PHOENIX – Kenny Dillingham paced the practice field in Tempe, directing traffic on special teams and eyeing his offense’s work in the red zone. The intensity of fall camp practices and the dial of physicality cranked up after a season-defining win.
On the heels of an emotional, thrilling victory over a top-10 conference foe, it can be easy for a team to have a letdown the following week.
Taking the foot off the gas pedal won’t be an option for No. 24 Arizona State (5-2, 3-1), as the trainer’s room fills up with ailing Sun Devils welcoming Houston (6-1, 3-1) to Tempe Saturday.
One of the Sun Devils managing an injury is junior receiver Jordyn Tyson, who tweaked his hamstring against Texas Tech but finished the game on one good leg, converting a fourth-down try on an impromptu scramble and re-route play with quarterback Sam Leavitt.
“Like I told the guys, nobody cares,” coach Kenny Dillingham said about the team’s injuries. “We’ve got to work to get healthy, and we’ve got to go out there and fight and compete.”
Dillingham wasn’t prepared to comment on whether or not Tyson would be ready to go for next week’s trip to visit Iowa State, a rematch of last season’s Big 12 Championship in Dallas.
Tyson has been ASU’s primary source of production through the air for the last two years. His 682 yards this season account for more than 40% of the team’s receiving yards through the air. Besides Tyson, no ASU receiver has caught a touchdown from Leavitt in 2025.
Fortunately, the Sun Devils have options at receiver, and one saw a surge in production at the right time. Alabama transfer Jaren Hamilton caught three passes for 101 yards against the Red Raiders. Hamilton has struggled to consistently get on the field this season, but he could be Leavitt’s top choice in the passing game this weekend.
“Jaren’s a guy who’s constantly found a niche each week,” offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo said. “We’ve slowly gotten him back into the groove and feeling like he’s playing fast in the game and feeling comfortable in the game situations. He’s an explosive player. (We’re) trying to find ways to get him the ball downfield, which we’re doing more often.”
Leavitt will likely be on the run again, facing a talented Houston defense. The Cougars have 17 sacks this season, fifth-most in the Big 12, and have limited opposing running games to just 3.3 yards per carry this season.
Arizona State let Leavitt run the ball quite a bit against Texas Tech, despite dealing with a foot issue that forced him to miss a start against Utah. His work extending plays and moving the chains on third downs will be critical without his favorite target available.
Houston coach Willie Fritz recognized the challenge the ASU signal caller presents this week. Leavitt is a perfect 10-0 in his career at Mountain America Stadium.
“They have got an excellent quarterback,” Fritz said at his weekly press conference. “He’s one of the top guys in the country at the quarterback position. Twenty years ago, guys would get in the pocket and they were statues. That’s not the case anymore. It seems like all of them can move around a little bit. We’re going to be playing back-to-back weeks where guys can really move around well.”
Dillingham has not backed down from his promise to continue the intense and physical routine at practice that he established last week. The Sun Devils wore pads and hit hard this week, unmoved by the current state of the roster.
The visiting Cougars will test ASU’s depth and willpower in the trenches. The Sun Devils started former walk-on Makua Pule at center last week, while mixing in freshman Maki Stewart beside him at left guard.
“I’ve been happy with the physicality of practice,” Dillingham said. “I’m happy with the guys that are questionable, maybe not getting reps, watching reps and being dialed in. So yeah, I’m excited. We’ve got a good football team coming in here. Doesn’t matter who takes the field, you better be ready to strap it up and play 60 minutes of football.”
Dillingham shared his respect for Fritz this week, who is in the midst of his 33rd season as a head coach at the collegiate level.
“Nowadays it is all flash, but at the end of the day, their head coach has won a lot of games for a long time at a lot of places,” Dillingham said. “They just win games by playing good defense, complementary offensive football, possessing the football and not hurting themselves.”
Houston lacks a signature win that matches the caliber of ASU’s victory last weekend, but remains a one-loss team in a competitive Big 12 race. The winner of Saturday’s bout has an inside track to reach the conference title game, while the loser will need some help the rest of the way.
After a humbling loss in Salt Lake City, fans in Tempe feel rejuvenated by a win that placed the Sun Devils back in the AP Poll rankings, restoring some of the national spotlight that was lost early on.
A return to Dallas for a right to claim the conference crown for the second year in a row is much more feasible than it appeared a few weeks ago. The early stumbles prompted the Sun Devils to reflect on how they were preparing, who they were and how they could return to the big stage.
It will be on everyone’s minds this week against Houston. The sudden recollection of expectations only emphasises the lows ASU felt after a loss to Mississippi State.
Dillingham knows the feeling all too well, and the idea of an emotional letdown the week after a big win won’t be catching his team off guard.
“In this world, you go from hero to zero,” Dillingham said. “You go from in the castle to in the outhouse overnight. There’s not a transition period. There’s no middle ground. You’re either elite or you suck.
“We’ve talked all offseason about response to failure. How are we going to respond to failure? To see our guys fail at such a high level and us respond at equally as high of a level, that was pretty cool to see.”
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