You have only one chance to make a first impression, and starting with the first conversation Dashaun Mallory had with ASU defensive coordinator Brian Ward, the Michigan State defensive lineman felt that Arizona State could be not only a good fit for him but truly a seamless transition between the Spartans and the Sun Devils.

“The first thing that won me over immediately was the fact that he runs the same defense that I’m used to,” Mallory said. “He and my old DC at Michigan State, Scotty Hazleton, are good friends. He was just telling me the scheme is the same, and obviously, the terminology would be a little bit different. But he didn’t think that I would have any problems digesting the defense compared to most of the new guys that don’t know the defense.

“Coach Ward is a defensive coordinator who specializes in more than just linebackers; he has a defensive line mind. And I think just his utilization of me would be able to play defensive end a little bit too. But primarily, they want me at 3-technique defensive tackle, and with his scheme, he can help me be a lot more aggressive down there. “

Mallory saw action in 27 games during his Michigan State tenure. In 2022 he posted 16 tackles, including 1.5 tackles-for-a-loss and a 0.5 sack. In 2021, he tallied 44 tackles, five tackles-for-a-loss, 2.5 sacks, one fumble recovery, and one pass breakup. The lineman said that being a grizzled veteran who has been through his share of the battles in a very physical conference was appealing to the ASU staff when they discussed their expectations of him.

“Because of the simple fact that I’ve played in the Big Ten for over five years, I have experience going against a lot of heavier offensive linemen, especially within the inside.” Mallory described. “My experience going against other high caliber teams like Ohio State, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, so it’s not like I’ll be coming to the Pac-12 star-struck. I’m coming there with some maturity and a good understanding of what coach Ward wants and having a good sense of the game.”

“I wasn’t on the traveling squad when Michigan State played Arizona State, but I was on the field when we played them the next year (in East Lansing). It was good that I actually got to see that program up close in person before I visited here. So, yes, I believe that did play a factor, having that good sense of familiarity.”

During his visit, Mallory was measured at 6-foot-3 268 lbs., an ideal weight for a 3-technique role and a frame that certainly took incredible work ethic and dedication from Mallory to achieve.

“It actually took less than a year to lose that weight,” Mallory recalled. “That picture they took in August (of 2021) I was already looking like that a few months earlier in May. But I will say it was definitely hard. It was some long months, a lot of one-on-one conversations with myself, sticking to the dietary plan, and diving into the discipline factor of it all.

“In the ‘before picture,’ I was 350 lbs., and in the after picture, I was 255 lbs.”

Even though the lineman pledged during his Tempe trip, Mallory admitted that he didn’t know prior to his arrival for the visit that he was going to leave campus as a member of Arizona State. In fact, he said that the trip began as a slow process, yet one that naturally was always progressing in the right direction.

“I didn’t feel that I was going to commit on the first day of my visit,” Mallory remarked. “On the last day after, my parents and I got to feel everything out for ourselves. We talked a lot of football, and the rest of the time, we just got to feel out of the area. Looking back, after I hung out with the coaches and the players, everything just made sense. There was never awkwardness, and it felt that I’d been part of this team for years, and I was only there for a couple of days.

“I loved the energy of (head) coach Kenny Dillingham. He’s, of course, a young guy, and I kept calling him the Sean McVay of college football (after the LA Rams head coach who was hired at age 30). When I first saw him, he was smiling and very welcoming to me and all that. And later, he was real mellow, getting to know me as a person, not just as a football player. You just felt that he would take you under his wing.”

Mallory, who has one year of eligibility left, will enroll this week for the spring semester. He is the first true defensive tackle to be added in this 2023 class from the transfer portal, as ASU previously landed defensive end transfer Samuel Benjamin from Idaho State and Tristan Monday from Wisconsin. 3-technique tackle BJ Green is the only returning experienced player in that role. High school player additions Landen Thomas and Cullen Fite did sign with the Sun Devils last month and are on campus for the spring semester.

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