Arizona State struggled through consecutive 3-9 seasons before entering its first season in the Big 12.
The Sun Devils will look to get this campaign off to a good start when they play host to Wyoming on Saturday night in Tempe, Ariz.
Kenny Dillingham resided over the second three-win season in his first campaign. The Arizona State coach wants to see improvement everywhere in the program.
“We want to get better,” he said. “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.”
The Sun Devils took a lot of severe hits last season. Fresno State of the Mountain West pounded them 29-0 and they lost Pac-12 games by 52 points to Utah and 36 apiece to Oregon and Arizona.
Promising quarterback Jaden Rashada opened the season as the starter but sustained a knee injury and played in just three games. He then underwent thumb surgery on his throwing hand and missed spring drills.
Then in late April, Rashada transferred to Georgia.
Before the departure, Sam Leavitt had transferred in from Michigan State. Leavitt outdueled Jeff Sims — a former starter at Georgia Tech and Nebraska — for the starting gig despite throwing just 23 collegiate passes.
Arizona State will look to take pressure off Leavitt by depending on Cam Skattebo, who rushed for 788 yards and nine touchdowns last season.
Defensively, free safety Shamari Simmons is back after leading the Sun Devils with 73 tackles last season.
Arizona State and Wyoming are playing for the first time since 1977 when both schools were members of the Western Athletic Conference. The Sun Devils hold a 9-6 edge in a series that began in 1951.
The Cowboys went 9-4 last season under now-retired coach Craig Bohl. One of their victories was over Texas Tech of the Big 12.
Wyoming promoted defensive coordinator Jay Sawvel to head coach. Sawvel said he’s unsure what to make of the Sun Devils.
“Opening games are really hard when you don’t know how people are going to use their players,” Sawvel said. “And that’s in traditional opening games. Now you add all the transfer elements to it.”
Quarterback Evan Svoboda, who started one game last season, is now the main man. He once starred at Red Mountain High in Mesa, Ariz., which is located approximately 20 miles east of the site of Saturday’s game in the Phoenix suburbs.
“If Evan Svoboda plays the way we hope that he can and that his potential could allow, we could become extremely good,” Sawvel said
Linebacker Shea Suiaunoa is Wyoming’s top defender. He ranked second on the squad with 93 tackles last season.
–Field Level Media
