Breaking Down Kenny Dillingham's Monday Press Conference

Leavitt has displayed the capacity to be a high-level leader since arriving in Tempe in December 2023. From donating his NIL merchandise commission back to the team, to donating to the Pat Tillman Foundation, to spurning lucrative offers from other major programs to remain in Tempe - Leavitt is extremely mature and is ready to make another leap during the new season.

On team attempting to block outside noise:

"99 percent of the time we focus on today and being the best version of ourselves today and every once in awhile there's things that pop up that I just want to put to bed for our players... like 50 years, Big 12 back-to-back... in our team meeting today the message was how hard is it to attack 12 Mondays? That's difficult... some teams are wired to do it... That is the constant challenge here - is this our best Monday that we've ever had in program history?... It's all about today."

One of many things that Dillingham has done a superb job of in his time as head coach is keeping his squads focused on the moment. Even the 3-9 team in 2023 remained largely competitive despite facing detrimental injuries and a bowl ban. The coaching staff has always excelled at keeping the roster engaged.

On depth of 2025 team:

"Yeah, I definitely think the competitive depth on this team is high. I mean, if you look at our depth chart, you could argue... this dude would start at most places - and I think you can do that for a lot of different positions... a lot of the parts of our team... I think it's a testament to people wanting to be here, testament to the players wanting to be here, but it's a positive and it pushes each other... I think we're going to rotate some guys to make sure we get all of those guys on the field, keep guys fresh more, because I do think our competitive depth is very high."

Arizona State's 2025 roster is the deepest it has been in many years. Nearly every position features at least one reliable backup option, while positions such as TE and linebacker feature even more. The Sun Devils are equipped to compete with virtually anyone in the nation.

On aggressive fourth-down philosophy:

"We're still going to be aggressive on fourth down. I wholeheartedly believe in that. Being aggressive. I think that it's a mindset for your football team, that you're not going to play scared. And while some people rule it as a negative to the defense, I rule it as it's a positive to our football team... Everybody knows it from our stats, if we get to a fourth and one - buckle up..."

Adding Eastern Michigan transfer Jesus Gomez as kicker has added another wrinkle to the Arizona State operation in 2025, but Dillingham has always made it clear that he will never shy away from making a bold decision - this is completely in line with what he has said and done in the past.

Read more on the case for 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.