the "Spur" linebacker spot, Graham said.
Much of the questions circulating around the linebacker group has come from the pass-rushing "Devilbacker" position, as players such as sophomore Kalen Ballage, redshirt junior Edmond Boateng, redshirt sophomore Chans Cox, freshman JoJo Wicker, freshman Jay Jay Wilson, redshirt freshman Ismael Murphy-Richardson and sophomore DJ Calhoun have all seen time.
Graham said Thursday's session may have helped narrow it down.
"When JoJo (Wicker) is in there it's a four-man (defensive line front)," he said. "I've tried hard to do the (three-man set). We'll have a package where we'll have DJ (Calhoun), Christian (Sam), Salamo (Fiso) and Antonio (Longino), those four guys on the field so we're working on that a little bit. I'm just trying to watch and adapt to them."
Depth Chart:
First-team offense snaps
QB: Mike Bercovici/Bryce Perkins
RB: Demario Richard/Kalen Ballage/De'Chavon "Gump" Hayes
WR: D.J. Foster/Devin Lucien/Ellis Jefferson/Tim White/Gary Chambers
TE: Kody Kohl
LT: Evan Goodman
LG: Christian Westerman
C: Nick Kelly
RG: Vi Teofilo/Stephon McCray
RT: Billy McGehee
First-team defense snaps
DL: Tashon Smallwood/Emanuel Dayries, Ami Latu, Demetrius Cherry
"Devilbacker": JoJo Wicker/Jay Jay Wilson/DJ Calhoun/Kalen Ballage
"Will" linebacker: DJ Calhoun/Antonio Longino
"Sam" linebacker: Salamo Fiso
"Spur" linebacker: Marcus Ball
Boundary corner: Lloyd Carrington
Field corner: Kweishi Brown
Bandit safety: Jordan Simone/James Johnson
Field safety: Armand Perry
Second-team offense snaps
QB: Bryce Perkins/Manny Wilkins/Brady White
RB: Nick Ralston/"Gump" Hayes/Jacom Brimhall/Jason Lewis
WR: Tyler Whiley/Jalen Harvey/Ellis Jefferson/Gary Chambers
TE: Raymond Epps/Tommy Hudson
OL: Steven Miller/Sam Jones/Devin Goodman/Stephon McCray/Quinn Bailey/Cade Cote
Second-team defense snaps
DL: Renell Wren/Edmond Boateng/Emanuel Dayries/A.J. Latu
"Devilbacker": Chans Cox/Ismael Murphy-Richardson/JoJo Wicker
"Will" linebacker: Antonio Longino
"Spur" linebacker: Laiu Moeakiola/DeAndre Scott
"Sam" linebacker: Christian Sam
Boundary corner: Solomon Means
Field corner: Kareem Orr/Ronald Lewis
Bandit safety: James Johnson/Das Tautalatasi
Field safety: Chad Adams
Additional Notes:
- ASU returned to Camp Tontozona after practicing at Rumsey Park in nearby Payson, Ariz. on Wednesday.
- "PT42" jerseys: redshirt senior safety Jordan Simone, redshirt senior cornerback Lloyd Carrington, redshirt sophomore safety James Johnson and redshirt senior linebacker Antonio Longino
- "Flame" helmets: Simone, Carrington, Johnson, Longino, redshirt senior quarterback Mike Bercovici, senior center Nick Kelly, sophomore running back Demario Richard, sophomore running back/linebacker Kalen Ballage, redshirts senior guard Christian Westerman, redshirt junior tight end Kody Kohl, senior wide receiver D.J. Foster, sophomore defensive lineman Tashon Smallwood, senior cornerback Kweishi Brown, sophomore safety Armand Perry, sophomore defensive back DeAndre Scott, redshirt sophomore safety Marcus Ball, sophomore linebacker DJ Calhoun, redshirt junior linebacker Laiu Moeakiola and junior kicker Zane Gonzalez.
- Green non-contact jerseys: junior wide receiver Cam Smith, redshirt junior tight end Dan Vear, redshirt junior wide receiver Fred Gammage, redshirt sophomore tight end Grant Martinez and freshman offensive lineman Dillon Faamatau.
- Limited: redshirt senior guard Vi Teofilo, freshman wide receiver Terrell Chatman and redshirt sophomore tight end Raymond Epps.
- Offensive play of the day: Bercovici audibles at the line of scrimmage in 11-on-11 play, finds redshirt junior wide receiver Tim White on a curl, who goes in untouched for the score.
- Defensive play of the day: During 11-on-11 drills, Longino burst through the gap to hit sophomore running back Jacom Brimhall and lay him flat on his back for a five-yard loss.
Reach the reporter at fardaya@asu.edu or follow @fardaya15 on Twitter.
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