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 has ever beaten an SEC school.
“It’d be awesome,” Dillingham said. “It would. … We’re not worried about that. That doesn’t change our process. Our process should be the exact same, being the very best we can be, all the time.
“But is there an added benefit if you can be the first team in history to win a game like that? Is it an added benefit that Mississippi State circled this game and said, ‘We’re going to win,’ before the season? … Oh, yeah.”
To listen to Dillingham, you’d have no idea that ASU was favored to win by nearly a touchdown (6.5).
And for me, that’s exactly the right attitude.
Beating Wyoming was cute. And it’s probably ASU’s best win since the pandemic. But again, there are some big differences between Wyoming and Mississippi State, like the gap between the Mountain West and the SEC.
There’s good football in the Mountain West, but that conference has never had a school in the College Football Playoff.
By comparison, SEC teams make a case each year that every team in the championship picture should hail from their conference.
SEC guys are bigger, stronger and faster than everybody else – and everybody knows it.
“They’re giants on the offensive line,” ASU defensive coordinator Brian Ward said. “They’re very athletic at quarterback. If (Shapen) doesn’t see his first read, he’ll move around and try to create. Their running backs are physical and athletic and fast, and their receivers will run by you.”
Preparing for this can’t be easy.
“We’ll try to simulate that the best we can,” Ward said.
But he’s making sure his guys are focused on doing their jobs.
“It’s about us,” Ward said. “It’s not about them.”
Ward’s unit generated three turnovers against Wyoming, a serious improvement over last season when the ASU defense created just nine takeaways all year.
“We have an expectation of affecting the quarterback and challenging all routes and making offenses win,” Ward said. “If we can challenge offenses, stop the run and make them feel like they’ve got to throw the football … hopefully, this weekend there’s going to be another opportunity for us to cause some (takeaways).”
There should be some chances.
Mississippi State is expected to run an up-tempo offense. Lebby’s teams line up fast, snap the ball fast and try to score fast.
It’s a lot different from what ASU faced against Wyoming, but if the Sun Devils stick to their basics and don’t lollygag and celebrate after every play, they could find themselves in position to pressure the quarterback into some mistakes.
But for all the differences between Wyoming and Mississippi State, the most important difference has to do with ASU.
The vibe around Tempe this year is a whole lot different from the vibe around Tempe the past couple of years.
If this were 2022 or 2023, I’d be predicting the Sun Devils to get smoked. This year, I think ASU can give Mississippi State a serious challenge, which isn’t something I could imagine saying at the start of the season.
Reach Moore at gmoore@azcentral.com or 602-444-2236. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @SayingMoore.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona State can notch first SEC win over Mississippi State
