2022 marked personal growth and skill improvement for Isaia Glass, but ASU’s junior left tackle doesn’t lose sight of the team struggles that took place during that campaign. A significant off-season of change is one has delivered a level of optimism that has resonated with Glass, who believes that personally and collectively will create the desired trajectory.
“I learned so much by playing,” said Glass, who started all 12 games for the Sun Devils last year. “One of the best teachers I could have gotten is getting those game reps because game situations that was the real stuff. You learn so much being in it (game), being forced to make those (game day) decisions and react to what was happening.
“Last year, it was hard for the whole team to keep their chin up with the season we had. It’s hard when things are not going as planned to try to keep the whole team in a good mindset. I didn’t have a problem attacking each game as an opportunity to win and get better personally. Week to week, I was always excited to play regardless of the outcome of the last game. I was always happy to be out there and was so blessed to be playing with the amount of reps I was getting.”
From a football IQ standpoint, Glass feels as if it was one element that “shot up like crazy” last year, along with the natural physical improvement that takes place from being part of the strength and conditioning program for one more year.
“Honestly, I don’t think there was a lot that I didn’t get better at from my 2021 season,” Glass noted. “I feel like every single aspect of my game shot up, especially in the mental part. I came to ASU fresh out of high school, and hearing different verbiage and how the coaches call different things, it was all brand new to me still, and so I had a hard time putting it all together. There’s a lot more to go for me technique-wise, but with a whole year’s worth of training and hard work, I feel that my improvement definitely showed.”
On the one hand, the Arizona State offensive lineman chose not to dwell on the 3-9 campaign last season. He said that the final game of that year “feels like three years ago.” Yet, lessons must be learned from that season to improve before one completely moves on from that experience. He feels that the hire of Kenny Dillingham, an ASU alumnus, as the team’s new head coach has created a new team culture conducive to success that only aids in putting the recent struggles in the rearview mirror.
“When I first heard about his hire, everything sounded pretty good on paper,” Glass recalled, “but I wanted to get in front of him, talk to him, and see him. I wanted to learn about his philosophies and how he sees different things. I was open to it, and for the past few two months I’ve had with him and being here in the building, you can see the way coach Dillingham cares for our program and our guys, and it’s only been a few months, and I can only imagine what it will be like when the season starts.
“The first time I met him, what stuck out was his passion when talking about ASU. It was so real and so authentic. It was weird to have a coach who personally and actually really cared about the program. It wasn’t like a coach coming in and just tackling a job. He actually has personal ties with the program, and his passion for it really showed in our team meeting where we first met him. That caught me off guard, and that’s probably the biggest thing I noticed when I first met him.”
Glass is a rare Sun Devil legacy player and is the son of Paul Glass, who played defensive line at Arizona State from 2000-01. Needless to say, this is one element that hit home for Glass and his family. Furthermore, the offensive lineman has been impressed with the outreach that Dillingham and his staff have already shown to the players’ parents.
“My parents like this from a communication standpoint,” Glass remarked, “because he’s reached out to our parents, and our position coaches have already had Zoom meetings with our parents. Coach has been sending out all the information to our parents, which is nice because last year, a lot of the time, our parents relied on us for information, and sometimes we didn’t know the answers for sure. I feel now that these coaches have made the point to bridge that gap so our parents know everything about what we have going on. That’s nice.”
The Sun Devils have certainly gone through an immense facelift process, adding a power five nation-leading 25 transfers along with 20 players arriving from the high school and junior college ranks. And this is a number, perhaps solely from the transfer portal, that could still grow by a handful or so bodies during the May transfer portal period. From the outside looking in and talking to various coaches, it seems that the large group of newcomers has been welcomed with open arms, which has helped their assimilation into the team. Glass’ words undoubtedly validate that perception.
“It really has been all positive,” Glass commented. “There’s a video of coach Dillingham talking about how we’re gonna have more fun and work harder than anybody in the country. And I think so far, we’ve definitely been doing that. This is probably the hardest winter workout I’ve had here, and this is my third one. And as far as the fun goes, I can feel that he’s making it a big priority to keep it fun, especially when we’re working so hard. He’s getting us to have a good balance, and the clips you see from the outside are really how it is inside the building.”
