LONDON — The Arizona State football team caught a break in one regard on their trip to London to face Kansas in the London Jack Classic. The Sun Devils are staying at a resort and have access to two rugby fields converted to football fields.
The Lensbury, in the Southwest suburb of Teddington, offers plenty of amenities used by locals. Among those are tennis courts, many of which are adjacent to the fields where the Sun Devils have practiced. A walking path stretches from the courts to the main building, running between the two fields ASU is using.
Many people stopped on their way to the main building to try to assess what was actually taking place on the fields. Londoners are more familiar with soccer or rugby, and they could tell this didn't
look like either.
The game on Saturday, Sept. 19 at Wembley Stadium will mark the first college football game played in the country, although some NFL teams have played in England in recent years.
The Kansas Jayhawks arrived in London on Sept. 15 and are staying at the Hilton Syon Park, about three miles from their practice venue at Grasshoppers FRC
All appreciated the weather, which couldn't be more different than the normal temperatures under which ASU usually trains. The temperatures were in the high 50s when the players hit the field and reached only the mid-60s by the time they left. There was no rain.
"This is really nice," right guard Jalen Klemm said. "I could get used to this. It's been perfect."
Locked in the loo
Klemm and senior defensive tackle C.J. Fite were asked if anything funny happened during their stay. The two quickly came up with one, saying that sophomore offensive lineman Manamo'ui Muti accidentally locked himself in a bathroom and had to ask for help.
"It was all-time. It was so funny," Klemm said. "I came and rescued him. Thankfully he had his phone. I asked him what he would have done if he didn't have his phone, and he said, 'I might have had to break the door down.' He was in there, and then, like, maybe it got jammed or something. I just went up to the main desk, and they came out and fixed it super fast. We went in there, and he was knocking on the door, going, 'Come on, guys.' That's an all-time story."
Rules of the road
Many have mentioned that this is one of the countries where cars are driven on the left side of the road. This means the steering wheel and driver are on the right side of the vehicle. Well, ASU senior athletic director of communications Doug Tammaro was getting in a shuttle to go from where he was staying to the team site (some personnel had to be housed at another hotel). The driver told him he could sit in the front seat. Tammaro proceeded to go around to the right seat, which would normally be the right place for a passenger to sit.
"Driver said, 'Sorry, wrong seat,' '' Tammaro said with a laugh.
The other football
Tammaro and his athletic communication media specialists, Jeremy Hawkes and Connor Smith, took in a soccer game at London Stadium featuring West Ham and Fulham, which drew 40,808 spectators. It was part of the Carabao Cup (League Cup) Round 3.
Meanwhile, some ASU football players admitted that they have a newfound interest in soccer.
A change of tunes
The music that typically blares over the loudspeakers at ASU's usual practice venue had to change. ASU traded in the rap and hip-hop for music that paid homage to the country the players are visiting: Rolling Stones, Beatles, Pink Floyd. Other songs included Rock the Casbah by The Clash and Wonderwall by Oasis. Finally, there was the Cha-Cha Slide. The latter drove a few players to bust out some dance moves. One of those was punter Nick McLarty. At 6-foot-7, it was an interesting sight,
When in London
- The ASU special teams players were seen fiddling around with a rugby ball and booting it around like a soccer ball during their down moments in practice.
- Both teams have said on multiple occasions that they are on a business trip. It's not a bowl game; it's a conference game that matters. Sightseeing excursions were not planned. The exception was an outing on Sept. 17 when the teams took a boat ride down the River Thames and went to the Tower Bridge. The pep bands and spirit squads welcomed their teams.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Gawking locals and a bathroom mishap highlight Arizona State's London week
