Matadors say goodbye to 17, hello to Pistone

Steffon Martin and Chris Young won't be leaving Arizona just yet.

In fact, they'll still be playing in the same linebacking corps.

The two Arizona Western sophomores announced Wednesday they signed to continue their careers at Arizona State, joining new Sun Devils coach Todd Graham.

The Matadors made some moves of their own, most notably signing Yuma Catholic quarterback Tommy Pistone. Early rumors had him signing with Northern Arizona, but come this fall he will be a Matador.

“Well, the offers didn't come in that I were hoping would come in,” Pistone said. “Arizona Western offered me last year, and they let me know they were going to keep that offer.

“I felt that was the best decision to make was stay in town. I get the best of both worlds. I get to stay in town and have my people still here with me, and I get the reality of being on the No. 2 team in the country.”

Pistone said in talking with coach Tom Minnick and offensive coordinator Michael Orthmann, he felt confident he'd get a chance at earning the starting job. He said the coaches told him the position is basically between him and a transfer student from Kent State.

In all, 17 Matadors signed with four-year colleges, 13 with NCAA Division I programs. Young and Martin will join tight end Darwin Rogers at ASU. Rogers transferred during the early signing period but it wasn't announced until today. The trio are among eight players to sign with a BCS conference school: running back Damien Williams committed to Oklahoma, receiver Josh Ford will go to Kansas, right tackle Devin Smith signed with Purdue, cornerback Josh Brown is going to South Florida and quarterback Cameron Coffman will attend Indiana.

For Young and Martin, the two friends will continue to play on the same field.

“With Steffon going there, that was one of the things me and him talked about throughout the season and the past season,” said Young, a first-team All-American and Western States Football League Defensive Player of the Year. “Obviously, both of us getting to know each other the beginning of last season, getting that strong bond together, it made this decision for the both of us to go to ASU and really turn the program around.”

Martin, from Indianapolis, said he was considering Indiana and ASU, while Young said he narrowed his choices down to those two schools and Oregon State. And while both said they were prepared to separate from the other, they are glad that it worked out that they stay together.

“You kind of want to stay together, and we did, so it's all good,” Martin said. “Eventually we know that we have to do what's best for both of our futures. That's what we're looking toward. That's my boy, so I'm happy.”

Minnick said it's a good pickup for the first-year ASU coach Graham.

“Indiana, Arizona State, Oregon State all offered both of them,” Minnick said. “I think it was between those three schools. And they're good buddies. They have good times together. It's hard to separate them.

“It's a good thing for Arizona State. They're getting two quality kids, kids who are going to work their butts off to make Arizona State a powerhouse. That's a great thing.”

The Matadors played in their third-straight bowl game this year, losing the national championship to East Mississippi.

“It's a great testament how far our program has come,” Minnick said. “You get to the national championship game with great football players, and we had a bunch of great football players.”

Williams had two touchdowns in the bowl game and was the WSFL Offensive Player of the Year. He'll be going to running back in Oklahoma.

“I took all my visits, and I sat down with my parents. They wanted to see what was best for me,” Williams said. “I've got two years left, so I really got to figure out which program will bring me to the next level. OU is that program.”

A generally happy occasion, signing day proved somewhat bittersweet for defensive tackle Tomasi Molesi. While he said he was looking forward to going to Portland State, a Football Championship Subdivision team, he was hoping to catch on with a Football Bowl Subdivision Team — he had 32 FBS offers out of high school and committed to Oregon State before taking the junior college route.

“One thing about Portland State I really appreciate is they kept the faith in me,” Molesi said. “For my position I'm very undersized. But they looked at my film, met me as a person and wanted to bring me out there. I fell in love with the place, the coaches were great and it's another opportunity for me to carry on my career.”

However, he said if it wasn't meant to be, then it wasn't meant to be.

“It's going to be a big driving force,” Molesi said. “I had committed to Oregon State before I committed here. I thought I did good progressing, but they didn't agree, I guess. It gives me the drive not just to be a better athlete but a better person.”

Damien Williams, RB, Oklahoma; Chris Young, LB, Arizona State; Josh Ford, WR, Kansas; Steffon Martin, LB, Arizona State; Tony Grimes, CB, Florida Atlantic; Tomasi Molesi, DT, Portland State; Calvin Tonga, DT, Colorado State; Devin Smith, RT, Purdue; Michael Terry, DE, Fort Hays State (Kan., DII); David Ke'kuewa, Bowling Green (Ohio); Ryan Mosby, LB, Louisiana-Lafayette; Cameron Coffman, QB, Indiana; Darwin Rogers, TE, Arizona State; Josh Brown, CB, South Florida; Zach Quines, LB, Central Missouri State (DII); Brandon Birdsong, WR, Central State (Ohio, DII); Chris Marez, DE, Texas College (NAIA)