On Thursday, the Big 12 Conference announced that Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham is the 2024 Chuck Neinas Big 12 Coach of the Year.
Dillingham, 34, is in his second year with the program and has quickly become one of the hottest coaching names in the country, most notably because of the way he’s turned the program around in Tempe.
In 2023, Dillingham inherited a team that was in the middle of NCAA sanctions — which led to eight vacated wins in 2021 and a 1-9 season in 2022 — and turned in a 3-9 record that was riddled with tough, one-score losses.
Nobody believed in the Sun Devils in 2024 either, as ASU was picked to finish dead last in the Big 12 Preseason Poll. Fueled by that doubt, Dillingham and his Arizona State team ripped off a 10-2 regular season and won each of their last five games.
According to the Big 12 release, the Sun Devils’ seven-win improvement is the largest single-year win improvement in school history.
On top of that, Dillingham will now lead his team in the Dr Pepper Big 12 Football Championship, where they’ll face No. 17 Iowa State. With a win, Arizona State would claim the Big 12’s bid to the College Football Playoff, and could immediately become the name to watch in national coach of the year awards.
No. 16 Arizona State (10-2) and No. 18 Iowa State (10-2) will play for the 2024 Big 12 Championship on Saturday, December 7, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
