ASU Football heads to memory-filled Camp Tonotozona
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Sparky is displayed on a water tank at Camp Tontozona. Photo: Courtesy of Samantha Chow/ASU
ASU Football is headed up north for its annual summer training at Camp Tonotozona.
The big picture: Nearly every summer since 1960, the Sun Devil football program has descended upon the no-frills campground outside Payson for intense practices away from distraction.
- It breeds the kind of team bonding made possible only when several dozen young men have to share a bathroom.
Driving the news: The team will be at "Camp T" Wednesday through Saturday, culminating with a scrimmage open to the public.
- ASU Football head coach Kenny Dillingham brought back the camp last summer after three years of COVID and weather disruptions.
Zoom in: ASU News collected a smattering of memories from former players and coaches that show just how intense, beneficial — and sometimes ridiculous — Camp T has been for generations of Sun Devils.
- Like when former star quarterback Jake Plummer locked the freshman squad in a cabin with a dead bat.
- Or when legendary coach Frank Kush had any player who made a mistake run up the dreaded "Mount Kush."
- Or the time Pat Tillman freaked everyone out by proving he could jump from the top of a nearby waterfall into a tiny pool below.
The bottom line: Former head coach Todd Graham told ASU News he suggests that every football coach have a place like Camp Tontozona.
- "I'm telling you, having an opportunity to get away and team build … it's the most productive thing we did."
