The search for answers continues for ASU head football coach Kenny Dillingham and his staff, following a Saturday struggle in Lubbock, Texas. The Sun Devils fell to No. 10 (now No. 8) Texas Tech, 53-23, falling to 3-3 and 1-2 in Big 12 play.
With another Big 12 matchup coming their way this weekend, taking on 4-2 Kansas State at home, it feels as if it is now or never for Dillingham's fourth season.
Five days out from kickoff in Tempe, here is everything Dillingham had to say on Monday afternoon:
Biggest Focus On What ASU Need
"The ability to stop the run and run the ball. It's something we've done really well here the last two years, and we're not stopping run, we're not running the ball really well. I thought we had a physical camp, obviously not physical enough. So I think that's the number one thing, and when I say that, that includes tackling, blocking, the fundamentals of the game to get you to run the ball and stop the run. We're not doing that right now at a high enough level, and good football teams can stop the run and run the ball. That's something we've kind of hung our hat on, and that's a primary thing that we've struggled with.
Who Will Be The QB vs. Kansas State?
"I'm not really gonna get into that, in great detail. Like I said after the game, I got a lot of confidence in both those guys, and you know, (with the) conference opponent. I'm not gonna get into much detail about that, if at all, or any detail."
Is Kenny Hiding His Decision From The Wildcats?
"Correct. I just think this week in particular, I don't know if we need to disclose that. If there was an injury, I would 100% come out and say it, and we would put it on the report, but it not being an injury, to me, I don't think that would do anything for us. And our players will know. Everybody else will know. So who knows? It may leak. I don't know. I hope not. But you know, just not something I need to get into depth on."
Thoughts On Kansas State QB Avery Johnson:
"He signed there to play for Coach (Collin) Klein, that was his. I was actually recruiting versus him for Avery for three years. I think he's playing his best football yet. I think his football and how he's playing, he's taking care of the football. He's getting the ball down the field. He's playing under control. He's moving the pocket. Even the run game stuff. I think he's getting looser runs to be able to be athletic. I mean, he ran for over 100 yards last week, so his explosiveness shows up. They make you account for him, which means that he gets accessibility in the passing game down the field. His quick game, I think he's gotten better at this year. I think his footwork-I haven't watched last year in depth-but his feet look really, really clean right now. So I think his feet are cleaner than maybe they were in years past. So I think there's a lot of things that he's been doing really, really well."
Dissecting Kansas State, Compared To Their Last Meeting in 2024:
"Two years ago, same coaching staff for us. Their O-line coach was their tight ends coach, so there, you know, there are some similarities to what they used to do as well. Obviously, Coach Klein wasn't there, right? So, different coaching staff on their end defensively, different coaching staff, but from our perspective, it's the same staff that played them a few years ago. Just a little bit different schemes that we've got to be able to navigate."
The Biggest Different In This Year's Team vs. Years Prior
"I think I got to get more confidence in our team. I think I've got to get our team playing with more confidence. I thought we had that early, I think that fourth-and-one (vs. Texas Tech) I think it almost sucked some stuff out. Then we had it again, and then the (Cutter Boley) pick-six happened. And I think the energy just sucked out of the team after those two. You have to absolutely talk about the emotions of the first four minutes of that game for a football team that had a great week of practice, and we haven't handled that emotion, the downward swing of emotion, this year. That's where I've gotten to be better as a leader, having us handle that. So we could have a fourth-down stop on the opponent's 35-yard line on the road, on a cover zero, great call. Whoa! Oh my gosh! O-lineman grabbed them and threw them forward, and they converted. Man, that's deflating. We all thought we stopped them. They drive the field. We get a stop. Woo! We get out of our own end zone. Oh, it's on. Pick six. So I've got to do a better job getting our guys to manage these emotions of the game, where we just get rolling out of control and into a negative spiral."
Arizona State will return to the practice field this week before a Saturday date with Kansas State, October 24, 2026, at 12:45 PM MST in Tempe.
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