Flashback to April 28 of this year when wide receiver Devin Lucien, a graduate transfer from UCLA, joined the Sun Devil Football program. It was an important late development for Todd Graham’s 2015 class given that ASU had missed out on their top receiver prospects on signing day two months earlier.

Coming out of high school, Devin Lucien was rated four stars by both Scout and Rivals recruiting services. He was ranked the No. 28 wide receiver in the nation by Rivals and No. 44 by Scout. Rivals had slotted Lucien as the No. 190 national prospect in 2011.

Devin Lucien with UCLA in 2014

Position:  Wide Receiver
Height:  6’2″
Weight:  195
Year:  RS Senior (ASU)
Hometown:  Encino, CA
High School:  Crespi
Other College:  UCLA

Lucien played for football power, Crespi High School, in Los Angeles, which was a rival of Taft High School where ASU QB Mike Bercovici had played. Even so, he got to know Bercovici at HS all-star games and seven-on-seven tournaments.

If it wasn’t for Bercovici who spoke for Lucien when he applied for a transfer to ASU, head coach Todd Graham would not have considered accepting him into the program. “Taking a person for one year is not something we do very often,” Graham told the L.A. Times. “I liked his characteristics and the things he brought to our program.”

Bercovici did himself and the team a solid as Lucien became his no. 1 target this year, leading in all receiving categories: 57 receptions – 930 yards – 7 touchdowns. Lucien is now just 70 yards away from giving ASU a third consecutive 1,000-yard receiver for just second time in school history (the Devils also did it five straight years from 2001-2005: Shaun McDonald twice and Derek Hagan three times).

In the last two games (the Territorial Cup and Cal), Lucien is averaging 8.5 receptions (23.2 yards per catch), 195 yards, and 2 TD’s. And with respects to Jaelen Strong, ASU’s most successful receiver since Derek Hagen, Devin Lucien doesn’t trail far behind in production.

Sun Devil receiver, #15 Devin Lucien

With a repeat performance in the Cactus Bowl on Jan. 2, Lucien would finish his single season in Tempe with 65 receptions for 1,125 yards (just 40 less than Strong in 2014) and 9 TD’s. To put that into perspective, in his three years within the crowded receiving corps at UCLA, Lucien totaled just 58 receptions for 752 yards and six touchdowns.

He is also one of three Sun Devils (Foster, White) with over 50 receptions this year, good for tops within the Power-5 conferences. It’s also only the second time that ASU has had three players reach the 50-reception mark in one season, joining the 2013 squad (Jaelen Strong, D.J. Foster, Marion Grice).

Pasadena, CA: Devin Lucien as the Sun Devils closed out a 38-23 victory over #7 UCLA

Lucien has commented on the likelihood that he would have had a more prolific college career had he been a part of the Sun Devil program early on. He’s followed the lead of D.J. Foster to learn the Sun Devil way and has spoken highly of the unique “brotherhood” that exists at ASU.

Due to his increased production and exposure in Tempe, Devin Lucien will get a good look from NFL Scouts in the coming months. In the meantime we’re looking forward to his final outing in Maroon & Gold when the Devils square off with West Virginia in the Cactus Bowl on Jan. 2 at Chase Field in downtown Phoenix.

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