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Arizona State’s football program looked great beating Wyoming to start the season.
No arguments there.
But will it carry over when the Sun Devils host the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Mountain America Stadium on Saturday?
Actually, yes. I think it will, even if there are some big differences between the teams.
“I’m excited for this week,” ASU coach Kenny Dillingham said Wednesday after practice.
Dillingham is usually more optimistic than a guy who spends his last $20 on lottery tickets, but he’s adopting a prove-it attitude with his team heading into Week 2.
“You’d better get ready for them to bring it,” Dillingham said of MSU. “I think it’s a great challenge for our guys.”
Dillingham isn’t allowing anything resembling complacency or satisfaction into his practice bubble.
He went off on his players for a sloppy session Tuesday, saying they were acting like they had won the Super Bowl after the 48-7 win over Wyoming.
And then Wednesday, he talked up the Bulldogs like they had won the Super Bowl after beating Eastern Kentucky, 56-7.
“You’re facing a coach who’s in the top 25 in offense, every single year, with a quarterback who’s a proven veteran who put up almost 60 points in a football game — in the rain,” Dillingham said of MSU coach Jeff Lebby and Baylor transfer Blake Shapen.
In mentioning the quarterback, Dillingham was pointing to a big difference between Wyoming and Mississippi State. Shapen is in his third season as a starter. The Cowboys were playing Evan Svoboda in just his second career start.
Dillingham’s message might sound like coach-speak, but to me, he was talking like a guy who’s been through a 3-9 season and never wants to feel that again.
He’s also talking like a guy who knows that a win over Mississippi State would mark the first time the Sun Devil football program…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/believe-sun-devils-arizona-state-130217268.html
Author : AZCentral | The Arizona Republic
Publish date : 2024-09-05 13:02:17
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