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Sam Keller Leaving ASU Sun Devils...

JumpOnBoard

JumpOnBoard

CTG Partner
August 20, 2006
Keller leaves Sun Devil program
By Dan Zeiger
Tribune


Arizona State's high-profile quarterback competition, believed to have ended on Friday night, took an unexpected, bizarre twist on Sunday, with the winner of the duel quitting the team. Senior Sam Keller, who was named the starter over Rudy Carpenter, has left the Sun Devil program, sources close to the situation have said.

A school spokesman told the Tribune that ASU coach Dirk Koetter would have a "significant announcement regarding a player" after the team's practice on Sunday night.

According to a source, several players requested a Saturday meeting with Koetter in which Keller was not present. They expressed to Koetter their feelings that Carpenter should be the starting quarterback.

Last year, Keller threw for 2,165 yards and 20 touchdowns before succumbing to a right (passing) thumb injury. Carpenter took over and finished as the nation's pass-efficiency leader.

"I'm excited, happy and also humbled by it," Keller said on Friday. "It's a dream to play your last year and go for (a championship). The other guy deserved it as much as I did. It makes me feel good, and I'm enjoying it a lot more because I earned it."

In the 18 camp practices before Friday, neither Keller nor Carpenter had established clear superiority over the other. But Keller's seniority and the strong allegiance Koetter has for veteran players was a major factor in the decision.

"We went for the guy who is best for our situation now, and we couldn't make a bad decision," Koetter said. "I really hoped one guy would clearly outplay the other, and we had to do what we had to do. . . . The fact that Sam is a senior and hasn't redshirted, that was sacrificing something for the program. If it was flipped over, with Rudy a senior and Sam a sophomore, it might have gone the other way."

Carpenter threw for 2,273 yards and 17 TDs last year. The Sun Devils were 4-1 in games he started.
 
In all seriousness, Keller played well early in the season, got hurt, and Carpenter played better, in fact, he played very well. Tough choice, take the experienced guy or the young stud who really took off. It is very believable the players chose the latter.

The coach is now in a precarious position. He has to convince everyone now that Carpenter wouild have been his choice
 
This has been a wild development. Heard Keller did some serious partying and felt like he was better than anyone on the team. Not sure about all these facts but some saw it coming. I think the crowd just started chanting "RUDY, RUDY, RUDY!!", lol
 
JumpOnBoard said:
Rudy,Rudy,Rudy.

Did the players bring in their jerseys?
Click to expand...

LMAO, sorry Jump, didn't even see that post. I see we were on the same page though, lol.
 
rjurewitz said:
Who's on the depth chart now if their top recruit left for Tech and Keller is gone?
Click to expand...

I'm checkin that now, but I'd certainly assume that they're one missed LT block from being in a world of hurt at QB now....far cry from the best QB situation in the country, which they were...
 
JumpOnBoard said:
I'm checkin that now, but I'd certainly assume that they're one missed LT block from being in a world of hurt at QB now....far cry from the best QB situation in the country, which they were...
Click to expand...

I got Chad Christensen, Brett Boon, Nate Mortenson, and Danny Sullivan. One of those is the recruit that went to Tech. Christensen is a Sr., Boon and Mortensen are rFr and Sullivan is a true frosh.

They may be in serious shit.

How do they totally lose their starter? Why wasn't he just demoted to #2?
 
I think he got pissed and decided to transfer...I've heard like Razor he's a partier, esp pot...but I don't know for sure..just rumors..

But I know he's an arrogant kid, and if they had this minor coup against him, I can see him getting pissed and saying F it...
 
ASU starting QB may be leaving

Jeff Metcalfe
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 20, 2006 05:59 PM

Sam Keller, named Arizona State’s starting quarterback on Friday, was not at practice Sunday night.

ASU coach Dirk Koetter will make a major announcement after practice. It’s uncertain if Keller is leaving the team.

Unconfirmed reports Saturday swirled that sophomore Rudy Carpenter was considering leaving ASU because of Koetter’s choice to make Keller the starter.

If Koetter tried to keep Carpenter, perhaps by playing both quarterbacks, he might have lost Keller, a senior. Keller still has a red-shirt season and also could play immediately at a Div-IAA school.

Keller started seven games last season, throwing for 2,165 yards and 20 touchdowns. He injured his right thumb during the season and required surgery.

Carpenter played the final six games and ending up leading the nation in passing efficiency.

Koetter said Friday that he told both quarterbacks while at Camp Tontozona that he could divide time between them and they rejected the offer.

“This was such a close competition, I asked both the guys one night at Camp T, if you guys want to do it, let’s play two quarterbacks. I’ve done that before and I can do it again if you want to do it,” Koetter said Friday. “They didn’t want to do it, so I had to make a decision on one guy.”

In making his decision on Friday, Koetter cited Keller’s loyalty to the program going back to playing as a true freshman backup to Andrew Walter.

Without Keller, freshman Danny Sullivan probably will be forced to play as Carpenter’s backup. Brett Boon and Dax Crum are the other quarterback options.
 
It's been a crazy year in CFB and the season hasn't even started yet!!
dizzy.gif
 
Sam Keller has received a link to this site in the past to check it out... come on Sam come out and tell us what we want to know...
 
