ESPN College Football

Ted Miller discusses what Arizona State has to do this summer.

New Arizona State coach Todd Graham has indefinitely suspended defensive end Junior Onyeali "for not meeting the high standards of the Sun Devil football program," according to Doug Haller of the Arizona Republic.

Onyeali was previously suspended from the Maaco Las Vegas Bowl by outgoing coach Dennis Erickson. According to Haller, that was due to a "heated exchange" with Erickson at practice.

It would appear Graham also is unhappy with the incident and, perhaps, how Onyeali reacted thereafter.

Onyeali, the Pac-10's 2010 Defensive Freshman of the Year, looked like a potential All-Conference player in the preseason, but he missed five games with a knee injury and didn't play particularly well when he returned.

Graham appears to be sending an early message about discipline. It will be interesting to see when — if? — Onyeali gets reinstated.

Ted Miller previews USC-Arizona State from Tempe.

Is a Rob Gronkowski sequel coming to Tucson?

Tight end Taylor McNamara (San Diego, Calif./Westview) has committed to Arizona, ESPN's Greg Biggins reports.

A member of the ESPNU150, McNamara had offers from USC, Ohio State, Florida State, Michigan, Notre Dame, Washington, UCLA, California, Washington, Oregon State, Arizona State, Colorado, Utah, Miami, Maryland and Kentucky.

So this is a big get for the Wildcats.

"There were a lot of reasons why I liked Arizona. I'll have a chance to play early there, I'm comfortable with the school and the direction the program is going in, it's close enough to home for my parents and coaches to come and watch me and I like the players on the team and trust the coaching staff there," he told Biggins.

McNamara, 6-foot-5, 230 pounds, is the Wildcats' third commitment.

Stanford has landed a big-time commitment on its defensive line.

ESPNU 150 Watch List defensive tackle Aziz Shittu of Buhach HS (Atwater, Calif.), one of the top players on the West Coast, has become the Cardinal's third commitment for the 2012 class.

Shittu (6-foot-2, 275 pounds) picked Stanford over an array of other suitors, including Arizona, Arizona State, California, Colorado, Florida, Michigan, Northwestern, Oregon State, Tennessee, UCLA, Southern California, Washington and Washington State.

ESPN's Craig Haubert said of Shittu, "Stanford picked-up a verbal from one of the top defensive line prospects in the state of California. Aziz Shittu is a big man who can be tough against the run, but also can help rush the passer. He is capable of firing out low and knocking blockers back to help collapse the pocket, but the big man can also attack blockers as well and use his weapons to work past them to apply pressure. Shittu looks to give effort and can be a disruptive defender and is a nice in-state pick-up for the Cardinal."

This is only sorta but not really about football, but it's funny and that goes a long way on the Pac-10 blog.

Remember our old friend, Isaiah Mustafa, the former Arizona State receiver who a short while ago -- "Hello, ladies!" -- was on a horse in an Old Spice commercial?

He's back.

Swan dive!

Arizona State's recruiting class of 26 was about filling "needs," said coach Dennis Erickson, which is why five of the six junior college transfers will play on offense and 15 of the signees come from that side of the ball.

The Sun Devils defense broke through last fall, but the offense struggled -- again --and lost seven starters. The class includes five receivers and three running backs, and it's almost certain at least a couple will be in the rotation in the fall.

Top prospects: You can probably pencil in Brice Schwab as a starting offensive tackle. Erickson called the 6-foot-8, 320 pounder "the best junior college offense lineman that I saw." Offensive guard Chris De Armas also could break through. The Sun Devils needed a tight end and Josh Fulton is a good one, though he is recovering from shoulder surgery. Safety Eddie Elder was signed to compete immediately for playing time. Erickson said receiver George Bell "could be special."

Under the radar: Erickson compared receiver Michael Willie to T. J. Houshmandzadeh, whom he coached at Oregon State. He called cornerback Alden Darby a "sleeper." Erickson compared the class' lone quarterback, Taylor Kelly, to Jake Plummer.

Issues: The class was generally ranked in the bottom half of the Pac-10. And the influx of junior college players might send up a red flag to some. It's a little surprising Erickson wasn't able to sign a couple of highly rated skill position players, considering the immediate opportunity to play.

Notes: Two key players not listed in the class are transfers: quarterback Steven Threet (Michigan) and Aaron Pflugrad (Oregon). Both could be starters in the fall ... Erickson said Joita Te'i and Calvin Tonga will start out on the defensive line but could end up as offensive linemen ... The class features players from five states.

