RBs Trayanum, White showed promise in Arizona State opener

The Arizona State running back duo of DeaMonte “Chip” Trayanum and Rachaad White had a standout performance in their season opener.

Although ASU did not walk away with the win Saturday against the USC Trojans, the running backs put up some impressive numbers for their first game after a long offseason.

White, a junior, and Trayanum, a freshman, were able to fill the void that Eno Benjamin left behind after his senior season.

White had 12 carries for 76 yards and three receptions for 70 yards last week. One of those receptions was a 55-yard touchdown pass that gave Arizona State the lead toward the end of the first half of the eventual 28-27 loss.

“Going into that game, we felt like we had three really good running backs. Obviously, we had two that had a chance to really show themselves and both of them did a really good job,” offensive coordinator Zak Hill said.

The first touchdown of the game for ASU was a 25-yard run from Trayanum. He ended the day with 12 carries for 84 yards and two touchdown runs.

Trayanum is the first freshman to rush for two touchdowns in his Arizona State debut since George Montgomery did so against Baylor in 1990.

“Chip is Chip … We knew he was going to perform,” White said. “He is a bully and a bowling ball. Some people don’t know how fast he is going to be… He is special.”

Although White and Trayanum saw the action last week, freshman Daniyel Ngata is right behind them on the running back depth chart for the Sun Devils. With ASU’s game against Cal canceled, the group believes it will be prepared to continue the success from the opener whenever the Sun Devils are cleared to return from a rash of coronavirus cases.

“I think Daniyel Ngata is a guy that is ready to go, too. He is hungry and he is ready to play,” Hill said.

“The backs are very competitive. They all want to be the starter, and they are all competing for it and it shows up in practice.”