The Arizona State Sun Devils head into the 2021 season with a room of familiar faces. No longer are they the team with a handful of exciting but inexperienced players, as the Sun Devils welcome back 15 of their 22 starters from last season.
The veterans on the roster are going to be held to a high standard if Arizona State wants to be a powerhouse in the Pac-12. Players such as quarterback Jayden Daniels and defensive lineman Jermayne Lole are two of a handful of prominent players who many expect to handle business for Arizona State this season.
However, there's always a freshman or two that are able to make an immediate prescience on the football. And ASU's incoming class should be no different.
The staff of AllSunDevils came together to discuss their picks for which freshmen could have the largest impact for the upcoming season.
This article is the fourth in our ASU Impact Freshman series, with Ezra Dotson-Oyetade, Eric Gentry and Junior Alexander already named. Alex Weiner has AllSunDevils' fourth selection:
Elijhah Badger
Position: Wide receiver
Height: 6-1
Weight: 185 pounds
OK, ASU wide receiver Elijhah Badger is not a true freshman.
The Sun Devils have a plethora of redshirt freshmen on the active roster for 2021 since they played just four games during the COVID-19-affected 2020 season. Badger, though, was unable to make his Sun Devils debut due to academic ineligibility, so he'll qualify for this series.
ASU has a crowded receiver room. Badger came in as part of a loaded class including Johnny Wilson and LV Bunkley-Shleton. But, Badger possesses the potential to stand out considering his tools and the dominance he showed in high school.
The former four-star recruit from Sacramento, Calif., provides ASU with a solid target at 6-foot-1, 185 pounds along with speed.
Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Geordon Porter called Badger the fastest newcomer on the team ahead of the 2020 season.
On tape, Badger shows good body control and toughness when going up for a ball and strong hands to pull it down in traffic.
He owns the profile of an effective college "X" receiver, a position vacated by former Sun Devil Frank Darby after he was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons this past spring.
In high school, Badger collected 3,398 receiving yards in three years on varsity for Folsom High School. He also ran for six touchdown returns on special teams.
With all of the talent at receiver, ASU has the flexibility to try out a lot of players in various situations leading up to the season and Pac-12 play. Badger has the tools to rise to the top and continue ASU's recent tradition of excellent receiver play.
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