The Wildcats’ 4-7 may be deceiving in the sense that its offensive capabilities, especially in the passing game, suggest a much more potent unit than its current win-loss mark would suggest. Arizona State’s defensive coordinator Brian Ward and his group will be tasked with arguably their greatest challenge facing the dynamic duo of sophomore quarterback Noah Fifita and junior receiver Tetairoa McMillan. The two dismantled ASU’s secondary last year as Fifita passed for 527 passing yards, with McMillan hauling in 266 of those.
“They have explosive play abilities,” Ward remarked. “I think Fifita is the best quarterback we’ve seen all year, so I have a lot of respect for those guys. McMillan finds ways to get open because he’s so rangy and big, and if you’re playing off, he's going to try and beat you underneath and create space. We have to be real specific with how we play those guys and put our game plan around stopping this offense.”
McMillan is third in the country with 1,251 receiving yards, as teams have tried and often failed to shut him down. Although McMillan has still found ways to dominate, it hasn’t translated to wins like last year. While the Sun Devils will likely have a majority of their attention on him in the passing game, Ward doesn’t want him to take away their focus from the end goal of stopping the offense altogether.
“All I know is they’re trying to get him the ball,” Ward remarked. “They can also open their passing game by using him as a decoy, so we gotta be sound fundamentally and get a pass rush, and we have to be able to defend this offense with all 11 guys. They got really good players, and we gotta be on our ‘A’ game this week.”
Ward, like the Sun Devils’ offensive coordinator, Marcus Arroyo, received a three-year extension averaging $1 million a year. The Valley native mentioned not only how much he enjoys being part of the Sun Devil coaching staff but also the comfort his family and he have had during his time in Tempe, a place he truly calls home.
“It’s where me and my family have wanted to be,” Ward mentioned. “The big thing is taking each day and being thankful for working here. When you get to a certain point in your career, you’re wired a certain way, and you gotta have a purpose. I’m very happy to be at Arizona State, and as long as they’ll have me here, I’m just going to count myself blessed and thankful.”
Sophomore receiver Jordyn Tyson was named an Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award semi-finalist, awarded to the best player from Texas at the end of the year. Tyson is 18th in the country with 958 receiving yards and is tied for 10th with nine touchdowns. He’s solidified himself as Leavitt’s favorite target as offensive coordinator, and Marcus Arroyo has emphasized getting him the ball.
“Jordyn has done an awesome job,” Arroyo voiced. “He’s earned the right to get that honor and we’ve seen him develop over the course of the season in the offense more and more. The game slowed down for him, and he became a huge threat. I’m super excited about the development throughout the season and in the future.”
The connection between Leavitt and Tyson has only gotten stronger over the course of the season as the two instantly clicked during this past offseason. With Leavitt only in his second season of college and Tyson in his third, the two will look to have immense success in Tempe in the foreseeable future.
“The chemistry between a quarterback and wide receiver with both guys who are that dynamic can be really special,” Arroyo recognized. “We’ve seen what it’s done to our offense, and that was the hope for those two guys to develop that. They put in the work and to see them reap the benefits of that development has been something that we’re all really excited about.”
Arroyo is extremely familiar with Arizona head coach Brent Brennan, as he was a groomsman at Arroyo’s wedding. Now, the two, who have been friends for the majority of Arroyo’s career, will be on opposite sides of this fierce rivalry.
“I’ve known Brent for the last 20 years,” Arroyo said. “The human element of Brent and his family was something that really hit off with me, and his family is special to me. He’s someone who’s pretty special to me, so it’s a cool opportunity to see him again. We’ve played each other a couple of times, so here’s to another one.”
Arroyo’s own three-year contract extension further illustrates the level of commitment the program has to Arroyo, as in his short time here, he has developed Leavitt into a top freshman quarterback in the country and helped transform ASU’s offense into one of the best in the Big 12.
“You take a job somewhere because you want to be around the right people,” Arroyo expressed. “I got here and told everyone who would listen that I was here because of the people. I’m also in a place where my family could live and thrive, and it’s a special place at a special time. There’s no reason why anyone would ever want to leave this place.”
The Big 12 still has nine teams mathematically alive for the Big 12 championship, while the other Power 4 conferences have only a handful of teams fighting for their respective league titles. This leaves the door open for countless situations for different teams to stay alive. The Sun Devils sit atop the conference, tied for first, and have a very high chance of making the title game with a win down in Tucson for the Territorial Cup.
The in-state rivalry always has a sense of significance each year when it comes to bragging rights, but this year, the game also has actual playoff implications for the first time in recent memory. Head coach Kenny Dillingham is still focused on controlling his own destiny to the postseason, and it starts with a Territorial Cup victory.
“If we don’t win on Saturday, we’re not in the college football playoff,” Dillingham stated. “You just gotta take every game one day at a time. It’s awesome to see how far these guys have come. These guys have poured a lot into this season, they put a lot into the offseason and they deserve what’s happening for them.”
With the Sun Devils ignoring all preseason expectations, the recruiting side of the season has taken a massive leap in terms of recruits circling back to ASU. With top talent in the country giving Arizona State a second look, Dillingham is staying true to the philosophy and attitude that brought his current team together.
“There’s been a lot of people that have started to reach out to us,” Dillingham mentioned. “For me, we can’t get lost in the culture we’re building. We’ve still gotta be able to find the reasons for how we got to this point and stay true to what we’re trying to build. That doesn’t always mean we’re going to win the recruiter rankings, but we’re gonna win the people rankings.”
Redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt has thrived in the offensive system this year, progressing in his maturity as a player each week. Dillingham saw the talent and intangibles Leavitt possessed when he brought him in on a visit after the 2023 season, but the signal caller continues to pleasantly surprise him as the season advances.
“That’s a testament to him,” Dillingham commented. “He’s a special kid with his ability to see the field on game day and his work ethic. You see the work and the process and care level, but until you get into a season you can’t see that it’s different. I knew he was an NFL player, but I didn’t expect him to become one in year one.”
The narrative surrounding this year’s Territorial Cup dates back to last year when Arizona routed ASU 59-23 in Tempe. Now, with the talent level of the teams reversed, Dillingham has the chance to get revenge on the team down south. While the core pieces from last year’s Arizona team have stayed together, the team is still different when it comes to playing on the field, but so are the Sun Devils.
“They bring a variation of fronts,” Dillingham noted. “Last year, they were a predominantly four-down front, but now they mix it up with three down, bear, four down, odd stack, and they have a monster principle to them. They do a lot of different things on defense.”
While the team’s main focus is on beating its arch-rivals, it’s still Thanksgiving week. Dillingham has a lot more to be thankful for this year compared to a calendar year ago, nearly doing a full 180º turn with a 3-8 record last Thanksgiving and currently a 9-2 mark and No. 16 College Football Playoff ranking this year.
Dillingham also has the luxury of being a Valley of the Sun native who can spend the holiday with his family, and he will extend hospitality to out-of-state players. He mentioned after practice that any player who has nowhere to go for Thanksgiving has an invite from any of the coaches to their house to celebrate with their family.
“Number one thing I’m thankful for would be my family,” Dillingham expressed. “Being able to be around family and friends for holidays is a blessing. There are not many places in the country where you can coach and have that opportunity.
“I’m also thankful for these players because they’ve poured their heart and soul into everything. They believed in the vision and what we’re trying to build here.”
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