In a decision that has been brewing for weeks now, and despite not playing in his team’s Las Vegas Bowl contest versus Wisconsin, ASU center Dohnovan West released a public statement saying that he will enter the NFL Draft.
The three-year starter is the third offensive lineman starter not returning in 2022 and joins both left tackle Kellen Diesch and right guard Henry Hattis who exhausted their eligibility following last season. Diesch has been invited to the NFL combine. It’s unclear at this juncture whether Hattis will train himself for the NFL draft.
West, who began his ASU career lining up at center, did play the majority of that season at left guard. He was one of less than 20 true freshmen in the FBS to start at offensive line in the 2019 season opener and started every game on the season. In that season, West had the 24th-best impact run block percentage among right guards in the country with a 13.0 percent positive impact – nearly three points higher than the national average. It was the eighth-highest mark among any offensive guard in the Pac-12 on the season. The lineman also earned a Pac-12 All-Conference Honorable Mention at the end of that year.
Prior to the 2020 season, West was named to a prestigious Outland Trophy award watch list, and following ASU’s 70-7 win at Arizona, the Sun Devils’ starting center was named Pac-12 Offensive Lineman of the Week.
In 2021 he started 12 games for the Sun Devils, earning another Pac-12 Offensive Lineman of the Week honors following ASU’s 35-30 road win at Washington, a contest where the Sun Devils rushed for 286 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. He ended the year being named to second-team All-Pac-12 team.
A thumb surgery at the end of the regular season prevented him from playing in his team’s postseason game and did cast some doubt on whether he would forgo his two remaining eligibility years in Tempe. His replacement in that contest, sophomore Jarrett Bell, has already announced that he expected to retire from the game so he can be part of his family’s Southern California trucking company.
Redshirt freshman Ben Scott, who played most of the 2021 season at right tackle, did receive some bowl practice reps at center next season and presumably is the prime candidate to replace West as the starting center. Freshmen Ben Bray and Ezra Dotson-Oyetade figure to provide competition to Scott. It’s certainly not of the question that Arizona State will seek out a center in the transfer portal.
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