The Arizona State Sun Devils are having a massively successful football season, and the University is committed to make sure this isn’t just a flash in the pan season for the program.
On Saturday morning it was reported first by ESPN‘s Pete Thamel that Arizona State has locked up offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo and defensive coordinator Brian Ward on separate three-year contract extensions that average out to over $1 million per year.
Arizona State football is in the hunt to reach the Big 12 Championship Game in two weeks heading into their Week 13 match up at home against the BYU Cougars.
Related: HCS Roundtable: Who Wins The Big 12 Game of the Year?
The Sun Devils were picked to finish last in the new-look 16-team Big 12 in the Preseason Poll, but are now 8-2 and can reach the 10-win mark for the first time since 2014 under Todd Graham. That team went 10-3, finished 2nd in the Pac-12 South and won the Sun Bowl. The last time the program played in a conference championship game was in 2013, when they lost to Stanford and then fell in the Holiday Bowl.
The average salary north of $1 million will make them two of the highest-paid coordinators in the Big 12. According to 247Sports, the highest-paid Big 12 coordinator is Utah’s offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig.
Related: Does Arizona State Controls Its Own Destiny in Big 12 Championship Race?
It’s been an incredible Year 2 under head coach Kenny Dillingham, after the program went 3-9 in his first year as head coach at his alma mater. The Sun Devils are likely to rip up Dillingham’s contract at some point in the weeks ahead in a sign that the University is serious about building a consistent contender in Tempe.
Arizona State hosts BYU in Week 13 with a 2:30 pm CT kick off in Tempe.
