ASU football players to fans: 'We will be champions'

With seven months until Arizona State's opener against Texas A&M, the Sun Devils aren't wasting any time getting ready for the season.

Mike Bercovici, D.J. Foster and Jordan Simone want fans to know just what to expect this season. The three co-wrote an open letter to fans that was posted on ASU's football site, promising the return of the Territorial Cup to Tempe and a championship.

It's something you don't see everyday, and it reaffirms the quality of leadership that the 2015 Sun Devils are expected to have.

The letter read:

To Sun Devil Nation,

As student-athletes at Arizona State University, we want to first and foremost thank all who contribute and support our football program. We are honored to have the opportunity to be members of the Sun Devil Football team and we take very seriously our duty to compete at the highest level in all that we do.

The leaders of this team have made it our mission to express to our fans that no one will ever compete harder for this community than the 2015 Sun Devils. We want all of you to know that nothing sounds better than hearing the ASU Victory Bell being rung on the field at Sun Devil Stadium and nothing is more gratifying than singing the fight song with our fellow students after each win.

Every year there is only one team that raises the National Championship Trophy for its university. This trophy signifies what we like to call "The Grind." The Grind is not simply a goal-line stand on fourth down in Sun Devil Stadium or a game-winning touchdown pass, but rather the process by which we achieve these moments. The Grind is making a conscious decision every day to represent our university and our fans with class and character. It is 6 a.m. workouts on a Friday and a full schedule of classes each semester, early morning practices and late night film study. The Grind is not something we dread as players, but rather look forward to conquering. This season, we are embracing The Grind.

We have won many games in Coach Graham's first three seasons leading our team out of Tillman Tunnel and each year we have inched closer to our ultimate objective. Our goal has and always will be to win championships, but the difference between this year and past seasons is the foundation we have laid through The Grind. In the classroom, around the community and on the field, the standard inside our locker room is no longer to just win. We will be champions.

The product that will step across the white lines this season will consist of smart, disciplined and tough young men with unique talents and skill sets. Yes, we may make great catches and deliver big hits on the gridiron, but that is not what wins a championship. The Grind wins championships.

We want to be a program that all of Sun Devil Nation is proud to call its own and as brothers, sons, teammates, students and members of this community, we invite you to join The Grind with us.

One last note: The Territorial Cup will return to Tempe this year.

Your Sun Devil Football Team,

Michael Bercovici

D.J. Foster

Jordan Simone