After a big 56-12 Space Game win against Arizona with new coordinators and a new quarterback, UCF now heads to Tempe to take on Arizona State this Saturday at 7 p.m. EST on ESPN2.
To get prepped for the matchup, I caught up with Hod Rabino, publisher of Devils Digest on the Rivals network, to learn more about Arizona State.
Rabino is the longest tenured reporter on the ASU beat having covered the Sun Devils since 2000. Terrell Suggs was ASU's defensive star in those early days with multiple awards after setting the NCAA single-season sack record in 2002. Suggs of course went on to have a stellar NFL career, including winning two Super Bowls.
Rabino was there for the tail end of Bruce Snyder era (1992-2000), then Dirk Koetter (2001-2006), Dennis Erickson (2007-11), Todd Graham (2012-2017), Herm Edwards (2018-2022) and now Kenny Dillingham (2023-present).
Edwards was a disaster, hired solely due to his close friendship with former ASU AD Ray Anderson (who was Edwards' one-time agent).
Kenny Dillingham didn't play college football, but he's a Phoenix native who graduated from ASU and had earned a reputation as a top offensive coordinator with stops at Memphis, Auburn, Florida State and Oregon. Rabino said the fanbase was totally on board with the hire.
"He had very memorable introductory press conference where he was a balling for a good few minutes, because that's how excited he is, but also that's how genuine he was in wanting turning around this program," Rabino said.
ASU finished with a 3-9 record during Dillingham's first season in 2023 and was predicted dead last in the 2024 Big 12 preseason poll.
The Sun Devils have been a major surprise with a 6-2 overall record and 3-2 mark in the league.
"Everybody figured the fan base is going to have to exercise patience and it's going to be a little while until you can really contend for conference championships, but here they are, the first week of November, and already bowl eligible in only Dillingham's a second year at the helm," Rabino said.
"That's definitely exciting. Fans could definitely see this program, not only moving in the right direction, but probably moving in that direction more quickly than anybody thought they would."
Ray Anderson was still in the AD position when Dillingham was hired in late 2022, though Rabino said he was more of a booster hire. Deion Sanders and Tom Herman had also been linked to the job, but Dillingham's passion for ASU won out.
"Arizona State, obviously, it was a very dark place at the end of the Herm Edwards era," Rabino said. "This is exactly the type of coach that they needed. They didn't need a mercenary. They didn't need somebody who's going to use this job as a stepping stone after they rebuild it.
"Everybody knows that Kenny Dillingham is here for the long haul and his genuine passion for the program and to really rebuild this team, getting back to 10-win seasons like they had when he was here with Todd Graham. He wants to bring it back to that level if not more.
"Even before he coached one game at ASU, I think the passion and what he had to say in his press conferences really absolutely resonated with the ASU fanbase."
While outsiders weren't expecting much of ASU this season, those around Tempe were much more optimistic.
"Kenny Dillingham used (the Big 12 preseason poll) as bulletin board material," Rabino said. "I'm not saying that's the end all, be all why Arizona State is having a so much better season, but that motivation did help. And in terms of the players that he brought in from the transfer portal last year, there's still a lot of them are key players this year."
Offensively in Big 12 games, Arizona State is averaging 28.0 points (No. 11 overall in the league), 415 total yards (No. 6), 199.0 rushing yards (No. 4) and 216.0 passing yards (No. 11).
A new transfer, redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt (Michigan State), has been a key reason for this year's success.
"You trust a guy like Kenny Dillingham because you saw what he did to revive Bo Nix's career," Rabino said. "He coached Jordan Travis at Florida State. Rightfully or not, he's gained this quote-unquote quarterback whisperer title.
"And I think for a redshirt freshman, Sam Leavitt has been playing a lot of good football and he's going to be that foundational piece for the offense for years to come."
In seven games, Leavitt has completed 60.77 percent of his passes (110 of 181) for 1,470 yards (210.00 average) and 11 touchdowns with four interceptions. He has a season PFF grade of 79.9.
