Hodges feels a sense of urgency entering his last season in Tempe

Since Zak Hill arrived in Tempe, one particular position group and its development under the creative offensive coordinator has been under scrutiny.

How are the tight ends progressing in Hill’s system?

What will the split between blocking and receiving be for the tight ends moving forward?

Will the tight ends be featured in the passing game to a similar level when Hill oversaw Boise State?

After a full year of adjustment to Hill’s scheme, those questions still remain, and the group understandably didn’t take the leap many were anticipating in a short four-game season. Jayden Daniels struggled to get acclimated with a new, young receiving core, and so a big focus of 2020 became the growth and maturation of those players. Of course, sometimes it was simply easier to put the ball in the hands of Rachaad White and DeaMonte Trayanum and avoid passing altogether.

Tight ends have been an afterthought for some time at Arizona State. Zach Miller was the last productive tight end to be prominently featured in the passing game from 2004-2006, a span in which he accumulated 144 catches for 1,512 yards and 14 touchdowns. He was eventually drafted in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders and enjoyed an eight-year career in the league.

Since then, ASU has not come close to replicating Miller’s production. But with Hill poised to include his tight ends in versatile roles across the formation, that could change. And some of the players agree that the program is on track to reform the identity of the tight end position.

Freshman transfer Jalin Conyers said he thinks this group will “shock some people” this season. Graduate student John Stivers believes there is a “probably a correlation” between the offense’s success and the involvement of the tight ends. Both believe an expansion of the role was in order as they grow increasingly comfortable in their mastery of Hill’s concepts.

Senior Curtis Hodges offered different insight to how the tight ends will perform a year into the installation by Hill. It’s simple for Hodges; the best way to use the tight ends is the one that will stack up the most points and net the most wins for the team.

“I’d say we’ve grown a bit, but for the most part, we’re sticking to what we’ve been running,” Hodges said. “We installed it, and we’re going to make sure we know it like the back of our hand and go over to play on Sept. 2. So our role is kind of the same as last year.”

However, that doesn’t mean tight ends won’t be a factor in the equation. According to Hodges, tight ends are a major asset to the offense, and its responsibilities stretch far past catching the ball and picking up yards.

“We are involved in every play,” Hodges said. “Whether we get the rock or not, we’re going to be blocking for 5 (Jayden Daniels) or we might get the safety to come with us and get 14 (Johnny Wilson) open on a post.”

And that is exactly what Hodges did when ASU traveled to play Arizona last December. For most of the game, Hodges blocked for the team’s running backs and protected Daniels from the Wildcats’ pass rush. His efforts that night contributed to an 81.8% completion rate from Daniels, the best of the sophomore’s collegiate career.

But toward the end of the third quarter, while the Wildcats scrambled to flood the box and stop another rushing attempt from White, Hodges burst up the seam instead of assuming his regular blocking stance. Daniels pulled the play-action handoff away from White, set his feet, and floated a pass to a wide-open Hodges. On the replay, you can vividly see the arrogance from the Arizona safety, who came racing downfield intent on taking down his target, only to realize the ball was still in Daniels’ hand. Hodges was already behind him at that point. It turned out to be a 76-yard mistake that added another seven points to ASU’s lead.

The eventual 70-7 victory served as proof of the explosive potential of Hill’s offense. It also showed how dangerous ignoring ASU’s tight ends could be for opposing defenses. In 2021, Hodges is hungry for more high-scoring production.

“I think that we could put up 45 points a game,” Hodges said. “I think that we can spread the ball around. I think we have a crazy run game with our two running backs. I think we have talent everywhere. So as long as everybody stays healthy, stays together, I think that we could do something special.”

“I mean, everybody already knows the PAC 12 championship is our goal. But I think our offense can really do something special putting up some numbers like that. Just scoring wise, yardage, I think everybody should have a great year.”

One of the players Hodges mentioned to have a big year was Daniels. The senior has noticed the quarterback improve in certain areas of his game, most notably in the speed of his delivery.

“I’d say the biggest thing I’ve seen over the years is his arm strength,” Hodges said. “He’s been able to get that thing out a lot and faster, quicker, and just on the money too. So I think his arm strength has gotten a lot better. Being able to see the scheme of the defense, obviously. He’s just grown as a player and being a leader.”

Hodges enters his second season at the position after playing wide receiver his first three seasons in a limited role. On top of finally feeling comfortable playing the position, Hodges said this fall camp; he reached a greater understanding of the playbook and the mental side of the game. Even despite the change from working with Adam Breneman to Justin Wood, Hodges feels like the group is making progress.

“He's done a great job with details and just assignments and getting us right,” Hodges said on adjustment to Wood’s coaching. “Getting us lined up and making sure that we know we're supposed to do so. I applaud him for that.”

With ASU’s home opener against Southern Utah rapidly approaching, Hodges said the biggest way to adjust to the gameday environment are the daily reps against the Sun Devils’ defense. Members of the offense have acknowledged that the cohesion of talent and leadership on the other side of the ball makes practice a challenge every day. Hodges himself had two consecutive passes batted away from him during the first week of fall camp.

“We’re getting looks from our defense,” Hodges explained. “So we’ll see what they were running, the blitzes they were bringing, how our defense plays us with their little sugar blitzes and stuff like that.”

Most of all, Hodges is excited for fans to be back in Sun Devil Stadium and have a true football atmosphere again. After fans were held out of Pac-12 stadiums last season due to COVID-19 health and safety concerns, Hodges aims to appreciate the ASU faithful in a way he hasn’t before.

“I’m gonna be energized to run out there and I'm not gonna take it for granted,” Hodges said. “I'm going to absorb everything and look up. It's gonna be a special moment, for sure.”

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