June 12, 2001
I guess you could say a lot has happened since the last time you heard from an ASU football student-athlete on this website. In this first installment of Murphy's Law you'll learn a little about me, a lot about what we have been up to since Spring ball ended in April, and what to expect next season. I'd first like to thank you for logging on, and for your interest in Sun Devil Football. Last season, Brian Forth wrote this article and he did a great job.
However, I'd like to make you aware of what you can expect from me over the Summer months and during the course of the 2001 football season. This is a weekly column that will be posted on www.thesundevils.com each Monday.
As a player, I offer a unique perspective that may be different than what you are used to reading about ASU football. I will use the terms "we," "our," and "us" in reference to the football student-athletes and the Arizona State Sun Devil Football program. I am extremely passionate about Sun Devil football because it is a huge part of my life. I expect that if you read this column regularly, you are either a hard-core Devils fan yourself, or one of my friends reading because I asked you to. There will be a link to an email address so you, the fans, can reach me with any questions, comments, or topics you would like to see addressed in Murphy's Law. I want this column to be somewhat interactive. I want to write about what you want to know. So please, take the time to send me an email if you have any fresh ideas.
A Little About Me - My name is Nick Murphy and I am a senior punter from Scottsdale. The 2001 season will be my third at ASU. I graduated from Desert Mountain High School in 1998 and then attended Scottsdale Community College for one year before signing to become a Sun Devil. I have started all 22 regular season games and two Aloha bowls since 1999. My major is Broadcasting, with a minor in Sociology and I will be graduating in December after the season ends. As I said... only a little about me.
New Coaches - Obviously, Spring football was our first opportunity to get to work with Coach Koetter and his staff on the field. From players' perspective we couldn't have been happier with the way everyone adjusted. The coaches were great to us, and we responded well to their leadership. Coach Koetter, for those of you that haven't met him yet, is a driven, quiet, hard-working, no-nonsense kind of coach. He is not big on speeches or pep talks, and appears to be content blending in with the staff as just another football coach rather than the man. This approach has earned him all of our respect because when Coach Koetter talks, ears perk up. Its almost a strain to hear him sometimes in the break after practice, but everyone always wants to hear what he has to say. From day one the staff has expected us to work hard and do our best to learn the new system. As a team, we have worked harder since January than in the last two off-seasons combined. The sense in the locker room and on the field is that we all believe in this staff and trust what they say. For the first time in my ASU career, everyone is on the same page.
Spring/Summer Workouts - They suck! Hands down, the hardest thing I've ever done in a weight room. We started doing sets of 12 repetitions, which is high (usually during season we do reps of 3-5). We have just completed the second cycle of these workouts. From now through Camp T, the weight in terms of pounds will be higher, but the reps per set will be lower. During this phase there will be more focus on explosion and power type of strength needed to play football. The good news is most everyone is as strong as they have ever been. Personally, I am in the best shape of my life, and I think you could find at least 20-25 other guys that would say the same thing. Coach Kenn (our strength and conditioning coach), who everyone simply refers to as "House," is another no-nonsense type guy. You do not want to cross that man if he's in a bad mood. He's tough, but he's fair. We all respect House a lot, and he makes the lifting and running as fun as it can be. The Summer conditioning program is, by NCAA rules, "optional." Those of you that know anything about college football, know what "optional" really means. It means, be there everyday, get better, and work with your team if you are serious about your teammates and about winning. For the first time in my 2 years here, we have 100% participation from the scholarship players. Most of the walk-ons have also decided to stay and work with us. I really commend them for that! It is advantageous for scholarship players to stay for the summer, not only for the football conditioning but also so we can take summer school. Obviously most of us take advantage of that. The walk-ons may take classes, but they have to pay for the classes they take. Basically, the non-scholarship players are giving up the opportunity to go home for the summer and work and workout on their own, to be in Tempe with the team working towards next season. I think that's awesome. They are just as big a part of our team as the "stars" are. We will all continue workouts everyday, some days twice a day, until the week before Camp T, with the exception being that we get the week of the 4th of July off also.
Our expectations - Rose Bowl. That says it all. "Fans" may snicker when they read that, but I believe we can do it. I wouldn't just say that if I didn`t truly expect it to happen. Guys like Levi Jones, Scott Peters, Tommie Townsend, Donnie O'Neal, Willie Daniel, and myself will never have another chance. There is no next year. In my two years at ASU I have 12 wins and 12 losses. Both our `99 team and certainly last year's squad were better than that. For some reason we haven't been able to put it together. That stops now. No excuses. No feeling sorry for ourselves. No more .500 football. Period.
You can contact Nick via email at MurphysLaw84@aol.com.