Kenny Dillingham Speaks on State of Big 12 Conference

Arizona State is currently the class of the Big 12 - but the path to repeating as champions of the league in the second year as a member is far from a guarantee.

Sun Devil head coach Kenny Dillingham is well aware of that, and spoke on the overall competitieness of the league at the Big 12 spring meetings in Orlando.

Via Blake Niemann of Fox 10 Phoenix:

"Our league is so competitive because the coaches in the league are phenomenal. I think we have one of the best-coached leagues out there. I'm the young guy of the group, but we have so much veteran leadership. Just going vs. them and listening to them talk in those meetings, it's a special thing to be a part of."

The SEC and Big 10 get nearly all of the attention as collective leagues in the modern landscape of college football, which leaves the Big 12 as underappreciated in the grand scheme of things.

Programs such as Baylor, Texas Christian, and Brigham Young have all flashed potential to be perennial top 25 programs over the last decade-plus - that's without mentioning the Utah Utes, who were considered by many to be the favorites to win the conference in 2024.

The conference is also renowned for coaching prowess - Kyle Whittingham, Kalani Sitake, Dillingham, Deion Sanders, and many others within the conference have been praised over the years for what they brought to their respective programs.

The volume of elite coaches inevitably makes for more intence competition - and Dillingham is aware that the results can flip overnight.

Via ESPN's Andrea Adelson:

"We were picked dead last, last year and we won it. So who cares where we're picked this year. We could finish dead last. This league is so competitive."

While there is unlikely to be a program that rises from being projected to finish at the bottom of the conference to ultimately winning it this season, the aforementioned programs along with Kansas State and Texas Tech could make it an uphill climb for the Sun Devils to make it back to Arlington in the first weekend of December.

Read more on game-by-game predictions for the Sun Devils this season here, and on three bold predictions about the team in 2025 here.

Please let us know your thoughts on how the conference could shake out in 2025 - and if the Sun Devils will ultimately come out on top again when you like our Facebook page when you click right here.