Dillingham preps ASU seniors for Sun Bowl send-off

The Sun Bowl arrives at an in-between moment for Arizona State football, a space where reflection and transition overlap. The season is over, yet the future has not fully arrived. For head coach Kenny Dillingham, that space matters just as much as the result on the scoreboard.

ASU will face Duke on Wednesday, the ACC champions, led by one of the nation’s most efficient quarterbacks. But the Sun Bowl itself is only part of the story. This postseason contest marks the final appearance for a group of Arizona State seniors who helped pull a once-floundering program out of the mud alongside Dillingham. It is the last time this roster will take the field together, and a rare moment for the next wave to step forward before the calendar year turns.

Standing before the media in El Paso, Dillingham framed the week not as an ending, but as something closer to a shared experience that is increasingly uncommon in college football.

“It’s been a good, good trip so far,” Dillingham noted. “Our guys had a blast.”

The tone reflected a coach operating with a clear understanding of the current college football landscape. With the transfer portal, NFL draft decisions, and opt-outs reshaping rosters nationwide in the postseason, bowl season no longer guarantees continuity. The Sun Devils, however, have treated the week as a chance to stay connected before inevitable change sets in.

Dillingham reminded his players that what they are experiencing now may never happen again in quite the same way.

“This is one of the few times that you’ll get to be in a room and hang out with your friends in this mass of a setting on a vacation,” Dillingham explained. “Probably ever again, the rest of your life.”

The 2024 season was far from straightforward for ASU. In its second year in the Big 12, the Sun Devils finished 8–4 overall and 6–3 in conference play, a record that reflected both program progress and lingering disappointment after falling short of a Big 12 championship appearance. 

Over the course of the season, injuries increased rapidly. Sam Leavitt, a quarterback in his sophomore year, missed nearly half of the season. Ben Coleman, a senior offensive lineman, and Jordyn Tyson, a junior wide receiver, missed significant playing time as well. For virtually the entire year, senior safety Xavion Alford was out of commission. Establishing continuity was an exercise in futility.

Still, the program stayed afloat and, entering the final week of the regular season, had a slim chance to make the Big 12 championship. That resilience, Dillingham believes, defines the season more accurately than the rivalry game loss to Arizona that ended the regular season and left many fans disappointed.

“If you would have told me that’s what this last 12 months would have been when I took this job three years ago, I would have checked the box,” Dillingham reflected. “A hundred times.”

That perspective has shaped how Dillingham approaches the Sun Bowl. For him, it is less about correcting the past and more about honoring the players who carried the program through it.

“It’s a testament to the players that we have, a testament to the seniors,” Dillingham emphasized. “The group of guys who chose to come here when we were 3–9 back-to-back years and in turmoil.”

For some of those seniors, Tuesday will be the final snap of their college careers. Linebacker Jordan Crook and defensive lineman Justin Wodtly, both seniors, have already declared for the NFL Draft, yet still want to continue playing for a team that took a chance on them. Others, like junior cornerback Keith Abney II and junior wide receiver Jordyn Tyson, have also stated that they will enter the draft and could have distanced themselves from the team during bowl preparation.

Instead, they have remained present.

“You see Jordyn Tyson and Keith Abney still engaged with their teammates,” Dillingham observed. “I think the most exciting part about it all is seeing these guys still be there for each other.”

That presence has mattered as ASU navigates the reality of modern college football. With transfers and draft decisions happening in real time, Dillingham has emphasized honesty and adaptability, encouraging players to handle their individual journeys without fracturing the collective.

“This is kind of a bridge now,” Dillingham explained. “You’re bridging 2025 to 2026… right in the middle of the transition.”

That bridge has created an opportunity. With most in-season starters unavailable for the game, the Sun Bowl will feature a lineup that looks far different from what ASU fielded in September. Younger players will receive extended reps. Redshirt freshman running back Jason Brown and true freshman cornerback Joseph Smith are set to start in their respective roles. Practices have been structured to resemble a mini spring camp, allowing the staff to evaluate growth of underclassmen in live situations.

“We’re going to give a lot of guys playing time,” Dillingham shared. “That helps you build success.”

Despite the experimental nature of the game, Dillingham has been clear about expectations. Playing time is not a reward; it is a responsibility.

“You don’t take the field as a competitor without the expectation to win a football game,” Dillingham stressed. “We have to have the expectation that we want to play as hard as we can for 60 minutes.”

That standard will be tested against a Duke team that quietly surged late in the season. The Blue Devils won their final three games, upset No. 19 Virginia, and captured the ACC championship despite flying under the national radar.

“They got better and better and better,” Dillingham remarked. “That’s always a sign of a good football coach and a good program.”

At the center of Duke’s rise is quarterback Darian Mensah, a Tulane transfer who was named AP ACC Newcomer Transfer of the Year and won ACC championship game MVP. His efficiency and decision-making present a challenge for an ASU defense that will rely on depth and discipline.

“This is an NFL quarterback,” Dillingham asserted. “Only five turnovers over 3,000 yards passing… he’s 100 percent a Sunday player.”

Containing Mensah will require pressure. Dillingham emphasized that affecting the quarterback is nonnegotiable, especially against a player who thrives when comfortable.

“The easiest way to impact a quarterback is to create a pass rush,” Dillingham pointed out. “So hopefully we can create a pass rush and impact him here tomorrow.”

Beyond tactics, the Sun Bowl has also been shaped by its setting. Being on a military base carried special meaning for a program deeply tied to Pat Tillman, whose legacy remains central to ASU football’s identity.

“Pat Tillman is a huge part of our program,” Dillingham stated. “That’s a guy that we want our program to be embodied behind.”

As the season closes, Dillingham’s focus remains on sustainability. Eight wins are meaningful, but not sufficient. His long-term vision centers on turning milestones into expectations.

“Hopefully that becomes a standard and a norm in the future,” Dillingham acknowledged. “We’re not there yet.”

The path forward, he insists, begins with recruiting players who love the game for what it demands, not what it provides.

“You’ve got to love football,” Dillingham said firmly. “It can’t be a hobby. It’s got to be a passion.”

That passion, he believes, is what carried this team through injuries, roster turnover, and disappointment. It is what kept NFL-bound players around. It is what has allowed ASU to stand on the edge of change without losing itself.

As kickoff approaches, Dillingham’s message to his players is rooted in urgency and gratitude. This is the final time this group will share the field, the locker room, and the experience that brought them together.

“You’ll never get this team together with this amount of people ever again for your entire life,” Dillingham concluded. “This is it.”