Editor’s note: Third in a series previewing each team in the Big 12 in 2024.
Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham has a long rebuild ahead of him.
The 2023 season couldn’t have gone much worse for the first-year coach, as the Sun Devils were informed of a self-imposed one-year postseason ban just four days before the season started.
Under former head coach Herm Edwards, Arizona State was alleged to have recruiting violations during the COVID-19 recruiting dead period, which the NCAA was investigating, and as a result, Arizona State self-imposed a one-year postseason ban on Aug. 27, 2023.
A large outflow of transfers after Edwards was fired, coupled with a rash of injuries, led to a dismal 3-9 record for the Sun Devils. ASU used four quarterbacks — Trenton Bourguet, Jaden Rashada, Drew Pyne and Jacob Conover — throughout the season. Arizona State scored 17.8 points per game and allowed 31.7 points per game as little went right on either side of the ball.
In April, the NCAA completed its investigation, concluding that the violations included “impermissible in-person recruiting contacts during the COVID-19 dead period, recruiting inducements, impermissible tryouts and tampering.”
Arizona State’s punishment?
“Four years of probation for the school, a fine, a self-imposed postseason ban for the 2023 football season, vacation of records for contests in which ineligible student-athletes competed, scholarship reductions and recruiting restrictions in alignment with the Level I-mitigated classification for the school,” the NCAA announced, though it did not further expound on those penalties.
Though Arizona State is expected to improve from its 2023 showing, media members still picked them to finish last in the 16-team Big 12.
One reason for the lack of confidence? Four-star quarterback Rashada, who won the starting job at ASU last fall as a freshman, but missed the first nine games with a knee injury, transferred to Georgia in April. He was expected to be the the Sun Devils’ starter, but after his transfer, the nod out of spring practice went to Michigan State transfer Sam Leavitt, a quarterback target for Utah this offseason.
Leavitt played mostly in mop-up duty for the Spartans in his freshman season, throwing for 139 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions on 65% accuracy.
Other offensive transfer portal blows this offseason for the Sun Devils included wide receiver Elijhah Badger (65 receptions for 713 yards and three touchdowns) and tight end Jalin Conyers (30 receptions for 362 yards).
The good news is that the Sun Devils bring back do-it-all running back Cameron Skattebo, who rushed for 783 yards and nine scores, caught 24 passes for 286 yards and even threw for 130 yards and a touchdown. Arizona State also landed USC transfer Raleek Brown to shore up the backfield.
The offensive line, oft-injured in 2023, should be much improved with an influx of transfers, which will help the Sun Devils’ rushing attack, and receivers Jordan Tyson, who had 470 receiving yards with Colorado in 2022 before missing the 2023 season, and Texas transfer Troy Omeire will help pick up the slack in the passing game.
“Up-front-wise, we have nine, 10 guys I would feel comfortable playing, which is quite the difference of last year when we lined up in the swinging gate because we traveled six scholarship guys,” Dillingham said.
Few starters return from the Sun Devils’ 2023 defense, with some key losses — defensive end B.J. Green, ASU’s top-ranked defensive player, per Pro Football Focus, and cornerback Ed Woods, the second-highest-rated defensive player for ASU last year.
Dillingham brought in a bevy of transfers on the defensive side of the football, including Oregon cornerback Cole Martin (21 tackles, one interception), Louisville defensive tackle Jeff Clark (14 tackles) and LSU cornerback CB Laterrance Welch (10 tackles, pass breakup).
There’s two returning starters to watch on Arizona State’s defense — safety Shamari Simmons (73 tackles, six pass breakups, one interception) and defensive end Prince Dorbah (30 tackles, six sacks). With Simmons and safety Xavion Alford Jr., who didn’t play last year, the Sun Devils should be good on the back end.
The Sun Devils’ defense should be improved over last year’s — not that it’s a particularly high bar — if the newcomers can gel.
Even with the influx of new talent on both sides of the ball, Arizona State still has a long way to go until it is competing for Big 12 titles, but could reach bowl eligibility for the first time since 2021 if things go right.
“We want to get better. We want to grow every single day. There’s not a win total. There’s not a goal like that. It’s just be the very best we can be at everything we do,” Dillingham said.
Arizona Sun Devils 2024 preview
2023 record: 3-8 (2-7 Pac-12).
Local ties: Offensive lineman Colby Garvin (Utah Tech), linebacker Tate Romney (BYU).
2024 schedule
- Aug. 31: Wyoming
- Sept. 7: Mississippi State
- Sept. 14: at Texas State
- Sept. 21: at Texas Tech
- Sept. 28: Bye
- Oct. 5: Kansas
- Oct. 11: Utah
- Oct. 19: at Cincinnati
- Oct. 26: Bye
- Nov. 2: at Oklahoma State
- Nov. 9: UCF
- Nov. 16: at Kansas State
- Nov. 23: BYU
- Nov. 30: at Arizona