Arizona State has welcomed a large number of transfers as part of their roster overhaul this offseason and few of them arrived from the FCS level. One player that has seen a good deal on the two-deep in the defensive backfield is Demetries Ford, otherwise known as ‘Dee.’
Ford started his college career at Youngstown State. There he appeared in 18 games over two seasons where he did not have any notable stats but played against some formidable competition during his time there. After two years at Youngstown, Ford decided to take another step in his career by transferring to Austin Peay, another FCS school located in Clarksville, Tennessee. Ford found great success there, highlighted by last season when he earned 2022 AP Third Team FCS All-American honors and was voted ASUN Defensive Player of the Week.
In 2022 Ford was also the third highest-graded FCS corner by Pro Football Focus with a 90.3 grade as the quarterbacks he faced during that campaign had only a 43.5 completion percentage throwing to the wide receivers he covered. The latter statistic ranks him seventh among all FCS defensive backs.
The 5-8 180-pounder decided to take another major step forward in his career, committing to a Power Five school in ASU. Not only did he want to face greater competition and enjoy a higher level of resources and overall exposure, but he also wanted to prove to himself and others that he did belong at that level.
“You want to get out there and show your skills,” Ford said. “You want to prove not only to yourself but to the doubters that you can do what you say you can. Coming off the year I had last year, quite a powerful year at the FCS level, I was just wanting to build off that and show people that it wasn't a fluke that I can come out there and compete with the best of the best in the Pac-12 versus the air raid offenses”.
The differences Ford expected to see between a Power Five program and an FCS one revealed themselves quickly and the increased pace of play may have been the most notable one on the field. And it’s an element that Ford has noticed not only around the defensive backs but also around the entire team.
“Just the commitment level from my teammates,” Ford expressed. “The commitment level from the coaches everyone is going that extra step harder than at the FCS level. You might have five or six (good) players on each team but here everyone is trying to achieve that common goal of just getting better each and every day”.
Having to continuously elevate your performance and stay consistent with your level of play is a necessity, not a luxury. The call to action is much greater as players as you are not playing anymore to get to the FBS level, but now you’re trying to impress NFL scouts who have already attended ASU practices this week and will continue to be regulars all year. This is just another incentive to put your best foot forward and ensure you’re at your best so you can still get noticed by those talent evaluators, even if they came to the practice field looking at someone else.
And showing out is part of the plan for Ford as he said he has a 10 out of 10 confidence in himself and relishing in the opportunity to carve himself a niche in the rotation as well as facing a stout unit of wide receivers every day, such as bona fide NFL prospect Elijhah Badger.
“Improving on last year, improving on what I did, improving on the person that I know that I am,” Ford commented, “improving on the football player that I know that I am… just coming out here and showcasing my skills against these guys who have been out here who maybe have NFL scouts looking at them. Just coming out here and showing that I can play with the best of them, that's it, being a dawg every day”.
Ford enjoyed interacting with ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham during the recruiting process and said that Dillingham is someone who you could see as a friend you happen to bump into walking down the hall and is someone who is very energetic, which is contagious to his players. Even Dillingham’s offensive prowess was another aspect that was appealing to Ford when he considered joining the Sun Devils.
“He's a very great offensive coordinator,” Ford commented. “Just hearing how he attacked defenses, knowing that we know how we're getting attacked (in practice). He'll give us his perspective, and it's a great thing because now we know what the offense is thinking, and we're not just out there; we know what they're trying to do, what spaces they're trying to create, so it's really good that he's on the offensive side because we get his outlook on everything”.
Ford naturally sees himself fitting well into a relatively deep defensive back group yet it will be difficult to take reps from teammates such as Ed Woods, Macen Williams, and Jordan Clark. Yet that challenge won’t affect Ford, as this process will always go hand in hand as you strive to play at a higher level.
“We're all competitive,” Ford emphasized. “We all want to get better, and really since day one, we all said that there was going to be no hating. Everyone's coming out to achieve one goal because, at the end of the day, we all have the same dreams. Everybody coming out every day just getting better, putting the work in, and everyone building off each other and caring for each other, providing that ‘umph’ for each other so we can get through these long camp days”.
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