Nick Ralston never could find a consistent role at Arizona State. Now, the fifth-year senior is preparing to finish his college career at a new school.

Ralston, who played everything from running back to linebacker to utility back during a four-year career with the Sun Devils, told Sun Devil Source that he transferring from the program. As a graduate student, he will be eligible to play immediately in 2019 wherever he goes.

The former three-star prospect from Argyle, Texas, bounced around ASU’s depth chart after arriving on campus as part of the program’s 2014 recruiting class before settling in successfully as a lead blocker after the first month of the 2018 season when the Sun Devils made some offensive changes to enhance their run game. Ralston was a key player to the team's success in that regard as running back Eno Benjamin broke the program's all-time single-season rushing record.

The 6-foot, 221 pound Ralston redshirted during the 2015 season before recording 36 rushing attempts for 161 yards and two touchdowns as a running back between the 2016 and 2017 seasons, serving as the understudy to Demario Richard and Kalen Ballage.

But even after Richard and Ballage graduated last offseason, Ralston couldn’t nail down a starting role as a ball carrier, with Benjamin instead taking over as the No. 1 tailback entering the 2018 campaign. ASU also signed four running backs in its 2018 class, including redshirt sophomore junior college transfer Isaiah Floyd, to compete for backup reps.

Last spring, Ralston switched to defense and fought for snaps at middle linebacker. While he impressed during the offseason and received some first-team action on defense early in preseason camp, he eventually slipped into a third-string role behind freshman Darien Butler and junior Khaylan Kearse-Thomas.

By Week 4, Ralston went back to the offensive side of the ball, where he was utilized as an important lead-blocker in the Sun Devils’ offense, lining up as an H-back and fullback in different formations to help the team average 184 rushing yards per game. As a pass protector, Ralston earned an impressive 80.4 score from Pro Football Focus.

While he ran the ball just once during the year, he caught four passes for 18 yards and one touchdown.

Off the field, Ralston was one of the Sun Devils highest performers in the classroom. He graduated with a 4.00 GPA and earned the team’s Pat Tillman Outstanding Academic Achievement Award last month.

Ralston was likely to continue in his blocking role had he stayed with the Sun Devils in 2019. His departure leaves ASU with no natural fullback on scholarship, while tight ends Tommy Hudson, Jared Bubak and freshman Nolan Matthews could all be used as H-backs in coordinator Rob Likens' offense.

Ralston is the third ASU player looking to transfer out of the program as a graduate, joining senior linebackers Jay Jay Wilson and Malik Lawal.