Tracking every Arizona Football pickup on National Signing Day

From Western New York down to the desert

The defensive line quickly became an area with virtually no experience or depth. Thankfully, new offensive coordinator Dino Babers' East Coast ties paid dividends as Arizona was able to secure a surprise commitment from former Syracuse defensive tackle Kevon Darton.

Darton has a blue-collar mentality when it comes to the game of football, and isn't afraid of doing dirty work. After all, his path to Syracuse was anything but conventional. He joined the program as a walk-on in 2019 and wasn't put on a scholarship until ahead of the 2022 campaign. He didn't see the field in 2019, only saw action in six games in the 2020 season, and appeared in (but didn't start) all 12 games of the 2021 season. He spent the last two seasons as a fixture along Syracuse's defensive line and started in all 26 games played, and he very well may be starting for Arizona.

Let's address the elephant in the room: Darton is seriously undersized for the position. As of late, Arizona has been consistently sending out linemen on both sides of the ball that stand at or above 6-foot-2 and 300 pounds. However, Darton managed to wreck shop as a pass-rusher from the defensive interior last year, posting the first five sacks of his career and notching a forced fumble and fumble recovery to go with it. He's posted 96 total tackles and 12 TFLs over the last two years too, so expect Darton to make plays whenever he's on the field.