When Arizona State tight end Chamon Metayer arrived on campus last year after transferring from Colorado — which he only spent a few months after starting his college career at Cincinnati — it was painfully clear to position coach Jason Mohns that work needed to be done.
“Chamon came in last spring or early summer workouts,” Mohns said. “I was watching him come in my office. I looked out the window, they were doing basic agility drills, and he looked like he had two left feet. I was looking like, ‘Oh man, what did we get here?’ He did not look coordinated.”
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It took some time, but soon, Metayer, now a redshirt senior, began to find his footing. Mohns recalled a particular moment at the Sun Devils’ annual preseason practice session in Payson.
“We started working on just footwork and hand placement,” Mohns continued. “We went up to Camp Tontozona and an inside run period, which is good on good, (offensive line), tight ends, Chamon came off the line of scrimmage, uncoiled his hips and knocked the (defensive end) off the line of scrimmage, blew him back, snapped his head back, climbed the block. It was textbook footwork and coordination. That was a light bulb moment. Chamon is listening to the stuff we’re talking about, is using his technique and can see it pay off.”
That development played out in the field during the 2024 season. Metayer recorded career highs in receptions (32), yards (306) and games (14). Metayer tied his career high with five touchdowns.
As a blocker, Metayer excelled as he helped pave the way to running back Cam Skattebo’s legendary season on the ground.
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“What makes him special is his ability to be explosive and generate power from the ground,” Mohns said. “This is a dude that looked like he had two left feet that’s now coming off the ball knocking big, physical defensive ends off the line of scrimmage and when you can do that, when your tight end can go one on one with a defensive end and win, not just stalemate, but win the line of scrimmage you usually have a lot of success, especially if you have a back like Skat behind you.”
Now, Metayer is entering this summer far ahead of where he was 12 months ago.
Tight end Chamon Metayer (7) of the Arizona State Sun Devils scores a touchdown during the second quarter against the Kansas Jayhawks at Mountain America Stadium on Oct. 5, 2024, in Tempe.
He’s settling into a lead role in the tight end room at ASU, which is expected to be a bigger part of the offense this season with redshirt senior Cameron Harpole, Kentucky transfer Khamari Anderson — who might be the most athletic player in the group — and true freshman AJ Ia, a player that has already drawn praise from coach Kenny Dillingham. Redshirt freshman Jayden Fortier, a tantalizing four-star prospect, is on the way back from an ACL injury suffered in the state title game of his senior year in high school.
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Metayer has shown his chops as a blocker. He’s looking to increase his role as a receiver in 2025.
With Skattebo now preparing for the NFL draft, there’s a hole to fill in the Sun Devils offense.
“Just be more consistent,” Metayer said. “Just being more heavily in the pass game because Skat isn’t here. We can’t lean too much on the run game. We’ve got other people that’s going to step up in the backfield. But we’re going to have to throw the ball a little more.”
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Redshirt junior wide receiver Jordyn Tyson figures to be the main recipient of what will likely become an increased focus on the passing game. Tyson broke out last year as the go-to option for redshirt sophomore quarterback Sam Leavitt. Tyson led the nation in receiving yards in the last six games of the season with 729, according to Pro Football Focus.
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Many preseason rankings have Tyson and Leavitt near the top in the country in their respective positions.
Defenses will look first to shut down Tyson. That could open up some favorable matchups for other players on the team.
“Honestly, I don’t think you’ll be able to play anybody here just one-on-one individually,” Metayer said. “We got Malik McClain. We got Jordyn Tyson. We got Jalen Moss. We got Derek Eusebio. We got Noble Johnson. We got many guys. And the tight end room, we could go 14 personnel, 15 personnel. At the end of the day, anybody can be put out there because coaches have the most trust in them to go out there and execute.”
During his time in college, Metayer has seen the coaching deck shuffle. He’s in a stable spot now in Tempe with Marcus Arroyo, the offensive coordinator, and Mohns solidified in their roles.
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That continuity is a breath of fresh air for Metayer.
“I’ve been in different types of offenses. This is like my seventh offensive coordinator,” Metayer said. “Whatever the game plan is, I’m going to find a way to insert myself and do it to the best of my ability.”
Logan Stanley is a sports reporter with The Arizona Republic who primarily focuses on high school, ASU and Olympic sports. To suggest ideas for human-interest stories and other news, reach out to Stanley at logan.stanley@gannett.com or 707-293-7650. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter: @LSscribe.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: ASU football tight end Chamon Metayer settling into lead role
