Granted, the pandemic caused many other prospects aside from Jacob Newell to be underrecruited in this last recruiting class. Yet, ASU’s incoming freshman tight end from Springfield, Ore., in some regards, has been used to being overlooked. With his work ethic and natural talents on display this last year, he has now perhaps shed the under-the-radar tag. The Thurston High School two-sport athlete shares with us his football journey, what attracted a rare Arizona State player from Oregon to land in Tempe, and his aspirations for the 2022 season.
“I grew up a huge Oregon Ducks fan. My family always took me to the tailgates, and I always had a ball in my hand in the parking lot, throwing around with my dad and my mom and playing 500. So I started really young; I feel like as soon as I was born, they probably gave me some toy football to play with. I started playing organized football in first or second grade. In Pop Warner, I played running back. I loved Marshawn Lynch from the Seahawks, so I wore no. 24. When they gave me the ball, I’d just run through people; it was always a fun time.
“In seventh grade, I took a year off of football to pursue basketball. But then, in eighth grade, I got back into football. And ever since freshman year, I knew that I could play football at the collegiate level. I played both sports in high school and decided not to graduate early (and come to ASU) because I wanted to play my senior year of basketball. Yeah, it can make things harder because I didn’t’ come there early, but I had to look at my whole life and say, ‘I want to finish my senior year with my guys playing a sport that I love.’ I owe a lot of my football game to my basketball game…developing skills like going up and getting the ball, boxing out to get the ball using your base and your feet, and developing your balance. It was actually a hard decision not to graduate early, but I love basketball, I owe a lot to that game as well, and I have no regrets. A lot of coaches love multiple sport athletes. My basketball coaches said, ‘If you play that physical on the court and we will have you.’ Playing both sports was really good for conditioning, especially after football season. I never got recruited for basketball because schools knew I was all about playing football. And if I wanted to go to basketball, I probably would have gotten some summer showcases, and in the summer, I was only busy with football.
“When it comes to recruiting in the Northwest, it’s definitely noticeable that California and others states get more attention. The players here know that we’re all dogs; we all know that we’re slept on and that we go unnoticed. But when we do go out there (to out-of-state football camps), we make the most of it. I remember going to all of these camps, and people look at me like, ‘Who is this kid?’ and they ask that just because where I’m from, I know I have to prove myself every time I go out there.
“I’m not one for excuses at all, but I know COVID definitely made it harder with my recruiting, making it a shorter season. But at the same time, man, I’m so blessed. And I’m so thankful for the opportunities that I’ve been provided with. There’s always that chip on your shoulder, knowing you should have gotten more offers. But I got no complaints with how things worked out; it’s all good.
“Arizona was the only other power five offer I received. After my senior year, other power five started talking to me, but I wanted to commit to Arizona State earlier. I remember the first time I spoke to Arizona State; it was a phone call with Coach Wood (tight ends coach Juston Wood). He’s a Portland guy, super funny, and we hit it off right off the bat. When I started talking to Arizona State, I was already. With the COVID year and with so many unguarantees, I thought I’d lock a spot in with Nevada. And no disrespect to Nevada, but as soon as more power five schools came in, I did start talking to them. Arizona State has always been a dream school of mine. I was a huge N’Keal Harry fan, and I always watched his highlights. I’m a big Adidas guy too. During the recruiting process, I was clicking with the coaches, I loved all the people I met there, seeing the facilities on the visit and everything, and I knew that was the spot for me.
“I got the ASU offer right before my visit there, and I committed right after that visit. Looking back at the visit, I loved their training program and how detailed oriented they are in getting you in the best shape that they can. Again, the coaches totally stood out to me. I love this game so much, and I know that they put their all in the game. The passion that they have for the game really got me going. Coach Wood was a huge part of my decision. I love how he never sugarcoated anything. He always told me how it was. I know he will be hard on me as a coach, which is what I love. I want someone that will push me to my limits and will expect the most out of me. That’s all I can really ask for in a coach.
“Coach Wood thinks that I can bring a little bit of everything. I love to catch the ball, and yards after the catch is a huge part of my game. I don’t want to go down right after I catch the ball. But blocking and playing both spots well, you have to be able to do multiple things as a tight end and be smart about it. He really liked that about me that I’m not afraid to mix it up, seeing me out there hitting people.
In this offense, I know the offensive coordinator loves using the tight ends, so that gets me going. Coach Wood reassured me that the tight ends will still be a big part of the passing game, and I saw that in spring practice and how much emphasis they put into technique. That really fascinates me, and I just love to learn more and take it all in. We’re still gonna run the run the rock and do all of that, but this tight end room is gonna get a lot of attention this coming year.
“I keep in touch the most with (current ASU right end) Jalin Conyers. He was my host during the visit and a guy I talked to a lot after I committed. I’ve talked a lot to Case Hatch too. Jalin was super friendly the minute I got there for my visit. What really got me going when we were hanging out was when he said, ‘Hey man, you and I are gonna run this town.’ It was cool that he didn’t know me that well; I’m not even on the team yet, and he still had all this confidence in me. That solidified ASU with me even more because we clicked right off the bat.
“The Polynesian Bowl was a great experience for me. I guess I was still a little under the radar even though I signed with ASU. Some of the coaches and players still didn’t know my name, and that kind of ticked me off. So in practice, I just kept balling. And when that happened, they kept on saying, ‘Hey, come here, come here.’ So I was like, ‘Hey, my name is Jake Newell, just so you know.’ And after that, I kept on earning my respect. I definitely came into hat experience with a little chip on my shoulder. But that was one of the most fun weeks I’ve ever had in my life. I had fun being there in Hawaii, and it relaxed me after practice, but I definitely came in that week with a business mindset. I know I’m going against those top guys, and it’s always fun because it’s great competition.
“The off the filed stuff (NCAA investigation) was definitely a big thing that was discussed during my recruiting process. I was getting a lot of questions about that from family and friends, and even coaches from other schools were asking me about that and using that as negative recruiting against ASU. I just ignored it and let them do their thing because I knew that my decision to come to ASU was final. I talked to Herm Edwards, and I talked to Coach Wood and everyone, and they were very adamant that they were staying on the staff. And honestly, those two coaches were the two that really clicked with me the most and who really solidified it the most for me, so I wasn’t too worried about it as long as I got to play football.
“The last three months, I’ve been working out with my own trainer, working on speed and gaining weight. Right now, I’m at a solid 245 lbs. feeling really fast and feeling really good. (Strength) Coach Joe (Connolly) gave us guidelines on what freshmen should learn about and all that stuff, so that’s how I’ve been training. I talk a lot to Bennett Meredith, the freshman quarterback who’s already there, and he tells me what I can expect once I get there. We are all in our 2022 class group chat, and they told me how much they love the food there, and that’s big for me because I love to eat (laughs). And we talk a lot of football too and about all the damage we’re gonna do these next few years.
“I’m going to come to ASU with the same mindset that I always had. I’m gonna do everything I need to do to prove myself. I would love to start right away, but obviously, the coaches have decisions to make. I know I can do many things with the rock, and I know my tight end teammates can do the same. I would love it if I could go on special teams, knowing I can do what they ask of me there. If I plan to play this year, I know I have to prove myself right away, but if it comes to other people playing and I have to do something else, that’s okay. Improving my blocking and learning the plays right away that’s always a big thing. I know that will come, and it’s kind of cool starting all over in your new freshman year. It’s another four years of your life spent in football learning, and I look forward to that.”
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