2026 Positional Breakdown: Khamari Anderson is ready for his close-up

Arizona State was once known for producing elite talent at the tight end position - think Jerry Smith, Zach Miller, and Todd Heap, for starters - but the evolution of offensive football the last 15 years or so has changed that trend.

Nevertheless, Arizona State under Kenny Dillingham has made extensive use of multiple tight end sets, and it's created a renewed opportunity for tight ends to make their mark in Tempe. As we gear up for the start of a new season, opportunities at tight end remain very much up for grabs.

Khamari Anderson is ready for his moment

Arizona State's starting tight end this year will be Khamari Anderson, and he's been waiting for this moment for a while. The Detroit native committed to Kentucky as a 4-star prospect and the second overall player in Michigan back in 2022 but rarely saw the field. In two years, he caught just six passes.

Anderson then transferred to Arizona State, where he primarily backed up last year's starter, Chamon Metayer. Despite limited action, Anderson finished with five catches, including his first touchdown in the college level.

Now, Metayer is off to the NFL, and Anderson has stepped in as the starter. A former two-way player that was also a defensive end, Anderson has been a bundle of athleticism and raw potential for a while. At 6'5" and 255 pounds, Anderson also has prototypical size for the position.

Fundamentally, the Sun Devils don't use the tight end position much in the passing game - Metayer had 375 yards on 38 catches last year, both career highs - but Anderson has the potential to become a matchup nightmare for opposing defenses. Either way, he'll be getting considerably more workload than he's ever had before.

Major questions linger behind Anderson

Anderson has missed stretches of both spring and summer practices with nagging injuries - nothing that's expected to limit his availability come time for the season - but that's laid bare how thin the position is behind him.

Anthony Miller transferred in from Tulane, but the senior failed to really take advantage of Anderson's absences. He was never an impact player for the Green Wave, and offers depth more than anything right now.

James Giggey is a junior from Prescott Valley and, at 265 pounds, he's got the most heft of these tight ends. He almost exclusively played special teams last year, but saw the field on offense as fullback near the goal line. He hasn't made a big jump, but the coaches do seem to trust his work ethic and tenacity enough to give him opportunities in certain packages.

The wild card here is AJ Ia.

The former 4-star was ranked as the 15th best tight end in the nation and the 23rd overall player in the state of California. Standing at 6'6", Ia has the potential to become a dynamic pass-catching threat. He turned plenty of heads in practices last year as a true freshman, but a more crowded room kept him from seeing the field much.

That led to increased opportunities this offseason in practices, but Ia has been a model of inconsistency, with drops or missed assignments or false starts in team drills. The raw talent has still shone through plenty, but the lack of consistency has brought up questions about whether or not Ia should be the second tight end behind Anderson.

In fact, last week's lackluster practice for the group of tight ends led to Dillingham giving practice reps to non-tight ends, including defensive end Clayton Smith. The move felt more like a classic Dillingham motivation tactic than anything else, but it underscored just how much of a question mark this position is entering the season.

A big test for coach Jason Mohns

One of the more widely praised additions to Dillingham's inaugural coaching staff was Jason Mohns as the tight ends coach. The former head coach at local Saguaro High School, Mohns won seven state titles. The Arizona State alum has long been considered a future college coach.

When he first arrived in Tempe, he inherited the uber-talented Jalin Conyers and managed to retain him for a year, and then lured Metayer from Colorado. This year, however, will give a good look at Mohns' development ability.

While Anderson was a transfer player, he's spent the last year growing and developing under Mohns after little-to-no playing time before that. The same goes for Giggey and Ia. The lack of known commodities in this room right now has fans effectively banking on Mohns to deliver the goods.

Obviously, the success of this year's tight ends should not drastically alter one way or the other our estimation of Mohns as a coach, but this is an early test for the well-regarded young coach.