The addition of Arizona State’s wide receiver coach Ra’Shaad Samples doesn’t only come with NFL credibility, coaching running backs on the Los Angeles Rams but also his ties to the Lone Star State. One of those connections is extremely formidable since his father and Duncanville High School head coach Reginald Samples won a Texas State Class 6A Division I championship last December. This has naturally opened a significant pipeline to a talented Panthers squad, and one of his standouts, four-star running back Caden Durham, was greatly impressed by his first visit to ASU.
“It was an amazing visit,” Durham said. “We got to tour the facilities, took pictures on the roof of the facility, and I was really impressed with the city itself. It’s beautiful and different from back home. I talked to (head) coach Dillingham who talked to me about the offense they ran there and how he runs the program. (Running backs) Coach Aguano said if he came there, he would make me a better running back than I already am.
“I like their offense because they open big holes for their running backs. With the numbers he (Dillingham) had at Oregon, you know he’s doing something right. I talked to one of the players there, and he told me it’s a great program and that if you come there and do your job, everything will be cool.”
In his junior campaign with the Panthers, Durham posted 1,960 rushing yards with an average of 9.3 per carry, scoring 36 touchdowns. Last month he recorded a 100-meter time of 10.44, has a personal best of 21.94 in the 200 meters, and his abilities on the track have also elicited several scholarship offers, including ASU, in that sport as well.
"I'm a very patient and balanced running back," Durham described, "I'm very elusive and explosive too. My vision is something I really improved on in my junior year. I want to improve on my elusiveness in my senior year."
Durham's connection with the Samples family is naturally meaningful for this high priority Sun Devil prospect. The four-star running back already knows what impact his high school head coach has had on him and therefore values the relationship his recruiting coach at ASU has been able to establish.
"Coach (Ra'Shaad) Samples is always gonna keep it real with you and won't change up because he's your recruiting coach," Durham commented. "He will always keep it 100 with you regardless of the situation. I know that even if I commit to another school, I can always call him up and ask for his advice. That's why I like him a lot.
"Seeing what his dad did for me and my team at Duncanville, that a huge 'W.' My team trusted what the coaches told us, and that's why we won state. He's also someone that can always guide me if I have a question. If you know how your head coach is, then you also know how he raised his son. It will never be fake love when I talk to them."
Durham doesn't have a target date for his commitment but is expected to ink his name to a Letter of Intent in the December signing period.
"When I'm gonna sign with a school, I want to see how the coaches co-exist with their players," Durham said. "I want to see how they game plan their offense and how well they run the ball. I just want to see how the whole offense operates and what kind of city the school is located in. If I'm gonna be somewhere for three or four years, I want to see what the city is like too."
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