Quarterback Sam Leavitt reaping the benefits of Arizona State's return to national prominence
FILE - Arizona State quarterback Sam Leavitt (10) rns out of the pocket against Texas during the first half in the quarterfinals of a College Football Playoff, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Sam Leavitt hit a few shots into the simulator and handed the club back to the fitting specialist. After a few tweaks, Leavitt took the club back and hit a few more shots, repeating the process over and over.
When it got down to the driver — Leavitt's least-favorite club — he hit a few wild shots before striping a few down the animated fairway with a club better suited to his swing.
Advertisement
'It's been super cool figuring out stuff about my swing, hitting different shafts, seeing how all the different weights come off and how the ball feels,' Leavitt said from PXG's flagship store. 'Seeing the spin rate and all the metrics has been a really cool experience.'
Leavitt's abilities on a football field have helped create a cool experience for Arizona State fans.
A year after winning three games in an injury-plagued first season under coach Kenny Dillingham, the Sun Devils rode a whirlwind of momentum back into national prominence in 2024. With Leavitt leading the offense, Arizona State had its best season since reaching the 1996 Rose Bowl, matching a school record with 11 wins while reaching the College Football Playoff for the first time.
The Sun Devils came up just short after a memorable comeback against Texas in the Peach Bowl, but created a buzz in the desert and beyond that's carried into spring football.
Advertisement
Arizona State's run has ratcheted up expectations while creating some Heisman Trophy buzz for its quarterback.
'What often happens in your second year is you kind of downshift in your rig and everything gets a little slower,' Arizona State offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo told reporters recently. 'Because of that, we're going to add a little more to his plate.'
The plate off the field has been overflowing since the Sun Devils' improbable run to the CFP last season.
Leavitt has cashed in on the NIL era, landing deals with the Cold Beer and Cheeseburgers restaurant chain, a car dealership and with Arizona State's in-house Sun Angel Collective. His deals are worth a combined $3 million, though all of his merchandise royalties from the Sun Angel Collective are being donated back to the football program.
Advertisement
Leavitt's newfound fame also has led to some unique opportunities.
He had front row seats to a Phoenix Suns game earlier this season and joined coach Kenny Dillingham with three teammates to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at an Arizona Diamondbacks game — an exciting experience even if the pitch didn't go as planned.
'They didn't give me a warmup and it sailed on me,' Leavitt said.
Leavitt likes to play golf with buddies to relax a little away from the fast-paced world of college football. He took a break from practice for the PXG fitting, but has primarily been focused on making himself and his team better in preparation for next season.
Advertisement
Once spring football ends, Leavitt plans to head back to his hometown of West Linn, Oregon, to host a football camp for kids and is working on a trip to Florida with a handful of teammates for some intense offseason workouts.
The opportunities — financial and otherwise — will likely continue to arise for Arizona State's most high-profile player and he plans to take full advantage.
'Now I'm in a position where I get connected with all these people who are really successful and the more you're around successful people, that's what you tend to do for yourself,' Leavitt said. 'So it's been a blessing for me, not only as a football player, but as a person.'
Leavitt — the person and the player — has been a key reason the Sun Devils are rising and he's doing his best to keep it going.
Advertisement
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


USA Today
30 minutes ago
- USA Today
ESPN announce Lee Corso's final College GameDay will be Texas at Ohio State in Week 1
ESPN announce Lee Corso's final College GameDay will be Texas at Ohio State in Week 1 Lee Corso's final ESPN College GameDay will feature the Texas Longhorns. ESPN has announced the 2025 debut of the popular college football pregame show will be in Columbus, OH on Aug. 30 for the Longhorns visit to the Horseshoe to take on Ohio State. The show will also be Corso's last chance to make a headgear pick. ESPN revealed earlier this year Corso would be retiring after Week 1 of the 2025 season. ESPN will use the episode to honor Corso's 38 college football seasons on the air. "Special programming honoring and celebrating Corso's career will be present throughout the Week 1 show in addition to the GameDay crew previewing the 2025 season and all the action of the kickoff Saturday slate," ESPN disclosed. "The season-opening episode will be located in its traditional spot on Ohio State's campus before finishing the show inside 'The Shoe' where Corso will make his final headgear pick in front of 100,000 fans ahead of the Buckeyes' noon kick." Ironically, Corso's first headgear pick was also in Columbus back in 1996. 'My family and I will be forever indebted for the opportunity to be part of ESPN and College GameDay for nearly 40 years,' Corso, who will turn 90 in August, said in a statement. 'I have a treasure of many friends, fond memories and some unusual experiences to take with me into retirement.' 'ESPN has been exceptionally generous to me, especially these past few years," Corso added. "They accommodated me and supported me, as did my colleagues in the early days of College GameDay. Special thanks to Kirk Herbstreit for his friendship and encouragement. And lest I forget, the fans…truly a blessing to share this with them. ESPN gave me this wonderful opportunity and provided me the support to ensure success. I am genuinely grateful.' College GameDay will go live at 8 a.m. CT on ESPN on Aug. 30. The first two hours of the show will be broadcast from outside St. John Arena while the crew will move inside Ohio Stadium for the final hour of the show. FOX's Big Noon Kickoff pregame show will also be in Columbus for Ohio State vs. Texas as FOX will broadcast the game on its national network at noon.


