Everything Kenny Dillingham Said After Kansas Victory in London's Union Jack Classic

LONDON - The message was clear from ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham all week long: this is not a vacation to London, it's a business trip.

Now, after his team handled their business, the Devils will return stateside at 2-1 heading into a BYE week. Consider that a job well done (at least for now).

So, with the win in the books, what did the fourth-year head coach have to say as he took the Wembley Stadium podium?

Here is everything Kenny Dillingham said postgame after ASU's 24-17 victory over Kansas:

"How Pleased Were You That You Were Able to Punch It in (Score a touchdown) Before Halftime, and Then Also Maintain the Momentum?"

"That was huge. We talk about situational football-end of half, end of game-and obviously, we didn't have many offensive positives, but if you were to say offensive positives, if I'm going to reach for some deep in the pocket, winning the end of the first half and controlling the ball at the end of the game are what win games. And at the end of the first half, the offense scored. At the end of the first half, the offense ended the game getting a first down needed to take a knee, right?
So if there were any positives there offensively, it was that that the situations, the offense won the situations that win games. 1-0 in conference."

"How Important was the End of First half/Start of Second Half Stretch for You Guys?"

"That was huge, a 14-point swing there. That was critical in the game. Like I said, we
needed every point."

"Do You Like to See Your Guys Bounce Back from a Disappointing Loss Last Week, This Early Into the Year?"

"I thought, offensively, we played significantly better last week than we did this week. Credit their staff, credit their players. They did a really good job on defense, they're giving us light boxes, making us run it. The thing I was proud of was that we found a way to win. You know, last week, we won the stats and lost the game. Give me losing the stats and winning the game a hundred times out of a hundred. So I was glad that we found a way to win, even if it was ugly, and it started with defense and the defense and how they played, how they prepared, and that's team football."

"It Felt Like Kansas Amped It Up on Offense in the Final Quarter. How Did You Nullify Their Offense So Well?"

"We were just trying to get lined up. They do so much. I know that sounds simple, but we wanted them to be lined up and be sound. We wanted to change the pictures by getting hands up the field and not letting them get comfortable with how our (defensive) ends were playing. So, I think us mixing up the
looks, Coach Ward had a phenomenal plan, and I think us mixing up the looks of what their quarterback and their O-line was seeing was working. Then, obviously playing hard, we were
punching at the ball. We created three takeaways, and those were potentially the
difference in the game. It's funny how you can look at all the stats, and then the last two games
we've played, there's really one stat that's mattered. It's the takeaways. And this week we won 3-0, and last week we lost. So, it's just funny how simple football really is. People overcomplicate the game. It's a very simple game, and we won the stats, we won the situations that win games, and that's why you can see something so lopsided come out on top for us."

Update on TE Khamari Anderson:

"He's probably going to be out for a significant amount of time, unfortunately. So, I'll have more updates when we get back across the pond, and then we'll go from there."

"Your Defense Had a Huge Hit Early in the Game, Does that Really Set
the Tone to You and Your Team?"

"100%. We want to say our motto is smart and tough. Toughness is a core value of what I always want our football teams to look like. I think our defense played with that. I think our offense tried to play with it, but we're just not showing up at the rate we needed to right now. Uh, but I definitely, from a defensive perspective, I absolutely love the physicality that we play with and how we attack the football and swarm the football."

"Despite the Problems on Offense today, How are You with Nick (McLarty) and His Punting?"

"Oh, phenomenal. He kind of had an advantage because he grew up on the pitch. So, he felt right at home out there, right? He was out there. I mean, even the last punt that, you know, we can't let that ball go in the end zone. It's a 20-yard swing that drastically affected the game. So, even that last punt was phenomenal. Should have been pinned down at the one. So, Nick did an absolutely phenomenal job tonight, he's fun to watch, man. That guy's like energetic. He's got passion for the game. I'm glad we have him."

"How Much did the Rain on the Ball Impact How You Guys wanted to Attack Kansas?"

It didn't. Obviously, two guys went down early that hurt a little bit of the plan, but that's no excuse from that perspective. We've got to be able to run the football. I think that's really what it boils down to. When teams are playing too shallow on you, you know, when you have light boxes, you've got to be able to run the ball. And if you can't run the ball, then you're going to see too shallow the rest of the season. Pretty much playing three over two all over the field, we've got to be able to run the ball in those looks, and it starts with me."

What Do you Make of LB Owen Long's Performance?

"I mean, he led the country in tackles last year, so I'm probably going to go see him and be
'Yep, that's just another day,'. That's what you did last year. That's what you're doing this year. Like he led the country in tackles. You don't just do that. People get so wrapped up in size and speed, and all that stuff is really important. You need it. But at the end of the day, when you get it on the football field, some people have the instincts to make plays. He's one of those guys who have the instinct to make plays. And he's one of those guys who prepares at such a high level that you know he's a step ahead of everybody. And I think that's showing up."

