Quite a few college football programs have performed unexpectedly this season – a testament in many ways to the difficulty predicting how teams will do in the NIL and transfer portal era.
Some programs are wildly underperforming expectations, like the Florida State Seminoles, Oklahoma State Cowboys, and Kansas Jayhawks, while others are playing at a much higher level, like the Indiana Hoosiers who became the first bowl eligible team in the country.
Another program in the latter category is Kenny Dillingham’s Arizona State Sun Devils, who entered the Big 12 coming off a 3-9 campaign in 2023.
ASU is now 5-1 on the year and 2-1 in Big 12 play after a stunning victory over the No. 16 ranked Utah Utes, who despite having veteran quarterback Cam Rising back were unable to generate much offense against Dillingham’s defense.
Rising did not look ready to return to the field, although a first-quarter leg injury contributed to his struggles. The seventh-year senior had a trio of interceptions, completing just 16 of 37 passes for 209 yards.
“Those guys did a great job of getting open, but I wasn’t able to get them the ball and throw it accurate,” Rising said. “We just weren’t able to move it because of that.”
The Sun Devils are now 5-1 on the season, with the only loss coming on the road at Texas Tech, 30-22.
However, some of the wins are a bit dubious. Mississippi State is the worst team in the SEC, while Kansas is arguably the worst team in the Big 12 – and Arizona State beat each of them by one score or less.
The Utah win is the first really good W for Dillingham this season – and arguably the biggest of his first two seasons as head coach after coming over from Oregon ahead of the 2023 season.
Dillingham, who went to Arizona State, sure knew how to celebrate the moment after the game – screaming through his postgame interview and getting caught in the student mosh pit.
“I was one of these guys,” Dillingham exclaimed while the crowd pulled him away. “I was doing this!”
The Sun Devils are on the road in Week 8 against Cincinnati before a bye to close out October.