"Sam Leavitt, I think what people are impressed by is his maturity, his decision making and he's somebody who I think is more mobile than anybody thought that he would be. He's really a true dual-threat quarterback, even though that was never his calling card coming out of high school or even coming to ASU."
ASU's biggest star is running back Cam Skattebo, a senior who transferred in last year from Sacramento State. Skattebo is the Big 12's third-leading rusher behind UCF's RJ Harvey and Texas Tech's Tahj Brooks, though his status for Saturday's game is in question. Dillingham said Monday Skattebo is "doubtful to questionable" after suffering a late injury last week at Oklahoma State and will not practice this week.
"Now, is Cam Skattebo good enough not to practice all week and still play on Saturday? Yes, he is," Rabino said. "What kind of physical condition he's going to be in, that really remains to be seen. Right now it's really an unknown whether Cam Skattebo is going to play or not. If he does play, I don't expect him to get that near 20 carry load that he's been getting almost each game."
Skattebo is averaging 125 rushing yards through eight games.
"He's definitely elevated his game quite a bit," Rabino said. "People think that he was an unknown in 2023. He had a very good year in 2023, but the offense was so horrible that it was just really easy to gloss over that. But yeah, he's done a great job reshaping his body in the offseason and really understanding the game more.
"He's just a very complete running back, great in pass blocking, great in receiving the ball. I'm curious to see how this ASU offense can operate without him if he doesn't play."
Leavitt and Skattebo have a lot to do with ASU's turnaround, but another big asset was the addition of offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Marcus Arroyo, who previously served as UNLV's head coach from 2020-22. During his Oregon days, Arroyo tutored Justin Herbert.
Tight end Chamon Metayer, a North Miami native who previously attended Cincinnati and Colorado, has been a standout player.
Jordyn Tyson, another Colorado transfer, is ASU's top wide receiver with 39 catches for 558 yards and five touchdowns.
However, Rabino said ASU's wide receiver corps doesn't run very deep.
Defensively in Big 12 games, ASU is giving up 25.0 points (No. 7), 352.2 total yards (No. 4), 139.2 rushing yards (No. 5) and 213.0 passing yards (No. 6).
Rabino said DE Clayton Smith (4.0 sacks), DT C.J. Fite, LB Keyshaun Elliott, safety/nickel Shamari Simmons, CB Keith Abney II and CB LT Welch are among ASU's top defensive players.
"LT Welch, a transfer from LSU, had four pass breakups just in the second half against Oklahoma State," Rabino said. "He was huge in that game.
"There's a lot of depth on the ASU defense. It's very aggressive defense that sometimes have a little of the bend but not break element to them. I'm really curious to see what they're going to do against UCF, facing the best running back in the Big 12 and a very inexperienced quarterback who had the game of his life last week against Arizona."
ASU is a three-point favorite.
Rabino says the obvious keys are to try to contain RJ Harvey and force UCF to beat them via the passing game.
"They know what Dylan Rizk did last week," Rabino said. "Maybe he snuck up on Arizona because there wasn't much film on him. I think ASU will come up with a game plan to frustrate him on a higher level than Arizona did."
If Skattebo isn't available or limited at running back, Kyson Brown will be next man up.
"He just had a breakout game of his own, 15 carries for 63 yards and two touchdowns at Oklahoma State," Rabino said. "I don't think it's gonna be a whole lot of drop off if he's going to be the starting running back."
Sam Leavitt is also coming off his best game at quarterback.
"He completed 20 of 29 passes (at Oklahoma State) for 300 yards and three touchdowns," Rabino said. "Can he build on that momentum knowing this could be a game Cam Skattebo doesn't play? There will be more required of him. Can he handle that pressure?"
This will be ASU's first home game since Oct. 11 so Rabino is expected a quality atmosphere inside Mountain America Stadium. The temperatures are also starting to cool down in the Valley of the Sun.
This is shaping up to be a popular road trip for UCF fans. Rabino recommends a visit to The Chuckbox, a popular burger joint not too far from the stadium. There's also a lot of great restaurant and bar options on Mill Avenue.
