Spring transfer portal departures minimal for Arizona State football
A look at who Arizona State football has added in the spring transfer portal window and the landing spots of those who departed.
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Arizona State football saw several departures in the spring transfer portal, but Kenny Dillingham said it’s not something that worries him.
The spring window was open April 16-25, though dozens of players from across the country had begun announcing their plans to enter over the weeks leading up, most notably Tennessee star quarterback Nico Iamaleava.
Dillingham on April 14 pointed out he’s not running a hostage situation.
“If somebody wants to leave, like we’ll help him find a spot. If nobody wants to leave, great,” Dillingham said. “This isn’t a hostage situation. That’s why we let (reporters) out at practice. That’s why we post tape. That’s why we let people write articles on who’s doing well and who’s doing bad. ‘Cause I don’t care.
“I truly want people who want to be here. I think there’s enough good players who would want to be here that I’m not, I guess, insecure about the situation that we have here,” he continued.
The confident stance is identical to the one he took at the end of the fall season, when he permitted outgoing transfers to continue practicing during the postseason.
When asked what he’d like to target for spring additions, Dillingham had two areas in mind.
“You always want more snappers, just veteran guys who can snap the ball. It’s a position that (if) something were to happen at some spot and you run out of them, you’re in trouble,” Dillingham said. “So you’re always looking for a veteran that’s snapped or a young guy that’s snapped in high school.”
First-time center Ben Coleman moved over from guard to replace Leif Fautanu, and Sam Leavitt said their connection has developed well. However, it never hurts to have extra depth behind Coleman.
Dillingham is also looking for more dynamism across the board.
“If somebody changes the game for us and we feel like he fits our culture, then we’ll bring him in,” the coach said.
In an ideal world, he added, the team doesn’t even have to use the spring portal because its roster is already set.
“The whole goal was to get our team in place by right now so we can build culture and community, and I think, for the most part, we have that,” Dillingham said before the window opened.
Arizona State football 2025 spring transfer portal tracker
Additions:
WR Akim Lanieux (May 6) — JUCO Dodge City
The junior college product hauled in 20 catches for 378 yards and two scores in 2024 while listed at 6-foot-7 and 190 pounds.
Lanieux spent much of spring with Northern Illinois before reentering the portal late in the process. His addition helps fill out some of the receiver depth that had departed earlier in the spring portal.
LS Cade Davis (May 5) — Marshall
The 6-foot-1, 223 pound long snapper heads to ASU with one year of eligibility left after playing 58 snaps for Marshall last season.
Prior to his time with Marshall, Davis previously played for Oklahoma State, JUCO Hutchinson and North Carolina State.
Davis’ father Richard Davis played for ASU as a defensive lineman in the 1980’s.
EDGE Joshua Shanklin (May 2) — JUCO Foothill College
The defender out of Los Altos, California, heads to ASU as the No. 1 rated JUCO pass rusher nationally and a top-five JUCO player at any position, according to 247 Sports.
In his final season at Foothill College, the 6-foot-4, 220-pounder registered 14.5 sacks, 19 tackles for loss and four forced fumbles across 11 games played.
S Maurice Williams II (April 29) — Houston
The 6-foot-1, 210-pounder appeared in 10 games for Houston as a true freshman.
He saw the field on 99 snaps, 10 of which came on defense while the others came on special teams.
OLs Brent and Wade Helton (April 28) — Iowa State
The twin brothers marked ASU’s first additions through the spring transfer portal.
The duo redshirted last season before deciding on Arizona State in 2025.
Brent comes in at 6-foot-5 and 320 pounds, while his brother is right behind him at 6-foot-5 and 300 pounds.
Departures:
OL Keona Peat (April 19) — Arizona
The 6-foot-2, 265-pound walk-on lineman notably took a carry in last year’s season-opening win over Wyoming in what was taken as a recruiting effort to get his brother, Koa Peat, who was in attendance for the game, committed to ASU men’s basketball. The five-star basketball standout eventually landed instead with Arizona.
Keona Peat received most of his reps in practice as the third-team center, and a veteran at the position was among the few needs Dillingham said he wanted to address in the window.
A contributor to the 2024 scout team modeling taller signal callers, the 6-foot-5, 230-pound quarterback previously had a redshirt season at Arkansas State.
There was a visible improvement with his spring camp performance, but the transfer signals he’ll look for playing time.
“Very thankful for all the great coaches and players I got to be around,” Hunt wrote on X.
RB Alton McCaskill (April 16) — Sam Houston State
The 6-foot-1, 200-pound running back rushed for 17 yards on seven carries across eight games for Arizona State last year.
“I will be entering the transfer portal as a graduate transfer with two years of eligibility. Thank you, Arizona State, for the opportunity!” he posted on X.
Before his one season in Tempe, he played for Houston (2021), where he was the AAC Rookie of the Year, and Colorado (2023).
OL Kaden Haeckel (April 16) — Idaho
The 6-foot-5, 310-pound redshirt freshman played high school ball for Liberty.
“I am beyond grateful and honored for the opportunity to play football at ASU,” he said in a social media post. “That being said, I am entering the transfer portal with all four years of eligibility available.”
The local 6-foot-2, 215-pound receiver out of Chandler High did not see the field while at Arizona State, though he was trending up this spring.
He got lost in the shuffle of a new-look receivers room and will look for other opportunities.
DL Chance Symons (April 16) — North Dakota State
The 6-foot-2, 245-pound lineman has impressed more this spring camp than he did during last fall season, but with almost every rotational lineman back for more, playing time would’ve been hard to come by.
He played six snaps in the season-opening win over Wyoming, registering one tackle.
DL J.P. Deeter (April 15) — Texas State
The 6-foot-3, 280-pound defensive lineman registered two tackles across 118 total snaps (71 on defense) in his lone year as a Sun Devil in 2024. He was previously at Purdue, where he did not see the field over two seasons.
He’s known for his intensity in practice and has often done well in one-on-one situations. But with so many defensive linemen coming back and improving, playing time would’ve been hard to come by.
“Awesome kid, awesome player! 0 red flags!!! Will make a lot (of) teams better!!” Dillingham wrote of Deeter on X.
The 5-foot-10, 195-pound quarterback was Arizona State’s offensive scout team MVP in 2024 after he was the Arizona Gatorade Player of the Year twice at Peoria Liberty High.
He proved invaluable to team preparation, giving the defense a crafty, agile signal caller that modeled the play of others such as Kansas State’s Avery Johnson down the stretch.
“Someone will get a winner! On and off the field!” offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo wrote on X of Bruzon.
WR Max Ware (April 15) — Hawaii
The 6-foot-1, 195-pound receiver has had his fair share of highlights in practice, but he’s only been able to get 24 in-game snaps over three seasons out of Phoenix Brophy Prep.
He appeared in four games over the span without registering a catch. He was part of a loaded receivers room that injected three new transfer additions and four new freshmen this offseason.
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