TEMPE, Ariz. — With the loss of lead wide receiver Jordyn Tyson, Arizona State football must adjust to life without him.

Tyson was the heartbeat of the Sun Devils’ receiver room from 2024-25, finishing with 1,812 yards and 19 touchdowns, earning All-Big 12 First Team honors both seasons. 

With an impressive college resume, Tyson took his skills to the next level and was selected eighth overall by the New Orleans Saints in the 2026 NFL Draft. 

Without its No. 1 option downfield, ASU has a hole to fill in the wide receiver room.

To address the loss of Tyson, ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham looked to the transfer portal ahead of the 2026 season, bringing in three talented receivers to develop under wide receivers coach Hines Ward. 

Ward spent 14 seasons as a wide receiver with the Pittsburgh Steelers, earning four Pro Bowl selections and winning two Super Bowls. 

The Sun Devils hired Ward in 2024, and he helped shape Tyson into a first-round draft pick.

Ward, who coached in the NFL and XFL before taking the ASU job, said he enjoys coaching at the college level because of the off-the-field lessons.

“It’s not just coaching and developing football players, but developing young men,” Ward said.

Ward said he also wants to help his players succeed in life beyond football.

On the field, Ward said development was a common reason this year’s receivers chose ASU.

“Opportunity and development,” Ward said. “Those are the two key points that we were stressing to all the guys and I’m glad that we have them.”

Senior Omarion Miller is one of those receivers.

Miller transferred from Colorado, the same school where Tyson began his career in 2022, and joins the Sun Devils carrying high expectations off a standout 2025 season.

Last year, Miller led the Buffaloes with 808 yards receiving and eight touchdown catches, earning All-Big 12 Second Team honors.

ASU played Colorado in the penultimate game of the 2025 regular season, so Dillingham has firsthand experience of Miller’s talent.

“We saw what he can do. We saw the danger that he can create when he’s on the field,” Dillingham said. “So, when you really get to gameplan for somebody, you know him so well that you know most of his strengths, most of his weaknesses.”

While Miller said he has high expectations of himself, he doesn’t worry about any outside expectations or comparisons to Tyson.

“Jordyn’s (Tyson) a great guy, but he’s doing his own thing,” Miller said. “I want to be Omarion Miller the best I can.”

With the expectation of following in Tyson’s footsteps, Miller said he talked to Tyson and asked for advice.

“Just asking him things he sees, what I should do here, what I should do there,” Miller said. “Him just giving me the best advice on the field and off the field. I’m in a place where his advice is good for me because I feel like I’m following his tracks right now.”

While Miller looks toward Tyson as inspiration, junior wide receiver Reed Harris brings the Sun Devils another veteran receiver from the portal. 

A four-star transfer from Boston College, Harris recorded 673 yards receiving and caught five touchdown passes.

Like Miller, Harris is a high-level deep-threat receiver who carries heightened expectations off a career season in 2025. 

Harris averaged 17.3 yards per catch last season with the Eagles and 28.6 yards per catch in 2024.

Harris said the development of receivers under Dillingham and Ward led him to choose ASU.

“Just what they’ve done in the last couple years here and everything I’ve seen about them,” Harris said. “All I had to do was jump on one phone call and I knew this was the place I wanted to be at.”

Similarly, Harris enjoys the positive energy Ward brings to the team.

“He’s got a really great personality, and he’s always being all funny in meetings,” Harris said. “You can just be yourself around him, he’s a great coach.”

As a former high school quarterback, Harris transitioned to receiver at Boston College. 

Still, Harris said he believes the Sun Devils’ coaching staff can help him further develop.

Alongside Miller and Harris, ASU brought in sophomore Raiden Vines-Bright, a local product who transferred to his hometown after a season at Washington.

Vines-Bright grew up in Tempe and attended Corona del Sol High School, where he was named a first-team All-State receiver his junior year in 2023.

Vines-Bright then transferred to IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, for his senior year, although he missed nearly the entire season due to a broken collarbone.

Despite the injury, Vines-Bright received multiple Division I offers and ultimately chose the Huskies.

As a freshman in 2025, Vines-Bright had 238 yards receiving and caught his first collegiate touchdown in the Huskies’ 38-10 LA Bowl win over Boise State.

After two years away from home, Vines-Bright said he cannot wait to make his return.

“I’m very excited,” Vines-Bright said. “Being able to play in front of people I grew up with and that I’ve known for years.”

Likewise, Ward said he is ready for Vines-Bright to show off his talent on the field.

“The kid can play very versatile, play a lot of different positions,” Ward said.

Vines-Bright said developing under experienced coaches in Dillingham and Ward will further help him grow.

“I just feel like being around guys like that, guys that have done it before, is going to make me a much better player,” Vines-Bright said.

Apart from Miller, Harris and Vines-Bright, ASU retained three receivers from last year’s team.

Juniors Derek Eusebio and Jaren Hamilton, alongside senior Jalen Moss, bring experience and depth to the receiver room.

Eusebio, Hamilton and Moss combined for 45 receptions, 738 yards and three touchdowns in 2025.

With the combination of high-profile transfers and returning players, Ward desires to build a winning receiver room.

“I want to build a world-class wide receiver corps that, week in and week out, we’re the ones that help put our hands in the pile and help try to win some ballgames around here,” Ward said.