Kyle Soelle, Jordan Clark ready to lead new faces for ASU football

With massive roster turnover that Arizona State football has endured this offseason, the need to lean on the remaining past leaders and find emerging ones is of great importance.

Enter Arizona State senior captain linebacker Kyle Soelle and junior cornerback Jordan Clark.

They are expected to take over the leadership reins of the Sun Devil defense that will see plenty of new faces entering next season.

“The leadership role has been an easy transition, but my teammates hold me accountable just like I do them,” Clark said on a Zoom call Wednesday.

Soelle has a little more of a reputation built up. He registered a team-leading 88 tackles, including eight tackles for loss, for the Sun Devils a year ago.

Clark didn’t see the field as frequently but still contributed with 21 tackles, one interception and two passes defensed.

“(As a leader), the most important thing I can do is be there for them and be a helping hand,” Soelle said. “It’s a lot easier when you have a group of leaders like we have here.”

While Clark and Soelle are aware of the outside chatter circulating around the program, they aren’t letting that impact their attitude towards the upcoming season.

“All the noise surrounding the program we haven’t let infiltrate the building,” Clark said.

“We obviously see the outside noise and I think the team’s really got a chip on our shoulders,” Soelle added.

While many doubt what the Sun Devils will do in 2022, Clark and Soelle are excited to showcase what the team has implemented.

“I’m not here to feed off negativity or anything like that, but all the people who have been super positive and have stuck with us during this controversial and tough time, we want to give them fun games to watch on Saturdays and put a smile on their face,” Clark said.

And despite the significant roster turnover, expectations for the team itself haven’t waned.

“We see the work that gets put in every day,” Soelle said. “Inside the building, we have a championship standard and even though we fell short last year, we feel with everyone we brought back we are still right there in contention.”