The early return on Samson Szakacsy as Arizona State's starting quarterback: He's mentally tough.

His second pass against UCLA went for a 68-yard pick-six to Alterraun Verner and he was sacked by Brian Price during a three-and-out possession on his second go-round.

But, instead of wilting on the road, the sophomore then led an 80-yard touchdown drive -- with an assist from tailback Dimitri Nance -- which he capped with a 35-yard touchdown pass to Kyle Williams.

Still, the Bruins finally got their offense on track with a 73-yard field goal drive and they lead the Sun Devils 10-7 in a huge game for both teams' bowl hopes.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

Arizona State has announced an indefinite suspension for cornerback Terell Carr for violating team rules.

The East Valley Tribune reported that Carr was arrested on suspicion of three misdemeanor's Tuesday.

Coupled with cornerback Omar Bolden's season-ending knee injury, the Sun Devils are perilously thin at cornerback as they head to Oregon.

Redshirt freshman Deveron Carr, who made his first-career start last weekend against USC, and senior Pierre Singfield are expected to start for the Sun Devils on Saturday. Behind them are sophomore Josh Jordan and junior LeQuan Lewis, but the Arizona Republic reported that Jordan was slowed Tuesday by a sore ankle.

"Hopefully, he can play," coach Dennis Erickson told the newspaper. "If not, we're down to three corners."

Carr has started seven games this year.

This is the Sun Devils' second suspension this week. Running back Ryan Bass was suspended for violating team rules on Sunday.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

Two Pac-10 kickers earned spots on the 30-man Lou Groza Award watch list: Arizona State junior Thomas Weber and UCLA junior Kai Forbath.

As a true freshman, Weber, a two-time Playboy preseason All-American, won the award in 2007.

Forbath, second-team All-Pac-10 a year ago, made 19 of 22 field goals last year with a long of 53 yards. Weber connected on 19 of 25 with a long of 49.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

The Preliminary Watch List for the 2009 Lombardi Award is out and just four of the 48 hail from the Pac-10.

Well, sort of.

Alex Carrington is listed as a defensive end for Arizona State.

He plays for Arkansas State.

The "other" three are Arizona tight end Rob Gronkowski, USC center Kristofer O'Dowd and UCLA defensive tackle Brian Price.

Here's the criteria for the Watch List:

Eligibility for the Rotary Lombardi Award is limited to down linemen and those defensive players who line up within 5 yards of the football. The candidates earned a place on the preliminary watch list by earning All-American honors or by being named to their respective all-conference first team as selected by the conference's head coaches. The Rotary Lombardi Award Watch List will be updated prior to the start of the 2009 season in order to identify those players who have been selected as preseason honors candidates.

Here's the complete list:

Kevin Basped, DL, Nevada
Zane Beadles, OL, Utah
Nick Bellore, LB, Central Michigan
Navorro Bowman, LB, Penn State
Brad Bustle, OL, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Nate Byham, TE, Pittsburgh
Alex Carrington, DE, Arizona State
Brandon Carter, OL, Texas Tech
Terrence Cody, DL, Alabama
Antonio Coleman, DE, Auburn
Jared Cook, TE, South Carolina
Rennie Curran, LB, Georgia
John Estes, OL, Hawaii
Chris Fisher, C, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Rob Gronkowski, TE, Arizona
Mark Herzlich, LB, Boston College
Rodney Hudson, OG, Florida State
Jerry Hughes, DE, TCU
Duke Ihenacho, LB, San Jose State
Cardia Jackson, LB, University of Louisiana at Monroe
Micah Johnson, LB, Kentucky
Arthur Jones, DT, Syracuse
Greg Jones, LB, Michigan State
Jan Jorgensen, DL, BYU
Sergio Kindle, LB, Texas
Brandon Lang, DE, Troy
Boris Lee, LB, Troy
Rolando McClain, LB, Alabama
Albert McClellan, DE, Marshall
Gerald McCoy, DL, Oklahoma
Eric Norwood, LB, South Carolina
Kristofer O'Dowd, C, USC
Jared Odrick, DT, Penn State
Russell Okung, OL, Oklahoma State
Joe Pawelek, LB, Baylor
Brian Price, DT, UCLA
Austin Pritchard, LB, Western Michigan
Adam Ulatoski, OT, Texas
George Selvie, DE, South Florida
Cameron Sheffield, DE, Troy
D'Anthony Smith, DL, Louisiana Tech
Brandon Spikes, LB, Florida
Sean Weatherspoon, LB, Missouri
Trent Williams, OL, Oklahoma
C.J. Wilson, DE, East Carolina
Ryan Winterswyck, DL, Boise State
Corey Wootton, DE, Northwestern
Frank Zombo, DE, Central Michigan

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

The California quarterback job is officially open, with coach Jeff Tedford announcing that sophomore Kevin Riley, who started the first four games, will be splitting reps with the first-team offense with senior Nate Longshore during practices this week in preparation for a visit from Arizona State.

