Nearly three months after the Sun Devils had a non-transfer portal addition in the 2025 class, ASU welcomes another player to this year’s roster. 6-foot-4, 225-pound Foothill Community College standout Joshua Shanklin announced his pledge to Arizona State and will arrive this summer with three years of eligibility. Since he was a qualifier out of high school, he does have a redshirt year available.
“I really liked the coaches and staff on my visit,” Shanklin said. “I got to see everything that they have to offer as far as from a player development standpoint, culture, everything. Tempe is a nice city because I'm from the city and it just felt like home. I like how the city is based around the school, and the area around campus is very nice. I liked the environment around the school, and they were telling me how the fans were really invested in the team.
“I liked how connected the coaching was with the players, and they don't sugarcoat anything and always keep it 100. Sometimes, you go to other schools, and they would try to put on a facade and just try to get you to the school. They (ASU coaches) don't act differently and are just being themselves, how they regularly are. Coach Vince Amey has been recruiting me and is really professional, I would say. He was thorough and kept it real with me through the process.
“He told me how I could be an impact player with my speed and how he can develop me to maximize my potential. I like the fact that their defense is mainly based around the D-line and how they would use me, scheming for whatever packages they have. I know I make an impact with my skill set and whatever skills the coaches can add to me. I played mostly receiver in high school, so I didn’t play long on defense and he said that the coaches can add more stuff to my game, more than what I already have, and shape me to be a pro.”
Shanklin prepped at Oakland McClymonds High School, one of the powerhouses in Northern California. Due to the fact that he was overlooked in recruiting, he went to Foothill to better his exposure to power four schools, and suffice it to say that this approach worked like clockwork. Following a freshman year where he registered 64 tackles and 14.5 sacks, he received interest from Ole Miss, West Virginia, Mizzou, UCLA, and Washington State and visited nearly all of them. His Tempe trip was the last official visit before his decision.
With Arizona State’s top defensive ends Clayton Smith, Prince Dorbah, Justin Wodtly, and Elijah O’Neal all exhausting their eligibility, adding a player such as Shanklin with years to play is a wise investment for the future. It remains to be seen if Shanklin will redshirt because he can be a contributor on special teams.
