Bennett brings his intensity, wisdom to Sun Devils
New coordinator brought in to restore ASU’s defense
The oldest coach on the Arizona State practice field waits for the play to end and then takes a few steps, waiting to catch the player who had just messed up. There’s always someone.
Phil Bennett talks – sometimes yells – for a few seconds and then the defensive coordinator moves on to the next play, the next evaluation.
Six years ago, Todd Graham proudly announced that he wanted to build his program around defense, and for a while he set such a foundation. The Sun Devils were a quarterback-harassing, turnover-forcing group. But opponents soon learned to pick up the pressure. They picked apart an overwhelmed secondary and took advantage of botched coverage.
As a result, ASU has fielded the nation’s worst pass defense for two consecutive seasons. Last year the Sun Devils produced, at least statistically, the worst defense in school history, one that gave up more big plays than anyone can remember. To help, Graham hired Bennett, a college football lifer who had coached at Texas A&M, LSU, Oklahoma, Kansas State and Baylor, among others. It might end up saving him. “Man, he’s taken a lot of weight off me, just with his leadership,” Graham said as ASU prepared for Thursday’s opener against New Mexico State. “You don’t have to worry about what he’s doing. I guarantee you, I know how his guys are going to play. They’re going to play extremely hard.”
Graham and his staff have deep roots with Bennett. Special teams coach Shawn Slocum was still in grammar school when his dad coached Bennett at Texas A&M. Later, the two coached together in College Station.
“I think he knows everybody in football,” Slocum said of Bennett. “Or at least every other person.”
As high school coaches in Texas, Graham and linebackers coach Keith Patterson visited Texas A&M during spring break and studied Bennett, who had one of the nation’s top defenses.
“He was (running) the ‘Wrecking Crew,’ ” Patterson said of A&M's famed pressure defense, “and we copied everything he did.”
Graham’s decision to hire Bennett wasn’t controversial, but it got attention. Having coached the previous six seasons at Baylor, Bennett was on Art Briles’ staff during a sexual-assault scandal that ultimately cost Briles his job. In addition, the school president and athletic director resigned.
ASU vetted Bennett like any other candidate, maybe a bit more. It also received a letter from current Baylor athletic director Mack Rhoades, who stated that the school had not uncovered any information that would disqualify Bennett from working at Baylor or any other school.
“Obviously, I knew him and what he was about,” Graham said.
In the past, even as others held the coordinator position, Graham has had a heavy hand on ASU's defense. This season, he may not as much. Other than “team” (11-on-11) action, senior end Alani Latu said he doesn’t notice Graham involved with the defense as much as years past.
Ask what kind of impact they expect Bennett to make, most start with his expectations.
“He has a unique gift in that his expectations and his demands on people and players are extremely high,” Patterson said. “He can make people feel like that if they don’t do (something), they didn’t just let themselves down, but their team, their city, their university, their state. I don’t even know how to describe it, but you just want to get it done.”
Senior linebacker DJ Calhoun said it wasn’t a coincidence that the defense had one of its worst preseason practices when Bennett was out of town attending his daughter’s wedding.
“He’s made a giant difference,” Calhoun said. “You don’t understand. The intensity. You know he’s going to be a hard ass, but you just love it, though. He can say whatever to us, but we’re going to listen.”
For his part, Bennett hasn’t made huge promises. The Sun Devils may not dominate, he said, but he’s won with defenses that’s made offenses work for every yard. To start, that's the goal here.
“We have to be smart in what we ask them to do,” Bennett said. “This is going to be a journey. I want them to play hard, I want to them to play fast and I want them to play smart. As we go, there’s going to be some chinks, (but) we’re going to learn and we’re going to grow and we’re going to get better. "And we’re going to find a way to win.” Contact Doug Haller at 602-444-4949 or at doug.haller@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him at Twitter.com/DougHaller. Subscribe to the ASU Pick Six Podcast, available on iTunes.