You know, it says something to play the QB who is respected by the team. If the team does not respect the QB, they will not play for him. Word on the Oklahoma team last season was that they respected Paul Thompson a great deal more than they did Rhett. Fortunately for Rhett, he was smart enough to keep his mouth shut and let Stoops fight that battle for him.

It surprises me that the players didn't respect Keller. He must have been one arrogant son of a bitch to have the whole team turn against him.
 
I don't know man...I don't think you can spin this one good...Do the inmates run the assylum?? Since when do the players come and tell the coach who's going to play/not play....? And what's it say as far as Koetter as a talent evaluator?

I seriously doubt it was the entire team either...now you probably have a team divided as well...this is bad, bad news.
 
This is funny, from ASU board...

You know how they come out of the woodwork, but still interesting...


Funny, I live in the midwest. Went to dinner at a restaurant over the summer and it turned out that our waiter was an ASU student back home for the summer. We talked about the football team, and found out he was the roomate of one of ASU's top players. I talked to him about Carpenter/Keller, and I voiced my opinion that Carpenter should be leading the team. He agreed and told me that Keller had some severe partying problems (all rumor/heresay so I won't write the exacts) and that combined with his arrogant/cocky attitude made him "universally hated" by ASU football players. Told me, there could be internal problems if Carpenter did not lead this team.

I kind of blew it off as rumor mongering by a guy trying to pass himself off as something more than he was to an ASU alum/fan. Needless to say I am sure it has been brought up to some extent on these boards in the past as well. Looks like it may have some teeth.
 
JumpOnBoard said:
I don't know man...I don't think you can spin this one good...Do the inmates run the assylum?? Since when do the players come and tell the coach who's going to play/not play....? And what's it say as far as Koetter as a talent evaluator?

I seriously doubt it was the entire team either...now you probably have a team divided as well...this is bad, bad news.
Click to expand...

I agree with you on the fact that it makes Koetter look like he has the spine of a jellyfish. That's what I thought whenever I read that last newspaper article you posted.
 
Carpenter's numbers were highly impressive last year, but it was clear that Keller played the tougher schedule in fairness..
 
From ESPN:

But the ASU source also told ESPN's Schad that Koetter is hoping Keller will change his mind and attend ASU's first day of classes on Monday.
 
Koetter sounds like one pathetic son of a bitch...If your starting QB quits the team and even worse quits ON his teammates, can you even let him back?? Let alone wish he comes back, no matter how F'ing talented he is...this is a delicate situation on a football team.
 
Jump...I cannot recall for some reason...but it sounds idly familiar

Vas, "hard times.." Calhoun keeps coming back for more:spank:
 
Hunt,

Why to here? Henne still has this year and next and Mallett be poppin in next year. Doesn't make sense for him.

Just was wonderin your thoughts
 
I'm wondering why a Senior would want to leave anyway. Won't he lose what eligibility he has left?
 
I thought he was....he was a decommit from UM...

"Yep, it's ASU." So says Roger Theder, former Cal coach and tutor to California quarterback Sam Keller. He confirmed what has been rumored for sometime, that Keller will no longer be attending Michigan and will instead be going to Arizona State University to play football.

I asked Roger the reason for Sam's change of heart, he said, "It all came down to the visit. Sam really did not have a good time and got a little homesick. He started thinking he wanted to be closer to home." Theder had told me in the past that ASU was always an interest to Keller, and said, "Sam will do well under coach Dirk Koetter."

Theder also stated, "Sam may have been a little intimidated by the strict academics of Michigan as well. At ASU he'll be able to concentrate more on football." Lastly, Theder mentioned that Keller's father, former Wolverine player Mike Keller, "... may move to Arizona to be closer to Sam."
 
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]Scrimmage Showcases Explosive Offense [/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]
DevilsDigest.com
[/FONT][FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]Aug 19, 2006[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica]Keller or Carpenter was the question on Sun Devil fans’ minds prior to Friday’s scrimmage, and that question was answered. How does the ASU defense stop them, is one dilemma that hasn’t been solved, at least not in tonight’s camp ending scrimmage. The Sun Devils offense threw for nearly 600 yards and scored 11 TD’s, albeit some in situation drills, and delighted the 5000 fans in the stands.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica]“It was a very difficult decision,” said head coach Dirk Koetter concerning the resolution of naming Sam Keller his starting QB. “We went with the guy that we think is the best for our situation right now. We couldn’t go wrong. We have two excellent guys, they both can do it. It was very close. I was hoping that one guy would clearly outplay the other and it just didn’t happen that way, so we had to do what we had to do.” Koetter added that both signal callers were more relaxed on Friday night than they have been lately.

The duo’s fine play naturally turned the scrimmage into an offensive clinic. Sam Keller completed 68% of his passes, and Rudy Carpenter threw for four touchdowns and ran another one himself. Terry Richardson led all receivers with 11 catches, 157 yards and two scores. Chris McGaha had a 99-yard touchdown catch on a ‘backed-up’ drill, and Nate Kimbrough added a 70-yard touchdown reception.