Tedford said during the Pac-10 teleconference Tuesday that figuring out who will start could be a game-day decision.

Riley's numbers aren't terrible -- he's thrown for seven touchdowns with just one interception and is completing 57 percent of his passes -- but he's struggled to get in sync with his receivers and the Bears passing game has been inconsistent.

Longshore, who's started 26 games for the Bears, lost a tight preseason competition and then seemed to play himself out of the picture when two of his five passes in the opener against Michigan State were intercepted -- one deep in Spartans territory and another that was returned for a touchdown.

Longshore has completed 19 of 26 passes (73.1 percent) for 215 yards this season, with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Riley, who's far more mobile than Longshore, has completed 62 of 109 throws for 735 yards.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

A look inside the Pac-10 this week.

Washington: The heat is on coach Tyrone Willingham, and his likely tall order is producing an upset victory over No. 15 BYU at Husky Stadium this weekend in front of an increasingly disgruntled fan base. It's obvious that the Huskies defense can only do so much with schemes to mask talent gaps. But it's the offense that severely underachieved at Oregon. That should improve this week inside a home stadium where calling audibles at the line of scrimmage will be far easier than inside boisterous Autzen Stadium. The offensive line, which was surprisingly bad against the Ducks, also should feel challenged this week, and a less athletic BYU defense should help. Moreover, offensive coordinator Tim Lappano told reporters he plans to expand the playbook after holding back with so many freshmen in the playing rotation.

Arizona State: The Sun Devils offensive line -- picked apart during the preseason -- mostly passed its first test against Northern Arizona. Give them a gentleman's C, considering the absence of a running game while yielding only one sack. Stanford will offer a far stouter test. For one, the Cardinal feature a veteran defense with nine starters returning. Second, that defense was strong against the run vs. Oregon State but gave up 404 yards passing, which means ASU QB Rudy Carpenter will be firing away. But will he be safe in the pocket? This won't just be a test of the OL, either. It will be a test of whether Carpenter will stick to the plan to get rid of the ball quickly instead of trying to wait for a big play to develop downfield. It's notable, though, that the Beavers rebuilt offensive line only gave up two sacks in 54 pass attempts to the Cardinal.

Oregon State: It's interesting how so many appear to be expecting Penn State to roll through the Beavers. That gets a big "hmmm" here. Are folks supposed to be impressed with the Nittany Lions bludgeoning Coastal Carolina 66-10 with 334 yards on the ground and six rushing TDs? If so, why isn't Arizona getting more hype for its 70-zip win over Idaho, which would beat Coastal Carolina, a team that, apparently, is located on the coast of one of the Carolinas? I see an Oregon State team that will shock Penn State with its speed on the perimeter. If the Beavers maintain something approaching parity in the trenches, this will be a close game. The return of safety Al Afalava also will substantially help the Beavers run defense, which was so porous against Stanford. One caveat: It's also possible that some of OSU's younger players will be wide-eyed playing in front of 107,000-plus at Beaver Stadium, so that could lead to early and critical mistakes.

USC: Which is more important a RB's foot or an LB's finger? While most eyes are on Ohio State RB Beanie Wells' injured foot in anticipation of the Buckeyes Sept. 13 visit to USC, it might be as important to pay attention to Trojans LB Rey Maualuga's broken finger, which he aggravated vs. Virginia while turning in a performance well below the All-American's standards. The thing with a RB's foot -- it becomes obvious when it's injured and the back can't play. With a finger, the feeling is tape it up and go. But it's often worse to play with a seemingly minor injury because it can lead to major mistakes. Recall QB John David Booty playing with an injured hand in the upset loss to Stanford and tossing four interceptions. What if a RB or TE escapes a Maualuga tackle and transforms a routine play into a TD? Moreover, USC has been quietly hit by injuries to its LB depth, most particularly Maualuga's talented backup Chris Galippo (back). At present, Maualuga's backup is true freshman Uona Kaveinga, though Galippo could be back for the Ohio State game.

