Joey Ramos ready for leadership role, fulfilling expectations

Offensive lineman Joey Ramos undoubtedly knows what kind of expectations will be placed on him and the offensive line, and that is a burden that he’s embracing. Ramos is taking on a leadership role in 2023 for the Sun Devils’ front five, and with so many new pieces being brought in both from the transfer portal and incoming freshmen, Ramos understands his duties as the veteran in the group. A valley native who prepped at Deer Valley High School, the lineman has high expectations for himself and his teammates.

Asked on how day one went, Ramos said they “moved a little bit slower than I would like, but we got some improvement to make tomorrow. Overall, I think for being a bunch of new guys, I think the new guys were doing a solid job and doing the best they could.”

Ramos went on to say it’s “awesome” and “they have great depth now.” Ramos says he believes “this is the best depth” the program has had in a long time. He isn’t alone in this belief, as offensive coordinator Beau Baldwin echoed this just shy of a week ago and said he believes the line is “two-deep” when it comes to starting caliber players.

It’s a new staff from top to bottom for Arizona State to go along with so many new players. Ramos had high praise for his unit’s positional coach, Saga Tuitele, and says “he really dives into the coaching aspect with each individual person” and will make it make sense for his players individually. Ramos says coach Tuitele understands that his players learn differently amongst each other and still takes the time to coach them up.

Last season was all but a lot one for Ramos, who suffered a season-ending ankle injury in the opening game against NAU. Ramos says he “feels as healthy and strong and has to work on endurance a little bit.” Ramos said that come day three or four he believes he’ll be “back to full speed.” At the moment, Ramos says he’s balancing between 310 to 315 pounds and was a full participant in practices.

Back in the spring, Ramos was back in action and had some work with special teams, a unit he was very familiar with during his time at Iowa State prior to transferring to ASU. Ramos said he believes he “did a phenomenal job” and showed he “can be a guy you can rely on.” Ramos noted that not only himself but the new faces to the program got to experience a variety of roles that they may not prior to arriving in Tempe. Ramos said coach Saga “had people bouncing around to different positions and force people to learn to play next to people that they didn’t think they’d play next to.

For a coaching staff that has emphasized having versatile players on both sides of the ball, that checks out.

But it wasn’t just work in the spring. Ramos and the offensive linemen continued to work throughout the summer to ensure they were prepared to go for training camp. Ramos specifically said the guys on the line worked on their footwork, adding that “everything starts on the o-line with your footwork; if you got fast feet, then you got fast hands, and then everything falls into line after that.” Ramos also noted the unit focused on their striking “with distance, length, and timing.”

Now that training camp is here, Ramos says the unit needs to be “five (players) as one.” Ramos says if the guys can play together as a unit, then camp will be smooth and will result in a better season as well. There will be added emphasis on the offensive line play as well when you consider the uncertainty of the quarterback position. Arizona State will need its guys out front to be at their absolute best, and Ramos certainly understands and believes that to be the case.

Ramos also knows it’s going to be a very different offense than what the team saw a year ago. Herm Edwards is no longer the head coach, and now you have a young offensive mind in Kenny Dillingham calling the shots. As far as transitions go, it won’t be an easy one.

Dillingham runs a high-tempo offense that gets the ball out fast. This will put some extra pressure on the line to play at peak performance to make sure the offense can roll. Without that protection even in a fast-paced attack, it could fall through.

Even still, Ramos is a fan of the new look offense. In fact, Ramos actually says he loves it and added, “as an offense, we love wearing down defenders. The quicker we can take their stamina and their will to play the game, the more successful we’ll be and the more dominant we’ll be.”

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