ASU's Starting safety returns from injury ahead of schedule

CAMP TONTOZONA • Last week, Troy Nolan spent Arizona State practices standing on the sideline, his left arm in a sling, holding up formation cards for the defense.

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He quickly realized this was a role that was unacceptable, so Nolan ditched the sling — which he had worn for two days after suffering a shoulder sprain — and vowed to get back on the field.

“I’m here to make plays,” the junior strong safety said. “That’s why they brought me here. I’m going to come in here and do things. I’ve already had an injury set me back a year, and that’s enough.”

Nolan, who redshirted last season due to a knee injury, was expected to miss two to three weeks after getting hurt in practice on Aug. 7. However, he moved his return schedule up, taking part in recent workouts while wearing an orange (noncontact) jersey.

ASU coach Dennis Erickson said Nolan should resume full participation next week.

“I could play him in the scrimmage (on Friday night), but there is no big reason to,” Erickson said. “He’s willed himself back.”

The tenacity that enabled Nolan to bat down the shoulder injury fits the mold of the player who won a starting job during spring drills by displaying aggressiveness and instinct.

The 6-foot-2, 204-pounder made his emergence a year late. He transferred from College of the Canyons in Santa Clara, Calif., in time for spring ball in 2006, but in the third practice, he injured his knee while covering receiver Nate Kimbrough during a drill.

When fall came, the knee pain nagged him, and Nolan was shut down a few weeks into the season. He later underwent arthroscopic surgery.

“It was frustrating,” Nolan said. “I had an idea going into camp that my knee was going to be fine. When I went back to camp and it started swelling up on me, that was disappointing.

“It was tough being off of football for a whole year, but I had to suck it up and be patient.”

Finally healthy, Nolan played with something to prove during the spring. What aided his emergence was new defensive coordinator Craig Bray’s simplified scheme, which is tailored to Nolan’s abilities.

“Nobody had seen me play (at ASU) yet,” Nolan said. “The coaches told me that they weren’t sure about me, and when they saw what I could do, they were really excited.”

Nolan single-handedly helped the Sun Devils’ depth at other positions, as Erickson became comfortable moving Ryan McFoy to linebacker and Jeremy Payton to cornerback. (Payton returned to safety after Nolan’s shoulder injury.)

A synergy with free safety Josh Barrett has had to be built, a task in which Nolan had tough shoes to fill. His predecessor, Zach Catanese, had good teamwork with Barrett on the field, partly because the two were best friends off of it.

“We’ve got a great relationship,” Nolan said. “It’s been a smooth process. We’re both smart players, so we flowed and connected well. It’s a good tandem on the field.”

Barrett said he and Nolan have developed into “the two most cohesive” players on the defense.

“It’s hard to tell in camp,” Barrett said, “but I’m feeling really good about how (the safeties) will play this year. Troy is doing big things, and there is a lot of carryover (from day to day).”

His development as a playmaker has won Nolan respect among ASU players and coaches. That admiration has increased in the wake of his swift comeback.

“You can say that getting ahead of schedule with injuries has a lot to do with who is injured,” Erickson said. “It’s simple — guys who want to come back fast come back faster than those that don’t. That’s the nature of the game.

“Troy’s out there running around, and he wants to play. And he will.”

Arizona State’s starting safeties are set: Josh Barrett at free safety and Troy Nolan at strong safety. Barrett was the Sun Devils’ most outstanding defensive player in 2006, and some observers feel he could garner some national attention this season.

During Camp Tontozona, the Sun Devils attempted to develop depth. Angelo Fobbs-Valentino got most of the first-team repetitions in Nolan’s brief absence (shoulder injury), and Jeremy Payton — who will be the nickelback — Rodney Cox and Brett Nenaber are options.

Freshman Colin Parker, son of former ASU and NFL defensive back Anthony Parker, is rehabilitating from a knee injury and will likely redshirt.