Kyle Scott’s ascension from community college to Sun Devils starting offensive lineman

(Photo: Justin LaCertosa/ DevilsDigest)

It isn’t an understatement to say that Arizona State’s 2023 recruiting class has played a significant role in the program’s rapid turnaround from bottom of the pack to legitimate title contender. Out of the Sun Devils’ initial 43 commits, 13 are listed on the official 2025 season roster with 11 eventually being named starters when the team posted its first depth chart on August 27.

In his first attempt at bringing new talent to the Valley, head coach Kenny Dillingham brought in the likes of Jordyn Tyson, Kyson Brown, Xavian Alford, and in particular, three of ASU’s current starting offensive lineman. Out of the three, it’s hard to dispute that redshirt senior right guard Kyle Scott hasn’t had the most challenging road to get where he is today.

Scott grew up in Lake Elsinore, California and despite failing to crack the starting roster at Temescal Canyon High School, the 6-foot-5-inch lineman kept his dream of playing football alive by enrolling at Riverside City Community College. In two years at the JUCO level, the zero-star recruit helped the RCC Tigers average 563 yards of offense and 41 points per game on the way to finishing as the runner-up in the 2022 California Community College Athletic Association Football State Championship.

For his efforts, Scott was named First Team All-CCCAA Central Division and listed as the 32nd best junior college prospect in the country heading into the 2023 offseason. With offers from Fresno State, McNeese State, Portland State, New Mexico, and New Mexico State on the table, he officially made the jump to Division I football when he committed to Arizona State on December 18, 2022.

“It’s a blessing to be out here,” Scott said. “I don’t take it for granted coming from that level to this level. There’s a lot of opportunity, and I’m just trying to make the best out of it.”

The inaugural season of the Dillingham era was nothing short of a medical disaster as a whopping 31 players missed time due to injury. No position group had worse luck in 2023 in terms of health than the offensive line with nine players going down for a combined 57 games.

Although the attrition gave Scott the chance to take the field for the first time, a season-ending injury in late October meant he only had two games under his belt heading into 2024.

“It was just rough, trying to get healthy,” Scott said. “It was hard seeing everybody going through that adversity, but that next year, we took it to another level.”

Before he or the team could break through to another echelon, the California native first had to prove he belonged in the maroon and gold. Scott started out the 2024 season listed as a rotational right guard alongside redshirt senior Cade Briggs. However, Briggs would be the one given starting duties for the first four games.

In the midst of his defining moment in the Valley, the lineman relied on the mentorship of those above him on the depth chart to refine his technique and develop a sense of confidence in his own abilities.

“Leif Fautanu, he played a big part in my progression,” Scott said. “Emmit Bohle, Cade (Briggs), everybody just bringing me up, bringing me along and just trying to cherish the moment.”

Just like the year prior, injury came along with opportunity when Briggs suffered a wrist injury before ASU’s Week 5 contest against Kansas. This time though, Scott took the chance to impress and never looked back. Contributing to an offensive performance that included allowing zero sacks to the Jayhawks defense while simultaneously opening up the running lanes for 309 total yards was just the beginning of the lineman’s surge to a starting role.

Scott took over as the primary right guard for nine of the final 10 games of the season, and in that timeframe, the Sun Devils had a per game average of 34 points, 209 rushing yards, and just 1.5 sacks allowed. The former JUCO prospect who wasn’t even listed on the depth chart for the 2023 season opener played a vital role on an ASU team that went on to win the Big 12 Championship and clinch a berth in the College Football Playoff.

In the Quarterfinal against Texas, Scott orchestrated one of the defining moments of the 2024 season for Arizona State when he pulled former running back Cam Skattebo into the end zone to give the team the lead in overtime. Despite eventually losing moments later, the California native left no doubt about whether or not he deserved to be in the trenches for the Sun Devils going forward.

Even in the midst of a transition period due to both the center and left guard positions needing to be filled, few if any speculation at all arose about competition for the right guard spot thanks in large part to Scott’s constant desire to improve throughout spring and fall camp not going unnoticed by offensive line coach Saga Tuitele.

“He knows what he’s doing,” Tuitele said. “He knows where to go, knows where his landmarks are. He knows how to fix it when he doesn’t do it the way it’s supposed to do. He knows what he did wrong.”

That’s not even getting into his immense athleticism and versatility that comes from his background of playing both football and basketball growing up. When asked who he thought was the best basketball player on the team in late August, Dillingham believed Scott could handle business against almost anyone.

“Kyle Scott can absolutely hoop,” Dillingham said. “If there was a one-on-one game, I think he’d be able to back everybody down and win.”

With the departure of Fautanu, Briggs, and Bohle from the program, the now redshirt senior is one of those responsible for maintaining the brotherhood amongst the offensive linemen.

Look no further than Scott’s working relationship with graduate offensive lineman Ben Coleman as the two have bonded over the many similarities they share in their own personal journey. Both players, who come from Riverside County in California, committed to Arizona State on December 18, 2022, and rebounded from injury in their first season as a Sun Devil to start a majority of the 2024 season.

The main difference between the two is that before Coleman’s current transition to center, he occupied the left guard spot opposite of Scott. This was enough to spark a friendly rivalry that fueled the two linemen to prove to each other that their side of the offensive line was superior during practice and in-game.

“We had a lot of arguments last year, left side versus right side,” Coleman said. “Which one was better? We used to argue all the time and I think that was the healthy competition that we had because you had two guys that were still explosive, super strong.”

Fast forward to present day, where Scott’s remaining time as a Sun Devil is dwindling. The veterans that helped him succeed are gone, the left guard he aspired to one-up now works directly alongside him, and Arizona State sits just outside of the Top 10 of the AP Poll. As a man who prefers to let his actions on the field speak for him, his hopes going into his final season of Sun Devil football are brief yet quite clear.

“Man, I’m excited,” Scott said. “My last year, I’m ready to make the most out of it.”