Kenny Dillingham Discusses What Sun Devils Look for in Recruits

Arizona State targets a very specific type of player on a yearly basis.

Sep 13, 2025; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Texas State Bobcats head coach G. J. Kinne and Arizona State Sun Devils head coach Kenny Dillingham speak before the game between Arizona State Sun Devils and Texas State Bobcats. Mandatory Credit: Arianna Grainey-Imagn Images | Arianna Grainey-Imagn Images

TEMPE -- Arizona State's recruiting efforts have been up-and-down ever since the program was marred by recruiting violations at the start of this decade.

Those efforts have slowly but surely improved under head coach Kenny Dillingham - while NIL improvements are still being worked on, the program has major selling points such as battle-tested pro development from the coaching staff, potential opportunities to climb the depth chart early on, and an incredibly desirable location.

Dillingham spoke on the type of recruit he and the rest of the staff seek out when asked about the importance of impressing Texas-based recruits with four of their next five games coming against programs based in the state.

• "I mean, just the toughness and the love of the game. You know, that's why, that's what I like, regardless of where players from, just the toughness and the love of the game, like it's you love the game, the work ethic and correlates with the love of the game. So I think, you know, you can find some of those guys, or a lot of those guys in Texas with just how much football matters in the state of Texas. So I definitely look for that when looking in the state of Texas.

And I look for that when I look in the state of California, in the state of Utah, in the state of Arizona, Hawaii, wherever that is, we always look for those characteristics. You just find a lot of that in Texas because the care level is high."

Del Valle’s Jake Fette (1) looks to pass the ball during a game against Franklin on Friday, Sept. 5, 2025, at Del Valle High School in El Paso, Texas. | Gaby Velasquez / El Paso Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The shift in focus to Texas over the last couple of years has been a very fascinating development - eight players currently committed to the 2026 class hail from the state, including four-star QB Jake Fette.

The approach from Dillingham is a noble one, and it is being backed up in real time, as Arizona State is targeting states that were previously unheard of for the program, such as securing a commitment from highly touted Ohio TE Landen Miree in July.

Read more on major takeaways from players discussing the victory over Texas State in the post-game press conference here, and on how Arizona State fans should be feeling about the team heading into Big 12 play here.

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