The maroon and gold defense obviously didn’t have their finest hour on Friday, although relatively speaking did a better job on stopping the run. Cornerback Justin Tryon had ten tackles, and fellow corner Keno Walter-White chipped in with five stops. Derron Ware, Jordan Hill, Kellen Mills, and Jon Hargis each had a sack. Littrele Jones had two pass deflections.

Following the scrimmage the hot topic of discussion wasn’t what transpired on the field, but rather what took place earlier on Friday in Koetter’s office. “Coach Koetter, that’s the kind of guy he is – he’s loyal,” commented Keller. “He has morals, values…he gets on my (behind) sometimes, but he’s a man of character. I go back to the Stanford game where he let me start and I shouldn’t have started. Rudy (Carpenter) was way better than me at that point. He let me start because I wanted to and I was in denial how much I was hurt.”

Keller admitted that he did have some anxious moments leading up to the Sun Devil skipper’s decision, which was delivered in private to each of the quarterbacks. “I’ll be honest with you, this is my life – my last year,” stated Keller. “It’s easier said than done, to be relaxed and just play football. I think with everything on the line I did a good job composing myself. There were some anxious times, and that’s why I have my teammates and even Rudy to talk to. Half of me thought I was gonna get this (starting job) and half of me thought I wouldn’t. I’m blessed to be in the position I am. I’m relishing in it and I’m gonna take this thing all the way. I’m ready I’m loose and we have a great team. This is gonna be a great ride.”

Carpenter was visibly disappointed with the decision, and while he knows that he still has three more years to play in Tempe, he said that thinking in that manner, to use Keller’s words, is easier said than done. “I’m just gonna try and continue to be myself, be who I am,” he said. “Obviously this is difficult for me, but I give Sam credit. Coach Koetter had a tough decision and made the decision he had to make. He told me he believes in loyalty, so that’s just the way it goes.” He added that his five touchdown pass performance in the scrimmage was a result of being motivated after Koetter’s decision.

Scrimmage stats:

PASSING

Keller: 20 for 29, 235 yards, 2 TD's
Carpenter: 12 of 21, 342 yards, 5 TD's
Danny Sullivan: 3 of 5, 25 yards
Dax Crum: 3 of 5, 20 yards

RUSHING

Ryan Torain: 10 carries, 42 yards, 1 TD
Shaun DeWitty: 6 carries, 36 yards, 2 TDs
Preston Jones: 2 carries, 25 yards
Dimitri Nance: 6 carries, 23 yards
Keegan Herring: 4 carries, 21 yards
Cole Ptacek 3 carries, 13 yards
Rudy Carpenter: 2 carries, 10 yards, 1 TD

RECEIVING

Terry Richardson: 11 catches, 157 yards, 2 TDs, 85 yard punt return for a TD
Nate Kimbrough: 4 catches, 156 yards, 1 TD
Chris McGaha: 4 catches, 144 yards, 1 TD
Lance Evbuomwan: 5 catches, 40 yards, 1 TD
Keegan Herring: 4 catches, 35 yards
Rudy Burgess: 3 catches, 23 yards
Zach Miller: 2 catches, 22 yards
Ryan Torain: 1 catch, 25 yards, 1 TD
Ken McGee: 1 catch, 9 yards
Jovon Williams: 1 catch, 6 yards
Brandon Smith: 1 catch, 5 yards

Special Teams

Kicking

Jesse Ainsworth
11-12 missed 50-yard, made 45,39,36
Thomas Webber

3-6 missed 45,36. Made 45 (majority of kicks for both were attempted from 36 and 45 yards out)

Punting

Jesse Ainsworth
Nine punts 40.6 yard average. Long punt of 55 yards. Jonathan Johnson
Eight punts 36.8 yard average. Long punt of 51 yards. [/FONT]
 
BAR...Keller has a lot of history with UM..his dad played here, and is actually a UM booster..and Keller signed with us originally..Mallet might even redshirt first year...and Henne might even go pro after this year...it is all up in the air.
 
I read some shit and member now. I thought about the possibility that you uncovered. I don't know about Mallet redshirt tho...we'll see
 
Wow this is crazy but probably the best move long term. Carpenter is a friggin stud.
 
I had Sam Keller as one of the top 5 QB's in the country coming into this year...damn...please keep us updated...
 
Whether he is redshirted or not he gets this year back if he sits out the whole year.....unless he goes the D2 route.
 
HUNTDOG said:
Whether he is redshirted or not he gets this year back if he sits out the whole year.....unless he goes the D2 route.
Click to expand...

If he goes D2 he can play this year and that will be it. If he goes D1 he will have to sit out a year. As a Senior, he can be redshirted if it has not already been done, but if he has already been redshirted then he will have to sit out his senior year and his eligibility will be done.
 
first it was kevin kruger, now this?? Maybe there is something going on in Tempe??
 
SoonerBS said:
If he goes D2 he can play this year and that will be it. If he goes D1 he will have to sit out a year. As a Senior, he can be redshirted if it has not already been done, but if he has already been redshirted then he will have to sit out his senior year and his eligibility will be done.
Click to expand...


this is the best way to put it.
 
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