UCLA: If we can step away from the glow of an upset win over Tennessee for a moment, the present and future reality is the Bruins need to replace three injured offensive starters. Recall: This offense already has a patchwork line and is using its third QB. So who steps in for TE Logan Paulsen (broken foot), WR Marcus Everett (toe) and TB Kahlil Bell (ankle)? Well, Paulsen's replacement Ryan Moya didn't look like a lightweight after leading the Bruins with seven receptions for 65 yards against the Vols -- including the go-ahead 3-yard TD pass with 27 seconds left -- but Paulsen's absence hurts the viability of two-TE sets. With Everett out a few weeks, junior Terrence Austin steps in. He caught five passes for 37 yards against the Vols. Sophomore Dominique Johnson and freshman Taylor Embree both played well against Tennessee, so there's encouraging depth there. And at TB, Raymond Carter jumps to the first team, but count on Rick Neuheisel tapping into his talented freshman class, including Aundre Dean.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

In January of 2008, the Seattle Times published a series, "Victory and Ruins," about Washington's 2000 Rose Bowl team, portraying it as a lawless group of renegades. The Times summarized the series:

The 2000 Huskies, winners of the Rose Bowl, stand as the UW's last great team. But an unprecedented look behind the scenes reveals an unsettling level of criminal conduct that was often excused or overlooked. Mistakes made then still haunt a program trying to rebuild.

The story had a national impact and inspired a wide-range of reactions, including my own.

This week, writer and ardent Huskies fan Derek Johnson published on his blog responses from a long list of players on the 2000 team. You probably wouldn't be surprised that most are angry (and a few include adult language).

If you followed the Times' series, it makes for an interesting read.

• A couple of things that I didn't include in my story on WSU receiver Brandon Gibson... He thinks backup quarterback Kevin Lopina is no slouch behind starter Gary Rogers: "I think Kevin Lopina has pushed Gary to play well." Wonder if Lopina might make a competition out of this? And Gibson gave me a list of players he thinks will break through in 2008: safety Myron Beck, receivers Daniel Blackledge and Michael Willis and defensive end Kevin Kooyman. He also talked about NFL buzz for center Kenny Alfred.
• University of Arizona school paper looks at the Wildcats summer chemistry experiment. Also includes this about a pair of hyped recruits: "Among the impressive freshmen are cornerback Robert Golden and wide receiver David Douglas." Believe the hype? The Wildcats sure could use a good corner.
• Wait... Tennessee visits UCLA and there's a NASCAR race that weekend? Near LA? What are the odds? Bet that sounds like a little slice of heaven for Vols fans -- a race on Sunday and a visit to the Rose Bowl on Monday (one that I'm guessing will be fairly successful). Link includes a ticket deal for both events.
• Arizona State AD Lisa Love gets some Love from the ASU student paper.
• Oregon lost the Helmet Clash to Texas A&M. That's got to hurt.
• It appears that Carson Palmer is having some post-quip regret after tweaking Ohio State.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

 I love the smell of links in the morning...

• Former Arizona State coach Bruce Snyder, 68, is fighting cancer.
• UCLA has issues on its offensive line, and it's already trying to address them, according to the LA Daily News. Redshirt freshman tight end Nate Chandler is moving from tight end to right tackle, where he could immediately compete to fill the void left by the injured Sean Sheller, who got hurt in an ATV accident this summer. Chandler will need to eat some biscuits in coming weeks -- he only tips the scales at 273 pounds. I'd suggest the country fried steak & eggs at Denny's.
• Some more thoughts on the sad death of Oregon's Todd Doxey here and here. Here's information on a memorial fund.
• Here's some sympathetic musing on how Washington's Tyrone Willingham faces a brutal schedule in a win-or-else season.
• The LA Times USC blog has information on how you can fulfill all your USC fantasies and help a good cause at the same time.
• There's a new guy on Stanford's broadcast team. Former Cardinal QB Todd Husak will join Dave Flemming in the radio booth.
• The Oklahoman takes a look at an Oklahoma State opponent... Washington State and new coach Paul Wulff. It points out that Wulff is both a man and recently turned 41. Now why would that be of note?
• Hey... the OFFICIAL Pac-10 web site is getting all previewy... today it's Arizona State. Tomorrow, perhaps, the world. This is for you, Arizona fans. Cal, my guess is you're next due to my knowledge of the alphabet.
• Speaking of Arizona... Bleacher Report -- Citizen Sports Journalists -- has a Q&A with the Wildcats director of football operations Erick Harper.