Arizona State's Kenny Dillingham Remains Underrated Nationally

Kenny Dillingham's contributions to the Arizona State football program have been clear from day one of taking over as head coach in November of 2022.

Dillingham changed the culture almost overnight - from targeting players/coaches that fit the new mindset, to re-engaging a fanbase that had become detached from the happenings of the program, the now 35 year old head coach has succeeded in nearly everything he has set out to accomplish in two-plus years.

The resurgent 11-3 season has resulted in the perception of Arizona native shifting from being a 'feel good' story to being an absolute force to be reckoned with in the coaching world.

Shehan Jeyarajah of CBS Sports is one of those among the college football world that has bought a large amount of stock in the rising star - ranking Dillingham as the fifth best coach in the conference and 18th in the national scale.

More from Jeyarajah below:

"There was little question that Dillingham would fly up the board after leading Arizona State to a Big 12 championship in his second season. Improving 46 spots in the national FBS rankings is an astonishing jump, but that's what delivering a College Football Playoff appearance in Year 2 can accomplish. The Sun Devils remain a favorite in the conference heading into Year 3, which could make for another massive jump." Last year: No. 16 in Big 12

Dillingham currently ranks below Kansas' Lance Leipold, Chris Klieman of Kansas State, Utah's Kyle Whittingham, and Matt Campbell of Iowa State.

Leipold's rebuilding of the Kansas program is commendable, but Dillingham's work in year two creates a clear gap between the two. Klieman has built a sustained winner in Manhattan, but Dillingham is quite arguably more in-tune with the modern game - as evidenced by the meeting between the two teams last year. Whittingham and Campbell are worthy inclusions inside of the top two, but one more season in line with 2024 could place Dillingham firmly at the top with little wiggle room.

Read more on DL coach Diron Reynolds speaking about his expectations surrounding the unit going into the season here, and on why the Arizona State quarterback room is elite here.