Arizona State redshirt sophomore Omarr Norman-Lott hurried to catch up with position coach Robert Rodriguez. The defensive line was trotting over to the main football practice field to begin a series of 1-on-1 battles against their offensive counterparts. Norman-Lott wanted a few extra tips on how to leverage his hands and power. He nodded along, soaking in the strategies.
After Rodriguez’s refresher, Norman-Lott visualized the moves he planned to implement.
Hard jab with his left hand, quick snatch with the right.
Bullrush with full extension, dip the shoulder and gatekeep the opponent’s outside arm.
Quick anchor his base, then combo two strikes and surge toward space.
Watching Norman-Lott shadowbox under the harsh Tempe sun is a captivating sight. Despite his 6-3 and 290-pound frame, he’s spring-loaded for motion. His gloves are massive. The size 15 cleats on his feet, which are taped around the ankles for extra support, dispatch small loaves of turf into the air as he trains.
There is a different level of focus for “ONL” as the team progresses through its preseason. The 3-tech traded the dreadlocks he donned in 2021 for an all-business fade, an accurate match for his work ethic to start the fall. He was the first player to arrive at the facility every day the team practiced, quickly working up a sweat in silence before the clamor of conversation from the rest of the team arrived. When official drills began, Norman-Lott was there at the front of each line.
Norman-Lott locked into a new intensity of concentration when the calendar turned the page to August. Strength coach Joe Connolly alerted him to the 30 days left until the start of ASU’s season against Northern Arizona on Sept. 1. “Yeah, it’s time to get it on,” Norman-Lott said.
However, at one point, it seemed unlikely that Norman-Lott would stay with the program. Like many players in the offseason, he entered the transfer portal to explore his options. There were several lucrative NIL offers fielded his way during the five days he was a college free agent.
Instead, Norman-Lott became the sole ASU player to withdraw his name from the portal and return.
Jermayne Lole’s departure was a factor in the decision. That meant a starting job on the defensive line was in Norman-Lott’s cards. After seeing significant playing time in the wake of Lole’s season-ending injury last season, Norman-Lott would continue to make an impact in the lineup without heavy competition for reps.
But largely, he believed no other coach could give him a better football education.
“The way Coach Rod teaches us, it’s just different,” Norman-Lott said. “I feel like we’re the only defensive line in college football that does what we do. So when I was trying to talk with these other college position coaches, they weren’t really speaking my language, so to say. We were talking two different languages.
“So in that, I just kind of saw more value in Coach Rod. Whatever they put upfront, whatever deal it was, I just saw more on the back end as far as the NFL and my draft stock. To develop as a man and a player on and off the field, I trust Coach Rod, and my loyalty is to him.”
The perspective shines with the maturity obtained exclusively through overcoming major obstacles. Norman-Lott, who registered 15 sacks over his final two years of high school, became disgruntled with his production. He admitted he was “in a dark state mentally” with the expectations he placed on himself.
The personal goals are out the window now. The ambition is centered simply on the endgame and advancement required to reach the professional football criteria. The internal fire burns not for stats or playing time but truly for improvement.
“I came to the realization that it’s all on me,” Norman-Lott said. “I’m not there because I didn’t put the work in to be there. That’s why whatever I’m doing; I’m doing it with a purpose. Because it’s really all in muscle memory and the work you put in so I can reap the rewards of my labor.”
The Las Vegas Bowl did result in a loss for ASU, but it gave Norman-Lott confidence in his abilities. He collected a career-high eight tackles while rotating between the interior defensive line and edge rusher spots. “I got in the game and noticed I was moving dudes,” Norman-Lott smiled.
That post-season contest was the proof in the pudding that implementing Rodriguez’s instruction leads to results. A compact and powerful player, Norman-Lott is undoubtedly disruptive with his violent hands and energized upper body. His first career sack against BYU is a brilliant display of his strength. But increasing balance from the waist-down has been a process to subdue any advantage the opponent might have.
“When I was first getting here, they were kicking me out of the club with the double team,” Norman-Lott said. “I had my feet all everywhere, and [Rodriguez] helped me really get my feet down and have the base be prepared for the brunt of the hit. It’s all Coach Rod. His coaching is outstanding.”
With his faith in Rodriguez validated, Norman-Lott is uniting his intangible qualities with all of the important aspects of his position. Playing low, keeping active feet, and consistently getting his hands up are critical. So is chemistry with teammates, and last year’s disappointment allowed Norman-Lott to craft stronger bonds with the rest of the defense.
“We know what it’s like to miss out on an opportunity,” Norman-Lott said. “We have this culture built within the defense like we’re all just a brotherhood. I feel like we’re an even stronger link than we were last year. It should be some even better things coming from the defense, and the expectation last year was the number one defense.”
There is plenty of new on this ASU team. Norman-Lott’s list of transformations serves to reinforce that characteristic.
A new haircut. A new manner in which he carries himself. A new hunger that only aspirations of bigger things can drive.
New is exciting, albeit not always translating into being better. The allure of the transfer portal taught Norman-Lott that. But in his case, the changes signal a desire to manifest destiny and extract the potential on the verge of bubbling to the surface.
One tweet stands out from the defensive lineman’s page: “Everything I want is on its way to me. Everything I need is already within me.”
On Saturday, Norman-Lott surprised left guard LaDarius Henderson with an explosive swell of upward force and ripped himself free in the direction where the quarterback would stand. Then he watched defensive end Travez Moore execute a creative but off-balance spin on his rush. Norman-Lott pulled fellow 3-tech B.J. Green aside and tried the sequence himself.
“Yeah, I have to work that shit, boy,” Norman-Lott said, shaking his head in awe. “That countermove is going to be a W.”
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