How good is ASU's Cam Skattebo? Even Christian McCaffrey has caught the eye

Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo had just put together a strong performance against USC when a familiar name popped up in his social media messages. It was none other than NFL running back Christian McCaffrey. That it was a popular NFL player was one thing, but Skattebo is from Northern California and a 49ers fan.

Skattebo has spoken to McCaffrey a few times and the two have exchanged text messages. They tried to find a good time to work out together, but their availabilities never aligned. Still, he won't forget the support from someone who is in the NFL – where Skattebo wants to end up. It also helped Skattebo head into an offseason that has set the stage for an impressive start.

“He messaged me first and said he liked the way I played,” Skattebo said. “Then he had four touchdowns in his next game, so I messaged him and said I really liked the way he played.”

ASU looks for a 3-0 start against Texas State in a nationally televised (ESPN) game on Thursday night in San Marcos, Texas, and Skattebo should play a major role in the game strategy.

Sun Devils coach Kenny Dillingham knows about Skattebo's desire to play on Sundays, so he gave his player some advice after last season.

“I said, 'Listen, if you want to play on Sundays, you're not one right now, and if you want to be one, you've got to lose weight, get in shape, get faster, control your passion and channel it,'” Dillingham said. “He did everything I asked him to do. He looked like a Sunday player right now.”

Now it's time for Skattebo, who is in his final season as a player. He ran for 262 yards on 33 carries to help ASU (2-0) to a 30-23 victory over Mississippi State on Saturday at Mountain America Stadium. That performance earned him Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week honors, as well as two national Player of the Week awards.

Skattebo is not blessed with quickness. His size of 5'10″ and 205 pounds is reason enough to overlook him, but his notable traits include balance and vision. His running style is more like a battering ram or bowling ball, making him difficult to catch. Dillingham was asked if it was too much that Skattebo carried the ball 33 times, given the Sun Devils' quick maneuverability.

“He's a really tough guy,” the coach said. “He can handle that kind of pressure this year, which he couldn't last year, because he got himself in shape to handle that kind of pressure. The way he runs, he punishes people a lot of the time, which is positive.”

“He'll have some bumps and bruises, but he doesn't get as much physical contact because he plays with such padding. Because of his balance, he causes more physical contact than he takes hits.”

The nationwide attention is compensation for the path Skattebo had to take.

He wasn't recruited out of high school. A shoulder injury early in his senior season played a role. His size and speed also seemed to be a problem.

Leo Skattebo says his son had a hard time being recruited because self-promotion is not in his nature. Although fans see the player as cocky on the field, Cam is actually a reserved, even shy person off the field.

“I just think he didn't always know what questions to ask,” said Leo Skattebo, who coached his son when he was younger. “Sometimes he was really quiet and maybe the coaches thought he wasn't interested or they just misunderstood it.”

Skattebo ended up at Sacramento State, north of Rio Linda, where his family lives. He attended a camp there before his senior year. He got an offer and took it in case nothing else came up.

The plan was always to transfer from there. Leo Skattebo said then-coach Troy Taylor knew Cam from his days as a high school player and liked him. If Taylor got a higher-level job, Skattebo wanted to go with him. Taylor did indeed get a more coveted job – Stanford. This brought two problems.

“Cam is not a Stanford guy when it comes to school,” Leo said. “And back then, they weren't accepting transfers.”

So it was Sacramento State. Leo stressed that if Cam wanted to earn a chance at a higher-level program, he would have to be good. Really good.

“I told him, 'You can't just be the best player on your team or even one of the best in the league. You have to be the best,'” Leo Skattebo said.

The decision to attend an FCS school bothered Cam.

“When I played at the FCS level, I was more prepared than most,” he said. “These guys aren't looking to get to the next level. They're just happy to be there… It almost wasn't enough for me. It bothered me a little bit. But moving to the Pac-12 helped me, so the transition was really pretty smooth.”

Scouting report: ASU football faces a test at Texas State in a short week

Cam spent three years in the Californian capital. He rushed for 1,372 yards and helped the Hornets to a 12-2 record. He was named Offensive Player of the Year in 2022.

Yes, he was the best player in the conference.

It was the perfect time to put his name in the transfer portal. Beau Baldwin, who had just been hired as offensive coordinator by the then newly appointed head coach in Dillingham, paved the way to Tempe. Baldwin was the head coach at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, a member of the Big Sky Conference along with Sacramento State.

ASU needed running backs after Xazavian Valladay graduated and Daniyel Ngata entered the portal. Baldwin tipped running backs coach Shaun Aguano. Deal done.

The 2023 season did not live up to Skattebo's expectations. He ran for 788 yards on 164 attempts. Injuries wreaked havoc on the roster, especially on the offensive line and at the quarterback positions. Skattebo ended up doing literally everything. He logged more than 50 snaps as a quarterback, more than 350 as a running back, two as a tight end and more than 100 as a slot or wide receiver. Oh, and there were three in kick returns and five in punt coverage. He also punted eight times, averaging a team-best 42.3 yards per punt.

Dillingham admitted that he overworked his most versatile player, making Skattebo less effective. With more depth on the roster this season, Skattebo can focus on what he does best.

Skattebo is enjoying the early success of the 2024 season. After his epic performance on Saturday, he admitted he had more “fun” than he has in a “long time.” He answered a handful of questions from the media and then rushed out to greet his family, who were at the game as they are at every game.

Before he left, he took about a dozen recording devices that the media had placed in front of him and placed them one by one in front of quarterback Sam Leavitt, who was sitting at the other end of the table. Everyone in the room laughed.

Skattebo has taken on a leadership role this season. He is part of the 12-man leadership council and was one of four players who accompanied Dillingham to Big 12 Media Day in Las Vegas.

His passion on the field has also made him popular with fans and teammates.

“He's improved in the offseason,” senior center Leif Fautanu said. “He has more say than he did last year and really cares about the level of the team. He's very passionate about what he does and he just wants to have the momentum every game. But as passionate as he is, he's a great leader.”

“Sometimes you have to slow him down a little bit when he gets too passionate, but at the same time he's a very passionate and emotional guy. That's why we love having him in the backfield.”

Skattebo admits that his phone was blowing up in the days following the big game, so often that he had to put it on “do not disturb” so he could concentrate on football.

No word on whether McCaffery was among those trying to reach him.

This article originally appeared in the Arizona Republic: Spotlight brightens as ASU's Cam Skattebo focuses on running