(Photo: Grace Johnson/WCSN)
TEMPE — In the current landscape of college football, it’s not uncommon for the names on a team’s roster to look completely different from one season to another. Arizona State football is no exception as a combined 26 freshman and transfer portal additions are currently trying to prove themselves worthy of filling in for the departed during spring practices.
However, one area that head coach Kenny Dillingham and his staff won’t have to worry too much about learning new faces is on the defensive line. All four of last year’s starters — redshirt senior defensive ends Prince Dorbah and Clayton Smith alongside junior defensive tackle C.J. Fite and senior defensive tackle Jacob Rich Kongaika — return to their starting roles. Redshirt sophomore defensive tackle My’Keil Gardner from Oregon is the only lineman who was not on the team last season.
If there’s one position group that has been firsthand witnesses to the complete turnaround of Sun Devil football, it is undoubtedly the defensive line. Dillingham brought in Dorbah, Smith and Fite as part of his inaugural recruiting and transfer portal class in 2023, and all three showed flashes of potential during the 3-9 campaign.
Diron Reynolds was then named the defensive line coach the ensuing offseason to help the group take the next step forward. His 30 years of coaching experience across Power 5 college football and the NFL turned ASU into the 14th-best rushing defense in the country in 2024.
This spring, the challenge to improve from a previous 4.41% sack rate under defensive coordinator Brian Ward’s 4-2-5 system starts by turning familiarity into tangible results.
“If you have that experience and you have that physical and system maturity, you’re able to play just that much faster and more physical,” defensive coordinator Brian Ward said. “That’s why we’re expecting a lot.”
Dorbah initially committed to Texas all the way back in 2019 before transferring to ASU after three seasons. He recorded 30 combined tackles and six sacks during 2023, but a lower leg injury led to him missing three games and dipping in production the following season.
The veteran aims to use spring camp to not only lead-by-example of how the line should emphasize consistent hard work, but to continue refining the smaller aspects of his game in hopes of a successful final season in maroon and gold.
“My hand placements, being more physical and just knowing where I’m pass rushing,” Dorbah said. “It’s all the little things that I know I could have done better last year that I really didn’t execute on.”
Consistency may be a goal in mind for Dorbah, but it’s the name of the game for his defensive edge mate Smith. The Texas native spent two seasons at Oklahoma then transferred to ASU after the 2022 season. He has since established himself as a cornerstone on the right side of the line thanks to his athleticism and towering size.
Smith led the team in sacks with 4.5 in 2024 while raising his number of solo and combined tackles by double digits from the year before. Past accomplishments aside, the defensive edge is focused on enjoying his last season at the collegiate level and wholeheartedly believes the best is yet to come for the defensive line.
“Every year before this mattered, it’s going to come together this year and I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else, doing it with any other group of guys,” Smith. “I’m excited to see what the year brings.”
Unlike his two teammates, Fite has been a Sun Devil since he was a freshman. A three-star prospect out of Tatum, Texas, the now-junior defensive lineman has only gotten better year after year.
Fite hardly had to wait for a chance to prove himself as he ranked top-50 in most snaps played by a freshman defender in 2023. He then fully broke out in 2024, recording 30 combined tackles, four tackles for loss, two sacks and a fumble recovery for a touchdown across all 14 games. Fite’s build of 310 pounds has made him a critical component of ASU’s run defense, but Reynolds hopes to add pass rushing to his arsenal this season.
“Midseason he was really hitting his stride,” Reynolds said. “He’s taking a leadership role. He’s more of a quiet leader but guys follow him. “The next thing is to transition the path for us on first and second down. Him and Kongaika did a really good job stopping the run, but the next step is being able to steal some early down sacks.”
The only starter on the defensive line who hasn’t been here the past two seasons is Kongaika, who transferred in from Arizona after the 2023 season. No Sun Devil had contributions both on-and-off the field last year quite like the Santa Ana native. His success repelling the run alongside Fite and pressuring the quarterback for three sacks is often forgotten behind him planting a pitchfork in Arizona’s midfield logo.
“The Multiplier”, as he’s become known, has cemented himself as the heartbeat of ASU’s defensive line; a vocal leader who can raise the energy level while helping teammates know what they need to improve on.
“He really has no problem calling anybody up from any position, and we really appreciate that whether in a good or bad way,” Reynolds said. “Either way, it gets their attention. He always brings juice and energy every day, and we need that not only in our room but for the team. He’s done a really good job stepping into that role.”
Despite the starting spots on the defensive line being already set, there are still a couple of breakout candidates to look out for when depth is tested. The first is Oregon transfer and Peoria native My’Keil Gardner.
The start of Gardner’s collegiate career has been mostly quiet after playing in just three games his freshman year then suffering an injury that kept him off the field the entire 2024 season. However, getting to learn from a coach as experienced as Reynolds may be what helps him put his measurements of 6-foot 2, 305 pounds to good use.
“He’s going to give me a little more in length,” Reynolds said. “Really quick twitch like Jeff (Clark) was. He’s coming from a different system so we’ve got to get him up to speed with that cause he was playing more on the edge probably to playing more inside. But I’m looking forward to what he brings to the table.”
Another name to keep an eye on is redshirt freshman Albert Smith III. The three-star prospect from Louisiana committed to ASU as part of the 2024 recruiting class but has yet to set foot on the field. Many of his teammates and coaches believe the intangibles he possesses will turn him into a player Sun Devil fans should expect to become very familiar with.
“A lot of quick twitch, like the way Albert gets off the ball and has a plethora of pass rush moves,” Reynolds said. “Just can’t wait to see what he does with it when the lights come on.”
Last season, the defensive line like the ASU football team as a whole and took a huge step in the right direction. However, winning the Big 12 means the element of surprise will be replaced by lofty expectations. Coach Reynolds and the defensive staff are lucky enough to be able to spend spring camp focusing on perfecting little details amongst familiar faces on the defensive line instead of worrying who the starters are.
2025 marks the final ride for three of the Sun Devils’ starting defensive linemen, and if they hope to end their collegiate careers with more hardware in tow, spring camp is the perfect place to begin gearing up for another season to remember.
“Last year, we were kind of feeling each other a little bit,” Reynolds said. “Knowing how to press each other’s buttons and trying to get the best out of them. I think they know that we want the best out of them so the stakes are a lot higher this year.”
