ASU Football notebook: Coaches mix, match to find right D-line combo

CAMP TONTOZONA - Thin at defensive end, Arizona State is trying to find its most effective combination through mixing and matching.

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On Tuesday, first-team right end Dexter Davis moved to the left side, and junior-college transfer Paul Unga was on the right. Kellen Mills, who manned left end for two practices after Luis Vazquez sprained his ankle, did not get on the field during 11-on-11 work.

“We’re just trying to find the right combination,” Erickson said. “We’ve got some injuries, and we’re forced to move some people around to find what our best lineup is. We need to find out who is going to go with Dexter.”

Unga, a 6-foot-3, 255-pounder who came to Arizona State in June from Mount San Antonio College in Walnut, Calif., can play end or tackle. However, he said that he prefers coming off the edge.

“I’m a lot faster than everyone thinks,” said Unga, who had 27 tackles for loss and 10 sacks in two junior-college seasons. “At my size, a lot of people think of me as a bull rusher instead of a guy who can come around the edge. I like to come around the tackles. Pass rush is my strength.”

The second-team ends on Tuesday were James Brooks, a true freshman, and Zach Brown, a walk-on redshirt freshman.

THIRD WATCH

Erickson hopes to have his third-string quarterback determined by the end of the week. A pair of true freshmen, Chasen Stangel and Samson Szakacsy, are vying for the assignment, and the front-runner has changed often.

“It depends on the day,” Erickson said. “In the next couple of weeks, we need to find out who that third guy is. He’ll travel with us and play in an emergency. So, we need to get him ready to go.”

The Sun Devils have three more workouts this week: the Camp Tontozona finale today, a Thursday practice in Tempe and Friday’s intrasquad scrimmage at Sun Devil Stadium.

INJURY REPORT

For a change, Arizona State had no significant injuries during practice. Receiver Michael Jones, who has had nagging back pain since baseball season, took part on Tuesday but aggravates the injury often, Erickson said.

“We’ve got to get him ready to go, and if that means we have to keep him out of a couple practices, we will,” Erickson said. “But once we get back to regular one-a-day practices, he’ll heal a lot better.”

The Sun Devils do not practice on Saturday. After a workout on Sunday, they are off Monday, the first day of classes.

BOOT CAMP

It wouldn’t be an Arizona State practice without the kickers being watched closely.

On Tuesday, Zach Richards made all four tries — from 37, 42, 47 and 52 yards — while Thomas Weber missed only from 52.