Breaking Down Kenny Dillingham's Media Availability

On team being ready for Saturday:

"I just told them the physical - they've been physically preparing their bodies since January. Physical is basically over. We have one more 40 minute fast Friday deal. Other than that, this is all mental. This is all getting their body right to feel as good as possible for Saturday now. But the physical is over, and I feel good. I like our team. I'm excited to see them play football."

The mental aspect of football is typically the most challenging, especially when a team is heading into a season with seismic expectations. This Sun Devil squad is built to withstand such challenges.

On his philosophy surrounding the first game of a season:

"Last year, we played unbelievable in our opener... When I was at, you know, prior to this at Oregon, we got smoked by Georgia in our opener. So, I mean, I've been a part of both sides of it. Usually the team, the veteran teams, are better in openers. The younger teams aren't as good in openers, and they're (NAU) a veteran team too. I think both teams return so many guys. It's really not as much of an opener as it is..."

Sun Devil DC Brian Ward stated that the opening game has potentially been the most challenging for him over the course of his coaching career - the simple fact that many teams walk into week one with cold feet after being out of live game action for at least seven months is enough of a reason to label it as a challenge.

On program's approach to mental health:

"Yeah. I mean, we have people on staff here that if guys have issues, they can go talk to them. Hopefully the relationships with the staff, hopefully the environment here keep people in a good real estate. There's some laughter in their life. They have resources to go use that. But for me, hopefully the majority of our guys, you know, they walk in the building and they smile on their face. They're excited to be a part of this. Hopefully it actually helps. But the guys that really have issues and see somebody really coach for every game, not just for practice."

On the depth chart showing nearly 30 starting-level players:

"Yeah, just the depth of a football team is better, and obviously it's a huge positive. You can have more sub packages on offense, more sub packages on defense, make teams prepare for more things. When you can line up in 12, you can line up in 20, in 21, you can line up in a dime. You can line up in quarter if you want to put five tackles on the field. So when you do that, you can really have a wrinkle each week around game weeks."

This is quite possibly the deepest that the Arizona State roster has been since at least the 2021 campaign. New positions were created this season simply due to the immense depth and versatility - highlighting the creativity that Ward can utilize to his advantage as the matchups vary.

On the approach to the NAU game:

"There's no holding back. There's no hiding. We're going to play a football team that was ranked about 25 in their league. They played the playoffs. They trained a lot of their starters, good football coach, good staff, but we're holding up. We're going all in everything we've worked on this off season. We're putting it all in to go try to play the best football in the game."

The mentality that Dillingham holds - one of fearlessness and honesty - is one that is clearly infectious within the entire team. Players and coaches alike are driven each day to give their all, it has become apparent that this is the case with each passing practice.

Arizona State is absolutely working to be prepared for Big 12 play while also simultaneously proving the voters that placed faith in them right.

Read more on the case for Sam Leavitt to be an All-American selection at season's end here, and if Dillingham has any built-in recruiting advantages in his role here.