Kenny Dillingham named Big 12 Coach of the Year; 11 Arizona State players honored
The Arizona State football team is playing for the Big 12 championship this weekend, but the Sun Devils picked up some early hardware with the announcement of the All-Big 12 team and conference honors on Thursday.
The Big 12 named 11 Arizona State players to its all-conference team. Two of those players were given individual honors along with head coach Kenny Dillingham, who was named the Chuck Neinas Big 12 Coach of the Year.
Dillingham was an easy pick for the award, increasing his regular season win total by seven victories from 2023 to 2024. His abrupt turnaround set No. 15 Arizona State (10-2, 7-2) up to play No. 16 Iowa State (10-2, 7-2) at AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys, on Saturday.
The Sun Devils' coach didn't conquer the conference by himself — he did it with great players. Dillingham dominated the transfer portal in the offseason, bringing two of the conference's brightest stars to The Valley: redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt and redshirt sophomore wide receiver Jordyn Tyson.
ASU's dynamic quarterback-receiver duo lit up the Big 12 all year, and they were rewarded for it. Leavitt was named Offensive Freshman of the Year, and Tyson was donned as the conference's Offensive Newcomer of the Year. Tyson was also named All-Big 12 First Team, and Leavitt was named All-Big 12 Second Team.
Leavitt closed out his first regular season as a Sun Devil completing 180-of-287 passes (62.7%) for 2,444 passing yards, 21 passing touchdowns and just 5 interceptions in 11 games. He added an additional element to ASU's dominant rushing attack with 498 yards and 4 touchdowns on the ground.
The Michigan State transfer missed just one game this year after taking a tough hit that fractured his rib in a gutsy upset over Utah in October, but was there for Dillingham and his team every other game. He threw a season-high 4 touchdown passes in ASU's 35-31 win over Kansas to highlight one of five games with more than three passing touchdowns this season. He threw for more than 225 yards on seven occasions, notching a season-high 304 yards in a 42-21 victory over Oklahoma State.
Leavitt has connected with 15 different targets this season, but the bulk of his success came by finding fellow transfer and Newcomer of the Year Tyson.
Tyson seemed to finally find his home in Tempe after transferring from Colorado. It almost seemed as if he was the only person Leavitt could see on the field, snatching down team-highs in receptions (75), receiving yards (1,101) and receiving touchdowns (10). The next leading receiver in receptions and yards on the team is Cam Skattebo, ASU's running back, with 468 yards from 35 catches. Redshirt junior tight end Chamon Metayer — a two-time transfer — is second on the team in receiving touchdowns with five.
Skattebo was named All-Big 12 First Team, along with redshirt senior offensive lineman Leif Fautanu and redshirt junior defensive back Xavion Alford.
A total of 11 Sun Devils were honored by the Big 12. Here's a look at every Arizona State player who was honored:
Arizona State Players Honored By Big 12
Coach of the Year: Kenny Dillingham
Offensive Freshman of the Year: Redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt
Offensive Newcomer of the Year: Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Jordyn Tyson
All-Big 12 First Team: Senior running back Cam Skattebo, redshirt sophomore wide receiver Jordyn Tyson, redshirt senior offensive lineman Leif Fautanu, redshirt junior defensive back Xavion Alfford
All-Big 12 Second Team: Redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt, redshirt junior tight end Chamon Metayer, sophomore defensive lineman C.J. Fite, junior linebacker Keyshaun Elliott,
All-Big12 Honorable Mention: Redshirt junior defensive back Xavion Alford (Defensive Newcomer of the Year), graduate offensive lineman Ben Coleman, redshirt senior offensive lineman Leif Fautanu (Offensive Lineman of the Year), sophomore defensive lineman C.J. Fite (Defensive Lineman of the Year), freshman linebacker Martell Hughes (Defensive Freshman of the Year), redshirt senior linebacker Caleb McCullough, junior defensive back Myles Rowser, senior running back Cam Skattebo (Offensive Player of the Year)
Jordyn Bennett is a staff reporter for Arizona State On SI.