Q&A with Dave Christensen

This time last year the offensive line group was identified as one of the ASU units in need for a drastic improvement. Between a record-breaking performance by running back Eno Benjamin and a lower number of sacks yielded, the Sun Devils’ front five delivered on that goal. We caught up with its position coach to review the group’s performance and the various depth chart challenges it will face.

DevilsDigest: So, let’s talk about the newcomers and first, a player who is already on campus, Dohnovan West. What stands out about him in regards to his skill set?

Dave Christensen: “Well I think, the biggest thing that stood out is when he played against the number one defensive end in the country(Kayvon Thibodeaux), he held his own. He’s very competitive, he’s got good size and athleticism, strength…and again just the fact that he was able to go and compete against him (Thibodeaux) who’s going to Oregon and play as well as he did, that was a huge plus in my eyes.”

DevilsDigest: Where do you project him to play on the line?

Dave Christensen: “He’ll probably start out inside, I think he’ll be a guard right now. We’re going to bounce a bunch of guys around in the spring and see where they’re at, where our best guys are. We’ve got some experience coming back, but there’s a lot of established guys that are heads and tails above everybody else. So, we got a couple guys that’ve played a lot and played at a high level, we’ve got a bunch of other guys that’ve battled each other and will continue to battle each other.”

DevilsDigest: When you look at a guy like Roman DeWys, it must be very rewarding to see a local guy who once he received an offer from ASU pounced on it right away…

Dave Christensen: “Yeah Roman is a guy that was a physical player in high school, he’s a wrestler, he’s tough, he’s got good balance, good natural strength, and he’s got some nastiness to him. I think all of those things combine together to make a heck of a prospect.”

DevilsDigest: And I would think you would project him at guard right off the bat?

Dave Christensen: “I think he’s got enough length to maybe play tackle but certainly can play inside. So again, I won’t make any decisions until we see how we shuffle things around, where we finish up after spring, then we can worry about where we’re going to put the guys in the fall.”

DevilsDigest: LaDarius Henderson may be that proverbial diamond in the rough since he hasn't played football for that long at all, but obviously he showed you more than enough on film to take a chance on him…

Dave Christensen: “He came out to our (satellite) camp and, he’s another guy that’s extremely athletic, he’s got an incredible wingspan- 80 something inch wingspan, so he’s got, long arms to keep guys away from him. I think he projects well at left tackle. A real athletic guy that, you’re right, has not played a lot of football, just get going in the weight room- he’s up to 283 pounds and his ceiling is really, really high.”

DevilsDigest: On Ben Scott, I guess maybe one of the perks recruiting him, was that you get to do an in-home visit in Hawaii, maybe that’s the reason he’s coming over…

Dave Christensen: “Well, nothing wrong with going to Hawaii (chuckles). But, Ben’s another guy that’s got good length to him. At 290 pounds, is not a heavy guy, he looks really good at 290. Played on an undefeated high school team, and I think is really a competitive kid that has really developed and had a really good senior year. He did some things to change his body and worked on his technique, he went out and competed well at some camps, put out some good film and then had a good senior season. So, we feel that he’s going to be a good fit for us also.”

DevilsDigest: Are there any position changes that we should expect in the spring along the offensive line?

Dave Christensen: “I don’t know if there’s any major ones. We’re going to try guys at different spots. I’m going to put Roy (Hemsley) out at tackle some, Steve (Miller) is probably going to play at tackle some, but that doesn’t mean that that’s where they’re going to (ultimately) be. You got to give guys opportunities and the only way to do that is to move them around to different spots, and I like these guys to be versatile anyhow. The more positions they can play the more valuable they are. And honestly, the more they can play the more opportunities there are for them to get on the field.”

DevilsDigest: Do you still see Cade Cote as the number two center or are you trying some other guys there as well?

Dave Christensen: “He’ll play some center. He’s going to want a chance to compete for the guard spot also. Jarrett Bell is going to play some center, and he’ll want to compete for the guard spot. So, you guys are going to be out at practice and you’ll have all kinds of things to write about because I’ll be moving guys around so much, you’ll think there’s movement daily (laughs). But really that’s the time that you find out, who projects to be able to play for us and help us have success in the fall. So, in order to do that we have to bounce some guys around in some different spots and see how they hold up.”

DevilsDigest: Naturally, the offensive line as a group was a major component in Eno Benjamin’s rushing school-record season, as well as significant factor is cutting down on the sack number from 2017. When you look at the group as a whole, what are some of the things you were pleased with, what are some of the things you felt the group fell short on?

Dave Christensen: “Well, I think that (offensive line) was a perfect example of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. These guys played well together, probably throughout the year the most consistent guy was Quinn Bailey. So, we had guys that played consistently week in and week out and by them doing that, as a unit we were able to play better. And, keeping our sacks down was encouraging, particularly from a year prior. Eno Benjamin is a heck of a running back, there’s no question about that. But I thought blocking well got him started well, and so we had success running the ball. We also had success protecting the quarterback.

