Texas center Ezra Dotson-Oyetade commits to ASU, becomes 20th pledge
It wasn’t a secret that Ezra Dotson-Oyetade was having trouble making up his mind. He was already taking drastic measures. In July, he and his mom drove thousands of miles around the country, stopping at a number of colleges, he was considering for non-hosted visits during a COVID-19 extended recruiting dead period.
He had been back at his home in Garland, Texas , for more than a week after his final road trip to Tempe, where he drove and walked through the Arizona State campus. But those around him knew he was still toggling with his decision.
Kendall Miller, Dotson-Oyetade’s coach at Lakeview Centennial High told his 6-foot-3, 290 center that he had a good problem on his hands. It’s like he was buying a car, Miller said, and he had the choice between a BMW and a Mercedes. He couldn’t go wrong. Miller knew his standout player who was also a prized prospect simply wanted to be as informed as possible -- it’s why he drove across the country to check out schools. But months passed, and new information wasn’t trickling in.
Last Tuesday, Miller gave Dotson-Oyetade the best advice he had.
“Get you some sleep,” he said. “Just be honest with yourself and trust your gut. Whatever that gut says when you wake up in the morning, that’s what you go with.”
On Wednesday morning, Dotson-Oyetade woke up, and his decision felt clear. He called the Arizona State coaches and let them know he would be committing to the Sun Devils. And as he heard celebration on the other end of the phone, relief set in.
Dotson-Oyetade today became the 20th commit in the Sun Devils’ 2021 recruiting class, one now loaded with six offensive linemen.
“My gut feeling was telling me Arizona State,” Dotson-Oyetade said. “I just had a good relationship with everybody -- the coaching staff and some players as well.”
Dotson-Oyetade had heard from several fellow 2021 commits and also spoke with a pair of ASU sophomores: offensive lineman LaDarius Henderson and quarterback Jayden Daniels. They didn’t tell him anything ground-breaking or make a grand sales pitch. Instead, they merely confirmed that the attitude and demeanor he observed from ASU’s coaches during the recruiting process was genuine.
And the lone star lineman had heard from a lot of the Sun Devil coaches. Though offensive analyst Kevin Mawae was the man in charge of his recruitment, Dotson-Oyetade was fielding calls and speaking with nearly every ASU coach on staff, a comprehensive strategy he admitted didn’t come from any other schools.
“I knew I was wanted. They always made sure to let me know I was the no. 1 guy on their board,” Dotson-Oyetade stated. “Me and coach Mawae, he’s an awesome dude, and we almost never talk about football. We talk about life in general and how things are going. We have a pretty good relationship.”
Dotson-Oyetade said that Arizona State told him they believe that he has the chance to play “right away,” one of the reasons he picked the Sun Devils over, namely, Missouri and Virginia.
And there may be no one better person to help Dotson-Oyetade ooze out all of his potential than Mawae. How often do you get the chance to work every day with a guy who’s an NFL Hall of Famer at your position?
“I mean, of course, it’s awesome. Who wouldn’t want to talk with someone who has been where you want to go?” Dotson-Oyetade said in July. “We’ve talked about my film and how he believes I can go out in open space and make plays as he did.”
Added Miller: “We run a lot of pulling schemes with him. A lot of places don’t pull centers. We want to pull him because he’s a guy who can run like that … To see a guy like that get out and run. I think that’s what really impressed over everything else.”
Dotson-Oyetade had heard from several fellow 2021 commits and also spoke with a pair of ASU sophomores: offensive lineman LaDarius Henderson and quarterback Jayden Daniels. They didn’t tell him anything ground-breaking or make a grand sales pitch. Instead, they merely confirmed that the attitude and demeanor he observed from ASU’s coaches during the recruiting process was genuine.
And the lone star lineman had heard from a lot of the Sun Devil coaches. Though offensive analyst Kevin Mawae was the man in charge of his recruitment, Dotson-Oyetade was fielding calls and speaking with nearly every ASU coach on staff, a comprehensive strategy he admitted didn’t come from any other schools.
“I knew I was wanted. They always made sure to let me know I was the no. 1 guy on their board,” Dotson-Oyetade stated. “Me and coach Mawae, he’s an awesome dude, and we almost never talk about football. We talk about life in general and how things are going. We have a pretty good relationship.”
Dotson-Oyetade said that Arizona State told him they believe that he has the chance to play “right away,” one of the reasons he picked the Sun Devils over, namely, Missouri and Virginia.
And there may be no one better person to help Dotson-Oyetade ooze out all of his potential than Mawae. How often do you get the chance to work every day with a guy who’s an NFL Hall of Famer at your position?
“I mean, of course, it’s awesome. Who wouldn’t want to talk with someone who has been where you want to go?” Dotson-Oyetade said in July. “We’ve talked about my film and how he believes I can go out in open space and make plays as he did.”
Added Miller: “We run a lot of pulling schemes with him. A lot of places don’t pull centers. We want to pull him because he’s a guy who can run like that … To see a guy like that get out and run. I think that’s what really impressed over everything else.”
Miller has been impressed for three years now. From watching how his center gets out around the edge on a pulling scheme? Sure. Yet, he doesn’t stop raving about Dotson-Oyetade’s leadership, adding that ultimately “he will showcase the university in the best light.”
He seems so sure of that because that’s what Dotson-Oyetade’s has accomplished at Lakeview Centennial. His teachers and administrators see him as a role model. He’s been a character-driven leader on the football team. And, heck, he’s vice president of the school’s Future Farmers of America club.
“I believe he had the champion steer last year (at one of their shows),” Miller said. “He raises cows and steers and hogs. He’s a fun kid to coach -- you don’t get them like him often.”
And now, Arizona State will get him.
Tempe may not offer much livestock as back home but the Sun Devils gave Dotson-Oyetade a family atmosphere, one that resembled what Miller has provided him in Garland. And, so, amidst a global pandemic that has thrown more uncertainty into the recruiting process than usual, Dotson-Oyetade pulled the trigger.
“I went ahead and did what felt right,” he said.
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