The exodus of talented players away from Arizona State's football team has been glorious to witness, and it gets even better when Arizona Football is in position to benefit from it.
Former Sun Devils wide receiver Elijhah Badger will be heading to Tucson to take an official visit with Arizona and newly-minted head coach Brent Brennan. He also has a visit lined up for Florida, and he's already completed a visit with Jedd Fisch's staff in Washington.
Ex-Arizona State standout receiver Elijhah Badger is planning to visit Arizona and Florida, sources tell @chris_hummer and me for @247Sports.
— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) May 2, 2024
Badger, who already visited Washington, had 135 combined catches the last two years and is the top-ranked uncommitted WR in the portal.… pic.twitter.com/m7qw2WBRCf
Why Elijhah Badger is a fit for Arizona
Brennan's best bet would be to leverage current Arizona wide receivers coach Bobby Wade, who spent the last two years coaching Badger in the same role with the Sun Devils. With Kevin Green Jr. entering the transfer portal, there is a freshly-available roster spot — especially a pass-catcher of Badger's caliber who would be a deadly secondary receiving option.
Badger finished up his junior season last year, but he has four years of collegiate experience under his belt. He didn't see any action in the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season and never caught more than two passes in a game in 2021. 2022 was his breakout year, where he logged 70 catches for 866 yards and seven touchdowns despite the Sun Devils going 1-9.
He stands at 6-foot-2 and 190 pounds, which makes him a bit smaller than Tetairoa McMillan. However, he's a Swiss army knife who can be utilized as a catch-and-run threat on short screen plays or a shifty receiver who will find soft spots in zone coverages. He also can run out of the backfield to complete the "do-it-all" checklist that makes offensive coordinators salivate.
Badger's 2023 campaign
Last season saw his production dip, but Arizona State's quarterback play was largely uninspiring and he was the only pass-catcher with more than 30 catches and 400 yards on the season.
He caught a team-leading 65 passes for 713 yards — 28% of the team's passing yards — and a team-lead-tying three touchdowns. He was the only Sun Devil to surpass 100 receiving yards in a game, and he did it twice (134 vs. Colorado, 116 at UCLA). He also carried the ball 11 times for 51 yards and even found the end zone against Washington State.
Badger is an experienced, battle-tested, and productive receiver. There's no reason things should change too much for him; coming to Arizona means he can stay in the same state that embraced him and keep working with the positional coach that brought out his two best years.
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