"What Will You Remember about This Experience?"

"I'll probably remember more as I get told more stories. I know it sounds crazy, like our guys going out into Richmond on Monday and Tuesday, and how we had 15 guys, I guess, I was told, on scooters. And my wife was out on a Wednesday, and she's like, "I saw 15 of your players scootering around." So, I think for me it's more just being able to reflect on their stories and how much fun our players got to have here and the experience our players got to have here. We had multiple players be like, "Man, I want to come back now. I love this place. This place is awesome. London is awesome. I want to come back and spend summer or spend Christmas out here." And now that we're (ASU) opening a campus (in London), I just think it's a really cool thing for our players. Some people never get to cross the pond their entire life. They've never done it. And for our players, say we have 105 people, and kudos to our president, kudos to Graham Roussini, our athletic director. One of the things that people aren't talking about is that when they asked me to do this game, I said there are a few things that are just mandatory for me if we're going to do this game. We're bringing all 105 players. I'm not going to let one player miss out on this opportunity. I don't care if they're playing or not, right? They're on our football team, and we're going to go experience something. They're all coming. Then I wanted to bring families. I said, if we're going to go and take our husbands away in the middle of the season from our families, our families are going to have a once-in-a-lifetime experience. And to their defense, they didn't flinch. They stepped up. They covered the cost, they made it an experience that I think everybody and every family member, every player, will remember for the rest of their life.

"Do You Have Any Tips for The Next Coach to do This Trip?"

"Don't play a road game before," Dillingham said with a smirk.

"But I would say let your guys experience it. We get so wrapped up in coaching, like it's our lives, right? It's our livelihood. It's our lives. It's our obsession. I probably overdid the whole stay focused on the game. Personally, if I could do it again, I would go do some things on Tuesday night and Wednesday night, and I would try to step away. I wouldn't lock myself in a cave as I did. I think that's my regret: that I didn't really get that experience. So that would be what I would say. And then for your players, don't cheat them of it. If you're going to bring your team out here, don't cheat them of the experience, right? You're bringing them out here to not just play a game. You're bringing them out here to get a once-in-a-lifetime experience with their teammates. Don't cheat them. We let our guys go out Monday, Tuesday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. They had free rein. They did a phenomenal job in managing it and handling it. I trust my team to do that. So, that's what I would give as my advice: let your guys go experience it. Let your guys go experience the city they're in, and then hone them in on Thursday, Friday to go play a football game."

"Did You Reach Out to Any of Your Contemporaries Who Have Done a Trip Before?"

"Yeah, I did. I did with a bunch of people, because we were already in Texas, which is moving in this direction time-zone-wise, they all told me to go straight from the game. That was the advice. Then, obviously, stay up at night and all this stuff, right? There's so much information. But to me, when I met with our players, I think the key was that I wanted them to use the experiences of being in London, Sunday through Wednesday, and then when Thursday hits, like, let's lock in on a football game. And I think our guys did that."

"Coming from the UK, One of my Favorite Things about College Football is You, as the Coach, Developing the Players as People as Well and Young Men. How Important is That to You?"

"It's critical. That's why we're here. They just got to do something they've never done and maybe would have never done in their entire life. My mom has never been out here until this trip. So, think about that. We just gave 18- to 22-year-olds an experience. It's not just on the football field, but they now know what London is like. They may want to come move out here. They may want to come on vacation. They may want to do business out here, right? Just seeing another part of the world and how people operate. It's how you build people. And I think it's an unbelievable experience for those guys to just really see the world and be college athletes. I think for this week, I can say these guys were college athletes. And that's what was really fun to watch."

"Thousands of People sat in the Stands Today, Got To Watch College Football for the Very First Time. What Do You Hope That They've Taken from this Experience?"

"It's fun to watch that we have our own version of pageantry. I loved going to the World Cup, and seeing the pageantry of the World Cup was unbelievable to me. Just all the things that went into it were remarkable. So I hope, and I think that's one of the things that make football/soccer, depending on who I'm talking to here, special is the pageantry and the passion. I think college football has a little bit of that pageantry with the band and the cheerleaders and the fans that went to school there, right? And the passion of 18- to 22-year-olds. I hope they walk away saying, "Man, the pageantry of college football, I can connect to that pageantry. I can connect to that passion that the fan base has had to travel across the world to come watch them play. So I would hope that they not only enjoyed the game, but they enjoyed the pageantry of a college football game. FOX being here and 7,000 people being there before the game trying to get on TV. That's all the pageantry that makes college football special and great. So, I hope people really take that in."

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