“The coaches can implement the competition (in workouts), but the players still have to carry it out at the end of the day. I feel that the group of guys we have this year, there’s not a lot of selfishness and a lot of competitiveness. That helps the work hard and still have fun. But I feel that a lot of this (working hard and having fun) is on the players as well. We normally ease into workouts, and our first day was probably our hardest day that we had in this last seven-week period, and that was surprising. The coaches are really emphasizing the competition part, and the players are really buying in and doing their part to make things competitive.”
New offensive line coach, Saga Tuitele, is another new face that Glass has been encountering in recent months. They had a brief encounter when Glass was at Queen Creek High School and was recruited by Tuitele, who was Army’s offensive line coach. Glass said that he has appreciated the open line of communication the two have had.
“He’s been really cool,” Glass stated. “He’s really open to me answering anything question we have and is helping us find the best way to do our job. He’s definitely strict, but in all the right ways and in all the right areas. So yeah, he’s been really cool. He really pushes the linemen to hang out together and form that bond, which I feel can be very beneficial when we play on the field.”
Unlike most offensive linemen, Glass is someone who is very active on social media and has quickly built himself a reputation in that area with his post-workout locker room pictures and videos which have been frequently posted. The lineman said that this not only helps strengthen the existing bond with returning players but helps build relationships with the plethora of newcomers on the roster who want to be part of this tradition.
“The newcomers already bought in that,” Glass said laughing regarding the locker room pictures. They are all trying to hop in. Some of them are like, ‘did you already that that picture today? OK, I’ll be in it tomorrow.’ I’ve always been big on social media, even though I only had Twitter when I was in high school because of my recruiting. Now that I got the opportunity to mess around on social media, it’s cool. I feel that people take social media, at times, way too seriously. So, I do what I do to have fun on it because some people go crazy with it.
“All the interactions have been good and not broken down into position groups, returning players, and new players; it’s all a mix. I really like the way we interact in workouts, in the locker room, and off the field. It’s all very positive.”
Ever since his arrival Kenny Dillingham has been vocal about the importance of local players staying home and has mentioned, among the various reasons to take that route is the nearby support a player can receive from family and friends. As someone who prepped locally in the Valley of the Sun, Glass can relate to this aspect and its impact on his football career and general mindset, validating the words of his head coach.
“I think it’s a big time help staying close to home,” Glass admitted. “My parents and my family are able to make it to every home game and some away games too. So, not having that stress of worrying about if my parents can fly in or make a home is nice. If I don’t want to eat food near campus or something like that, I’ll take my butt home and have my mom cook for me, or she can drop off groceries for me. Being close to them just makes it a lot easier and more convenient.
“Even from a fan aspect, I’ll be around in Tempe or even sometimes out of state, and people will know me from ASU and Queen Creek (High School). So yeah, I feel that if you’re an in-state kid, and you’re back home, and you’re gonna get a shout out and a lot of love from family and friends.”
ASU could have as many as four new starters this year on its offensive line, and the increased level of competition generated by tens of first-year players in Tempe, not only on that unit but virtually every other position group, has clearly increased the energy level of this team compared to this time last year. Glass says that this dynamic has also brought the team together, and no matter how long any player has been part of ASU’s roster, it seems the team's collective mindset is turning the page from 2022.
“I feel like the O-Line is all close and cool with each other,” Glass said, “As a group, we are trying to make each better, and hang out a lot together. We’ll have extra meetings that guys will have to go to, and I just feel like it’s a different level of focus, especially with a new playbook. Not a lot of the plays are different, but I feel like we’re coached a little differently on what is the best way to attack it. We’re being coached on so many different things that can really help us execute the play, regardless of how a lineman is built or how athletic he is.”
I would hardly be hyperbolic to state that this year’s spring practice which begins on March 14, is one of the most anticipated 15 sessions in recent memory.
The excitement surrounding the program is palpable and has boiled over to the Sun Devil fan base. Granted, veteran players and newcomers alike are probably yearning to make an impact early on in spring practice, but at the same time, new schemes can slow that process down. Glass agrees that the overall progress of the program may require a little more patience.
“I feel it’s definitely gonna be baby steps in spring practice,” Glass remarked, “and after spring ball, we could lose more guys and have more guys come in because the portal is so crazy, and that could change a bunch of stuff depending on what guys do. In spring ball, we’ll have a good tell of what’s to come. I think having so many new players are gonna help with the competition at every position. Spring ball is going to be a good way to see who’s gonna rise to the top.”
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