ARLINGTON, Texas — There was just something about coach Matt Campbell and his Iowa State program that intrigued Kenny Dillingham.
“His culture and his realness, I think he’s one of the most real people in the sport. You see the passion and emotion on the sideline,” said Dillingham, the second-year coach at Arizona State. “That was the program that I wanted to study from because I thought that they were overachieving at that time early in his career at a high level before he had built it up. Now he’s built it up.”
The 34-year-old Dillingham has overseen a program-record seven-win improvement over last year at his alma mater in its Big 12 debut season. The 15th-ranked Sun Devils (10-2, 7-2) now play for the conference championship Saturday — against Campbell and the No. 16 Cyclones (10-2, 7-2).
After Dillingham became Auburn’s offensive coordinator in 2019, then-Tigers coach Gus Malzahn gave him two days to go study any team. Dillingham went to Iowa State to visit Campbell, who was only 32 when he became a first-time head coach at Toledo late in 2011 and went to Iowa State in 2016.
“I’m like, ‘Man, this culture that he created, I feel like is sustainable. I feel like this is a winning formula.’ … I was really trying to get a vibe and a feel for how did he create that culture,” Dillingham recalled this week.
The Cyclones already have their first 10-win season, and Campbell is now their winningest coach (63-50).
Campbell was once that “young” head coach like Dillingham is now.
“Just a lot of respect from my standpoint for him, what he’s been able to accomplish as a young head football coach,” Campbell said. “Being in those same shoes not long ago, you have appreciation for somebody that the spirit his football team plays with, you can tell they believe in their head football coach and their coaching staff.”
Big 12 teams in the CFP
Arizona State and Iowa State, part of a four-way tie for first place in the Big 12, advanced to the title game on a series of tiebreakers that eliminated BYU and Colorado. The winner at AT&T Stadium will be the conference’s only team in the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff.
Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark has publicly expressed his displeasure about the CFP rankings. Current projections have the conference’s champion as the No. 12 seed playing a first-round game on the road.
Top WR out for Sun Devils
Arizona State will be without top receiver Jordyn Tyson, who is out indefinitely after suffering an unspecified injury in the second half against Arizona. Tyson landed hard on his left side while being tackled and left the stadium Saturday wearing a sling on his left arm.
Tyson has 75 catches for 1,101 yards and 10 touchdowns, ranking third in the Big 12 with 91.8 yards per game. The Sun Devils will have to lean more on seniors Xavier Guillory and Melquan Stovall, who have combined for 30 catches for 453 yards and three TDs.
Cyclones through the air
Iowa State’s Rocco Becht has thrown a touchdown pass in 16 consecutive games. He is the only quarterback in the nation with a pair of 1,000-yard receivers.
Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel are the first set of Cyclones receivers with 1,000 yards in the same season. Higgins has 80 catches for 1,068 yards and nine TDs, while Noel has 67 catches for 1,013 yards and six scores.
Punishing Skattebo
Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo can do a little bit of everything — use his quick feet to dart past defenders, catch passes out of the backfield, even pooch punt in a pinch.
What Skattebo does best is inflict damage. The senior doesn’t wait to be tackled, instead initiating contact and punishing anyone who would dare try to take him down.
Skattebo is third nationally in missed tackles forced with 93 and fourth in yards after contact rushing and receiving with 1,141, according to Sportradar.
He has rushed for 1,397 yards and 17 touchdowns, ranking third in the Big 12 and eighth nationally with 127.1 yards per game. He is the only 1,000-yard rusher in the FBS who also has 400 receiving yards (468).
While the Cyclones have one of the conference’s best overall defenses, they rank 14th allowing 173.7 rushing yards per game.
Trio of Cyclones remains from 2020
The Cyclones have only three players who were on the roster for their only other Big 12 title game, a loss to Oklahoma in 2020. Defensive back Darien Porter was the only one to get in that game. The other players are offensive lineman Jarrod Hufford and defensive lineman J.R. Singleton.
AP’s John Marshall contributed.
No. 15 Arizona State (10-2, 7-2 Big 12) vs. No. 16 Iowa State (10-2, 7-2)
- Time/TV: 11 a.m. Saturday in Arlington, Texas, ABC-7.
- Line: Arizona State by 2½.
- Series: First meeting.
Facts & figures
Iowa State QB Rocco Becht’s 17 wins the last two seasons is the best two-year stretch for a QB in school history. … Arizona State, the preseason pick to finish last in the Big 12, already has set a school record with a seven-win improvement from last year. Indiana’s eight-win improvement is the only one better by an FBS team this season. … Iowa State scored at least 29 points in four consecutive Big 12 games for the first time since 2005.
