Q & A with Shawn Slocum
With the level of talent returning on special teams, this is one ASU group that was hardly a question mark coming into 2020. With some pleasant surprises in the return game and coverage units, its position coach Shawn Slocum is naturally encouraged by those performances of his group and realizes that this collection of players has the potential to become a significant contributing component in this upcoming season.
Devils Digest: As you review the special teams unit as a whole over the 2020 season as bizarre and unique as that campaign was, what’s your impression overall of the group?
Shawn Slocum: “Well, I thought in a number of areas we were improved. And I think it’s a credit to the young guys that are on our roster that came in and caught on and performed at a pretty good level.”
Devils Digest: Do you feel that all the challenges that you had to deal with in the preseason, perhaps take a little bit more of a toll on special teams, and maybe you were affected more than expected?
Slocum: “I credit our players. I think they demonstrated big-time resiliency, just showing up every day. We started practicing in early July and didn’t play until November 7th and then we were off for a month again and then played three more games. So, I thought that the kids did a great job of showing up every day and just going out and working. Our numbers in those four games were pretty good.”
Devils Digest: When you talk about that resiliency factor, do you think that it’s rooted having one of your most veteran groups when you look at punter, placekicker, kickoff guy roles? Does having that much experience on your side to begin the year ultimately helps you navigate the obstacles as well as you did?
Slocum: “The key to playing special teams, particularly in the coverage game, is how good your punter and kicker are. I thought those guys performed well, and then obviously the field goal position we actually missed a couple (of attempts) that we shouldn’t have missed. That was the one area of a little bit of concern for me, but the thing that I saw, you start with D.J. Taylor, and then you look at the Connor Soelle’s and the Will Shaffer’s and the Jordan Banks’s, and the Ed Woods’s and the Dylan Devito’s…I can keep going down the list…they jumped in there with Case Hatch and were pretty strong in our coverage units.
“You look at the USC game when we’re punting the ball down the field, and they did a great job in the coverage there. They did a great job in the kickoff coverage, so that starts us off in the right way, and then we played UCLA, and the kickoff return took off. One thing we didn’t get going was the punt return, and part of that was just the opportunity of the balls that we had to return; there weren’t that many opportunities in four games. So, I look forward to us moving forward with these guys. I think we have a chance to be strong in this area.”
Devils Digest: Let’s talk about some of the individual players in this group, starting with punter Michael Turk. I know it’s a no-brainer of statement to have predicted that his return was going to be huge for the team even before you’ve played your first game. Were you pleased with his performance, and do you think he showed the improvements that you wanted to see make from 2019 to 2020?
Slocum: “One of the key things with him was directional punting. I thought he really improved in that area. We hit a couple of touchbacks that I felt like we shouldn’t have hit, and I think going forward, that’s something that we need to improve on. Overall, I’m pleased with him.”
Devils Digest: I know obviously you wish you had played a longer season and maybe played better in many aspects, too, but is Turk coming back in 2021 one of those blessings in disguise due to a short season?
Slocum: “You can probably say that because he didn’t have enough video to sell himself (to the NFL) moving forward. I think it’s going to be a strong point for us in 2021.”
Devils Digest: I know that you and I talked prior to the season about Logan Tyler transferring here and coming into such a crazy situation, thinking he’s going to be the starting punter, and because Turk comes back after declaring for the NFL draft, now Tyler is relegated to the kickoff guy. When you reviewed last season, how do you think he handled everything from a mental standpoint, and what do you think of his performance in kickoffs?
Slocum: “I thought he handled it well from a mental standpoint. His challenge was – and it was made complex because of the virus – being off of the 2019 season and not being able to go through spring training and all the summer workouts was a challenge for him. I thought his performance in the kickoffs was average. He’s got a really strong leg, and I think him getting into a normal routine this year with us will really help him going forward. He’s also working on his field goals, and again, if he can get that down, he’ll have one of the stronger legs around.”
Devils Digest: So you’re saying the plan for him is not only to be relegated to kickoffs, but maybe get more in the mix for field goal kicking right now?
Slocum: “Yes.”
Devils Digest: Let’s talk about field goal kicking. Jack Luckhurst, even in limited duty, showed that he could potentially handle the starting placekicker duties in 2021. How would you assess his performance, and what do you see from him moving forward?
Slocum: “I was impressed that he went into the UCLA game, and his first college kick was a 49-yarder, and it looked like he had been kicking all year. That was a really good job by him, and we went into the Arizona game, and that game was unique - all he did was kick extra points, and he actually hurt his quad during that game, and that’s why he didn’t kick in the Oregon State game. Moving forward, he’s a very talented young man, and he was injured his senior year in high school, so he actually turned down some scholarship offers to come here. But he’s that level of player. He’s got good bloodlines, with his dad (Mick Luckhurst) having kicked in the NFL, and so I think he’ll be a strong candidate to compete for the job.”
Devils Digest: What does he need to improve on specifically as he contends for the starting kicker job?
Slocum: “He needs to continue to improve his overall strength and his core body strength. And then just be consistent, make field goals. There’s a science behind it. Everything that he does from a practice standpoint, all the guys here, it’s we’re not just throwing it on the wall and seeing what sticks. There’s a science behind what we’re doing, and so he needs to follow that. And then what happens is it becomes about the process and any kicker if they line up right and have the right target and the right swing and all the components of it, then they are going to have a great chance to make it.”