“The thing that we’ve got to do a better job, and I thought we got better at last year, is just finishing blocks better and getting guys down. That’s probably the one area that we have to show the most improvement in, just in our tenacity to finish our blocks and be on our guy when we’re supposed to.”

DevilsDigest: When head coach Herm Edwards was first hired, it seemed that one thing he was saying on multiple occasions was the need for the offensive line to be upgraded, and was mentioning it more than other position groups. Based on that statement he made at the time, do you feel that the goal was achieved?

Dave Christensen: “It was, but it’s not finished yet. We still need to continue to upgrade and develop depth. We lost two starters and we have to replace them, and then next year we’re going to graduate six more. So, we’ve got to develop the younger players, keep bringing them along and you’re going to see more younger players playing just because, there’s an absence of players in the two classes underneath the senior class.”

DevilsDigest: I know that offensive coordinator Rob Likens in the past talked about the meeting of the minds, if you will, that you and him had after the SDSU contest that was really able to spark the running game. Can you walk us through as to what was the change in approach concerning the ground attack that really created a 180-degree turn from that game on?

Dave Christensen: “Well, I don’t know that there was much that changed. We did a little bit more of some, combination zone-man schemes and isolating some H-backs on some people, and those type of things. But our main plays were outside zone and inside zone and we’ve been running those since the spring. We executed at a higher level and I think some of our guys we were missing in the spring of last year (Hemsley, Casey Tucker, lengthily injury to Zach Robertson) and those guys all played significant roles this year so really this line only played together in training camp and that was it.

“So, it took a few games for us to get going and get everybody on the same page and for our communication to pick up. I think has that happened, we started to play at a higher level and executed at a higher level. But there weren’t wholesale changes really made, they were just better execution.”

DevilsDigest: I did want to touch a little on some of the returning players. Zach Robertson made a concerted effort to come in better shape, and have a different mental approach. What did you think about his 2018 performance?

Dave Christensen: “I thought, for about 80 percent of the season he played really well and was doing things at a high level. He still has kept that weight off, he looks really good right now, and for him, it’s going to be little things, the attention to detail things. He’s got great potential and he’s got an opportunity to play past college, but he’s going to have to be more consistent and he’s going to have to do things right on a daily basis from this point until the end of next season.”

DevilsDigest: Alex Losoya last year was labeled by many as just a spring practice surprise and nothing else. Yet, ended up showing that he could be a contributor during the season too…

Dave Christensen: “He did, and Alex has made a lot of progress. He’s still got some room for improvement, but I thought he competed really well. He’s a tough kid, he likes playing the game, and just has to play more consistent to be a guy that’s starting and playing every snap, which is what he wants to do.”

DevilsDigest: Roy Hemsley is a player that perhaps because he was a transfer looked much better in October-November versus August-September, what was your take as well?

Dave Christensen: “Yeah, I thought Roy filled in and did some good things for us. I think he’s still learning what my expectation is to play at the level of which he needs to play in order to go out and play for me. He’s a guy that’s working and has worked on practicing better. If guys don’t practice well, they don’t play for me, and so he’s getting better in that area. I know he wants to compete and wants to play. He’s going to work some at tackle this spring, and he’s got the size without question, he’s a humongous individual. But he’s just got to be consistent day in and day out in practice.”

DevilsDigest: Steve Miller, I thought probably established himself pretty well there at the right guard. What’d you see from him?

Dave Christensen: “He is a little bit like Alex in that, he needs to play more consistently. Steve’s got a lot of experience, he’s played in this league a whole bunch, and he knows how to compete in this league. He knows what to expect from the people we’re playing. But he’s got to perform at a high level and do it consistently, and that’s what we’re looking for. We just need more consistency out of our guard position this spring, and now that, the experience that he and Alex and Roy have, I would look for that to happen in the spring.”

DevilsDigest: This was Cohl Cabral’s job first year as a full-time as a starter at center. What are your thoughts of his production?

Dave Christensen: “I thought Cohl did a nice job at center. He knows the position now, and he’s got to do a great job in the offseason at getting himself stronger. He’s got to finish better, he’s got to stay on his feet more, and be more powerful. But he certainly played well for us. our goal is to help him become the best center in the conference. In order to do that, he’s going to have to do a great job in this offseason training, and then have a consistently good, consistent spring.”

DevilsDigest: I know he was exploring the NFL draft option, but I got to believe that with the overall depth chart you have that you have it’s a great relief to know that he’s coming back for 2019.

Dave Christensen: “It is, for both he and I, and our program. I think that it’s going to put him in position to go a lot higher in the NFL draft but it’s going to give us great experience in the middle that we need, and so I think it’s good for both.”