USA Today
35 minutes ago
- USA Today
ESPN names controversial Ohio State football play as one of the 25 best since 2000
ESPN names controversial Ohio State football play as one of the 25 best since 2000 As an Ohio State football fan, there are likely a dozen or so plays etched in fans' memory banks, plays that they'll remember forever. There's the "85 yards through the heart of the south" play against Alabama in the CFP semifinal, and two plays from this past season alone on the way to a College Football Playoff national championship. We all remember Captain Jack's scoop and score against Texas and the "Third and Jeremiah" long pass play against Notre Dame to seal the national title in Atlanta. Going back further, "Holy Buckeye" was my generation's play when quarterback Craig Krenzel connected with Michael Jenkins for a go-ahead touchdown and ultimately winning score against Purdue. Ohio State doesn't win the 2002 BCS national championship without it. But what if you aren't an Ohio State fan, but just a college football fan in general? What plays would make the cut if we went back to, say, 2000, and started to rank them? Luckily for all college pigskin fans, ESPN attempted to do just that by identifying the top 25 college football plays since 2000, and there is one memorable, seismic play that may have altered two programs' national trajectories. The play ESPN ranked as No. 10 is the pass interference call against Miami (FL) when Chris Gamble went up and tried to haul in a pass from Krenzel on fourth down in the corner of the end zone. Talk to a Buckeye fan, and it was clearly interference, but talk to a 'Canes fan or other fans that loathe the colors Scarlet and Gray, and it was questionable at best, especially since the flag came out after what seemed like an eternity. Here's what ESPN's Andrea Adelson said about the play. Perhaps the most questionable pass interference call in college football history, the penalty on Miami's Glenn Sharpe in overtime in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl prevented the Hurricanes from repeating as national champions and cementing their dynasty. With one play left to keep their season alive, Ohio State quarterback Craig Krenzel dropped back to pass on fourth-and-3 from the 5-yard line, throwing for Chris Gamble in the end zone. The pass fell incomplete, and Miami players and staff ran onto the field in celebration. Except ... Terry Porter, the field judge, threw a flag several seconds after the play ended, a delay that added to the mass confusion that followed and resulted in the widespread second-guessing of the call (for those outside Columbus, Ohio, that is). The officials huddled and called pass interference on Sharpe. With a fresh set of downs, Ohio State scored to send the game into a second overtime and won the game 31-24. OSU fans may be a little upset due to the fact that the heading of the play is titled "Champions*," yes, with an asterisk. History will show that this play will forever be a controversial one, and how you view it likely depends on your rooting interests. They call that confirmation bias, and it is as prevalent in college football as it is in our politics these days. But hey, Ohio State landed on the positive side of this one and brought home its first national championship in 34 years at the time, so we'll take it.


USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
T.J. Watt, Terry McLaurin, and 3 other 2025 NFL minicamp holdouts
T.J. Watt, Terry McLaurin, and 3 other 2025 NFL minicamp holdouts There's little useful information to glean from the first round of mandatory NFL minicamps. These practices are more of a mixer than a reveal of any real regular season insight. Rookies and free agent additions get the opportunity to kick the tires on their new team. Players on the cusp of the roster limit have the chance to jostle for position amidst a series of dynamic depth charts. These minicamps won't shed too much light on how a team's 2025 will go, but it can diagnose some problems early on. Notably, it gives the world at large an understanding of which important veterans are upset enough with their contract situations to incur some (relatively) modest fines by holding out. Missing one day of mandatory minicamp will cost a player $17.462. Missing all three days of camp will rack up more than $100,000 in fines. Some of these negotiating tactics will prevail and aging stars will get the last mega-deal they deserve. Others will merely dock their paychecks and create hard feelings between player and franchise. Let's look at who's skipping mandatory minicamp in 2025. EDGE T.J. Watt, Pittsburgh Steelers Watt is in the final season of a $112 million contract that has no guaranteed money remaining. While he's in no danger of being cut, he's also reaching his last opportunity to lock down a massive deal as his 31st birthday approaches. That could be enough to give the Steelers pause; while Watt is the center of a defense tasked with the herculean effort of covering for an anemic offense, he could be nearing an age-related decline. EDGE Trey Hendrickson, Cincinnati Bengals Hendrickson accounted for 17.5 of the Bengals' 36 sacks last season. He's also, like Watt, in the final year of his contract and approaching his 31st birthday. Cincinnati has invested heavily in its offense, leaving the defensive end to shoulder a massive burden for a depleted defense. While the Bengals have an estimated $55 million in salary cap space for 2026, they may be concerned about their star player's ability to continue to wreck havoc up front on the wrong side of 30. That could also scare off suitors in trade talks -- though Hendrickson's monster 2024 could help his team recoup low-cost draft assets in any deal. WR Terry McLaurin, Washington Commanders McLaurin was vital to Jayden Daniels' rookie of the year campaign. He was the Heisman Trophy winner's huckleberry in the red zone (an NFL-best 10 touchdowns from inside the 20) and pushed his young QB to a 133.0 passer rating when targeted. But despite using Daniels' inexpensive rookie contract to add veteran talent, the All-Pro wideout hasn't been a priority entering the final year of a three-year, $69.6 million extension that made him a bargain in the nation's capital. EDGE Shemar Stewart, Cincinnati Bengals Stewart is an unusual case. Rookies don't tend to hold-in to offseason workouts. But the first round pick isn't happy with the language of his rookie contract and refuses to sign until that's settled. He won't practice until he's got a signed deal. Thus, the Bengals could be without their prospective top two pass rushers this summer. Miami Dolphins CB Jalen Ramsey Ramsey won't attend minicamp as the Dolphins continue to search for a trade partner willing to pony up for a 30-year-old, seven-time Pro Bowler. Players who aren't holding out/in