Devils Digest: I know some coaches like to have a clear vision by the end of spring practice who the starter is going to be at various positions. When it comes to placekicker are you wanting the result of that competition to present a clear picture by the end of spring practice, or do you really want it to continue and be a competition during fall camp?
Slocum: “Yeah, it’s going to be a competition during fall camp because we’re going to add a young player to the mix as well, a young man who we’re recruiting. So, yeah, I think we’ll be good in that position.”
(Editor’s note, the player Slocum is referring to is most likely ASU commit Eddie Czaplicki, who hasn’t signed yet with the Sun Devils, and thus the Arizona State staff is prohibited from commenting on him.)
Devils Digest: Let’s talk about the return game. You mentioned D.J. Taylor, and maybe for the rest of us, it seemingly snuck up out of nowhere, seeing him be as impressive as he was, especially that [100-yard] kickoff return for a touchdown against Arizona. Yet, did you see all of this brewing in October and realizing that Taylor could be that skillful of a returner?
Slocum: “I did. Somewhere in there, prior to the USC game, we had a mock game in the stadium, and he was on the scout team against our starting defense; he had a plus 90-yard run and was outrunning everybody on the defense. And at that point, I said, ‘this guy has got something to him.’ Just watching him on a daily basis run at practice against our starting defense, I felt like he had good running ability and a skillset for it, then in the UCLA game, he broke out and very well could’ve had a touchdown in that game, too if the kicker hadn’t tripped him.
"Obviously, he did what he did against Arizona, and he gives us a good player in that position, having lost [former wide receiver Brandon] Aiyuk the year before. We needed somebody to show up, and the good thing about this group that we brought in this last year is that not only is D.J., but I think Rachaad White, who handled the punt returns, and we saw what he did with the ball in his hands on offense, he’s a legitimate guy. And we’ve got a number of other guys. LV [Bunkley-Shelton] will be a factor there because he’s so good at catching the ball, and then I think we’ll see [Elijah] Badger in the mix as well.
“I don’t know if I’ve been on a college team that had this many candidates. We’ve got other guys in other positions that have the ability to do it, but we’ll probably keep that group about what I told you, and just try to fine-tune them and get it right for next year.”
Devils Digest: What does Taylor need to do to take that next step as a sophomore?
Slocum: “He’s got a lot of improvement to make, and he showed his natural ability. I just think on a daily basis improving the way he catches the ball, being able to run with the blocks and knowing what the call is, doing all those collectively will help him improve.”
Devils Digest: I’m saying this only half-jokingly, but it seems as even if he catches the kickoff seven yards deep in the end zone, he still has the green light to bring it out…
Slocum: “That’s a game management decision. If you look back in the USC game, we didn’t return the ball on a kickoff return. We were moving the ball on offense we took the first kickoff, and I think we fair caught it or took a touchback there. Then we moved the ball on offense, and I thought to myself, ‘we’re in a tough game,’ we knew it was going to be a tough game at their stadium, and so I wanted to make sure that Jayden Daniels started on the 25-yard line every time. Coming out of that game and with a month of practices, we play UCLA, and we were going to bring the ball out. If we get to a situation where it doesn’t make sense to bring it out, then we’ll keep it in the end zone and take it at the 25, but when you’ve got a good returner and you feel good about your blocking group, that’s a potential explosive play that can change the scoring probability for the offense a bunch. So, we’ll do that going forward. We did that with Brandon Aiyuk, and if you’ve got a real guy back there that gives you the luxury of being able to do that.”
Devils Digest: In terms of the kickoff coverage and punt coverage, what’s your assessment of those two units in 2020?
Slocum: “I thought they were really good. Both of them. We have guys that can run that play with physicality, and they run through blocks. That’s what our mantra is, so I look out there, and we’ve got a bunch of freshmen running down there and running through guys, and we tackle them inside the 20 quite a bit on the kickoff coverage. On punts, you have to protect and then get out and run like crazy and get down the field before they can take off, and I thought, for the most part, we did a good job of that. Moving forward, we should improve with our roster being strong.”
Devils Digest: If all goes well, this season should all be back to normal. Do you feel with how good your special teams unit was last year that now just operating under a normal schedule in the preseason, and with a 12-game schedule if not more, that all of those can truly help this special teams unit to utilize the strong foundation it has built and significantly advance in 2021?
Slocum: “I would have to say yes because when you go through a normal process, our training is going to set us up to be able to execute in the ball games. Special teams are always a pretty fluid situation because of personnel. You can’t play too many guys on too many plays, so we’re going to have to play some young guys, and I’m sure some of the young guys who were on these teams in 2020 will now have a greater role on offense or defense, so some of their playing time covering kicks may be reduced. It’s going to be important that we’re going to be able to train the freshmen that come in to be able to help us as well.”
(Gabe Swartz contributed to this article)
Join your fellow Sun Devil fans on our premium message board, the Devils’ Huddle, to discuss this article and other ASU football, basketball, and recruiting topics. Not a member yet? Sign up today here and get all the latest Sun Devil news!