DevilsDigest: How would you evaluate last year’s freshmen who redshirted Spencer Lovell, Ralph Frias, and Jarrett Bell, their rate of development and how quickly do you think they can contribute in 2019?

Dave Christensen: “Well they’re going to have a chance to compete right away just because of our lack of depth. They don’t have time to be freshmen anymore, that’s over, the redshirt’s over. The two big guys, Ralph and Spencer, played in the bowl game on the field goal team so they got a taste of what it’s like. Jarrett did a great job all year long, he was a backup center for us, in practice and also worked on the scout team against us just to give us some help. He’ll compete and he’ll play this year.

“With all three of those guys, I was very pleased with the effort that they gave, and, they’re going to have a chance. They’ve got the size right now, what they need are reps, and that’s what it takes to play that position is hundreds and thousands of reps and they’re going to get an opportunity to get a lot of those reps this spring and this fall.”

DevilsDigest: As we know your whole entire starting lineup more than likely is going to be all-seniors. Would it be fair to say that because of that fact alone, that your expectations for 2019 are much higher than they were last year?

Dave Christensen: “Well I don’t want to get too far ahead of ourselves. We got to get through spring ball first and establish who the starters are. I don’t necessarily that anybody has christened them to be starters. So, they’re going to compete and my expectations are always going to be high. I set a high expectation when I got here. My expectation is that they play at a certain level, and we would want to think we can do that each and every year and continue to grow and develop this line into a dominant group.”

DevilsDigest: On the flip side of it, as you mentioned earlier, there’s really not a lot of depth and experience beyond the seniors. On that note there must be a strong sense of urgency, definitely starting in spring practice, to develop those young guys so you have a capable reserve group that you feel comfortable calling upon if needed?

Dave Christensen: “Yeah absolutely, it’s going to be crucial that we get, a lot of development from those young guys. They are going to play a huge role going into fall, and so this is going to be a big spring. I’m excited, I’ve got guys that got a lot of energy, that’re excited now, their redshirts off, they’re going to compete to play. and it should be a fun spring for us.”

DevilsDigest: As you round out the 2019 recruiting class, I know that you’re probably going to want to add a transfer or two. Who in your opinion would be an ideal transfer in terms of years of eligibility, whether it’s a grad transfer immediately eligible, a traditional transfer who will have to sit out a year or a junior college transfer?

Dave Christensen: “Well when we look at transfers, you’d like to think the guy’s going to have a chance to come in and start, otherwise you can sign a freshman. So, if there’s a guy that’s got a year left, or maybe a guy like Roy who graduated early and has two years left and we feel they can come in and start, that’d be a guy we’d like to get. As far as junior college guys, we really don’t look at many junior college guys unless they got three years to play too. And, that would be good too because of the class after next year, the next two classes don’t have any players, besides Corey Stephens. He’s the only player in a two-year period of time that’d be in our junior/senior class. So, if we can put some players into that, those classes it’d certainly be beneficial for us in the future.”

DevilsDigest: I know you’re probably a big proponent of that Bill Belichick mantra of ‘do your job’ and being less concerned about how other position groups are performing. But having said all of that, the fact that you’re going to have an inexperienced quarterback group in the spring, with a chance of a true freshman starting in 2019, as an offensive line coach, would that cause you to maybe take a different approach as opposed to 2018 when you knew you had a fifth-year senior behind center?

Dave Christensen: “No, I don’t think you change the approach. Rob (Likens) may do some things differently just because the youth he’s going to have at the position. Our schemes are our schemes, and we’re not going to make wholesale changes in what we do. It was pretty decent last year, so we’ll continue to do that. You got to go the pace at which your quarterback can handle it, we’ll be more experienced, and so we’ll be fine up front. It’s just, you got to be careful on how fast you put everything in for the quarterbacks. I played true freshman twice in Wyoming, and in both the years, we went to a bowl game. So, I’ve done it before, it’s not impossible to do.”

DevilsDigest: When Herm Edwards was hired there was much said and written about the new leadership model. For you personally, now that the new organizational structure has been in place for roughly one year, how has it benefitted you in your daily work?

Dave Christensen: “Well, the relationship I have with Herm…he’s just been phenomenal. He has turned me loose, he trusts me and my experience he lets me coach my guys. He’s not a micromanager - I recruit the offensive line, I coach the offensive line. It’s been a great working environment, I think we have a tremendous staff, and it’s everything I dreamed it would be.”

DevilsDigest: When you examine the spring practice goals for the group as a whole. What are some of the items on your to-do list as February 5th approaches?

Dave Christensen: “I got to find out from the few guys that we have, which guys are going to be able to compete in the Pac-12 and win. And I got to identify who those players are this spring. That’s always been the goal.”