Kenny Dillingham Given Major Preseason Coaching Honor originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
One of the best coaches in college football is a genius at building culture within a program, to get his players to care for one another and wants the media and his opponents to consistently underestimate him and his team.
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Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham has been placed on the watchlist for the most prestigious award in coaching, the Dodd Trophy. The prestigious award has been in existence for half a century and is the most coveted coaching award in the sport of college football.
After seven years of coaching offenses at the high school level in Arizona, Dillingham took his offensive skills to the collegiate level and Arizona State as an offensive analyst.
After coaching stops at Memphis, Auburn, Florida State and Oregon, Dillingham returned home to take the head coaching job with the Sun Devils in 2023.
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In just two years, Dillingham has built an oasis of college football nirvana in the desert valley. He has built a culture of winning, a sense of brotherhood among his players, and a desire to be underrated.
Dillingham wants his Sun Devils to be overlooked by his opponents so his merry band of brothers with devilish grins can leave cleat marks on their opponents’ facemasks as they leave a trail of defeated wannabes in their wake as they march to victory.
Last season, everybody who was anybody who covered the sport picked Arizona State to finish in the cellar of the Big 12 Conference.
Dillingham’s Sun Devils promptly won 11 games and won the conference title in 2024, a complete turnaround from the three-win season of 2023. Then they came within a play or two of beating the mighty Longhorns of Texas in the college football playoff.
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Dillingham welcomes back 17 starters and his coaching staff this season, starters and coaches who have unfinished business and scores to settle. No transfers, no leaving for better coaching gigs.
Only a desire by all to be a part of something special in the Valley of the Sun. Dillingham is wise beyond his years and is the architect of what is fast becoming the best college football program in the country.
Related: Sun Devils Coach Kenny Dillingham “Uncomfortable” With Preseason Hype
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 9, 2025, where it first appeared.
