ASU football opened fall camp at Verde Dickey Dome in Tempe Saturday morning after inclement weather forced the team to cancel its scheduled scrimmage at Camp Tontozona in Payson.
As a result, the portion of practice viewable by media resembled a typical preseason workout — the main difference being the assortment of new faces that Sun Devil fans are anxious to see in ASU's Sept. 3 opener versus NAU.
Head coach Todd Graham, who was instrumental in restoring the Camp T tradition, said that player safety was the utmost priority, but that the experience is significant for player-coach bonding. He also hoped that some facility upgrades could take place in Payson in the near future.
"I'd like to go up there for two weeks," Graham said. "I love being there, all that extra time that doesn't seem to happen when you're (in Tempe). We love going there, and I would tell you that every player you talk to would tell you the same thing. The reward is the relationship."
Shawn Slocum overseeing open-field tackling drills: pic.twitter.com/gPVZn8D440
— Stefan Modrich (@StefanJModrich) August 6, 2016
In the ongoing quarterback battle, redshirt freshman quarterback Brady White appears to be the frontrunner.
White was under center with the first team offense and redshirt sophomore Manny Wilkins worked with the second team. Wilkins and White worked together on ball security drills, and redshirt freshman Bryce Perkins was paired with freshman Dillon Sterling-Cole to round out the quarterback corps.
Notable standouts in Saturday's session were junior defensive lineman Christian Hill — a transfer from Glendale Community College whom Graham lauded for his character and prior service in the Air Force out of high school — and senior wide receiver Tim White, who wore a Pat Tillman jersey in practice today, the first to do so this season.
"I've got tremendous respect for him as a veteran, and active-duty reserve Air Force," Graham said of Hill. "An extremely high character guy – he's got a lot to learn, but he's a guy who's been an asset to us and his ceiling is high."
White said Graham announced the uniform assignment this morning in front of his teammates, one of the highest honors earned by players in the program.
"(I was) very surprised," White said. "I actually wasn't thinking about it until I heard the news."
White is just the latest in a series of talented junior college studs who have come into the fold under Graham in his tenure. While soft spoken and modest, he has become a media favorite, answering questions with an affirmative "yes sir."
"That's a high standard," Graham said. "He's a guy that I think embodies the character and competitiveness in the classroom and in the community, and we honored him today."
White operated out of the slot with the first team offense, as did junior running back Demario Richard alongside wideouts redshirt sophomore Jalen Harvey and redshirt junior Ellis Jefferson.
"The fundamental improvement at wide receiver is phenomenal," Graham said.
Reach the reporter at smodrich@asu.edu or follow @StefanJModrich on Twitter.
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