‘One of the hardest places to play’: Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham previews matchup with No. 8 BYU

Arizona State is still searching for its first road win of 2026, and such an effort will continue Saturday in Provo against No. 8 BYU.

The Sun Devils have been no stranger to hostile road crowds this season, having already fallen at both Texas A&M and Texas Tech.

But according to head coach Kenny Dillingham, “you can’t” adequately prepare for the challenge of heading into an environment like LaVell Edwards Stadium.

”This is one of the best fan bases, (one of) the most consistent fan bases in college football," Dillingham told reporters of BYU at his weekly press briefing. “This is one of the best coaching staffs, in my opinion, most consistent coaching staffs from the top in college football.

“I think when you have the consistency that they have as a program from the top, I think they’re reaping what they sow from that perspective, so going to this place is definitely one of the hardest places to play in college football.

“There’s a reason their win percentage is so high, so I don’t think there is a way to (prepare),” he continued. “I mean, we can play loud music, but that’s not going to prepare you for the entire environment. It’s going to come down to just understanding you’ve got to do your 1/11th every single play and try to put yourself in that mode where you’re on the field and try to block out everything else.”

BYU and Arizona State haven’t faced off since November 2024 — an afternoon that lives on within the lore of both programs.

The eventual Big 12 champion Sun Devils scored a 28-23 win to essentially keep the Cougars out of the conference title game, and the game’s chaotic finish remains fresh in everyone’s mind. ASU fans stormed the field, only for officials to put a second back on the clock for a final BYU play.

Dillingham was famously livid at the decision, which ultimately wouldn’t matter, as the Cougars’ Hail Mary fell short and fans returned to the field for a lasting rowdy celebration.

“Just how I acted was not OK,” Dillingham said of the 2024 matchup. “I mean, I was, you know, confused, rattled, confused by the communication. I just shouldn’t have acted that way.”

Kenny Dillingham on the last time Arizona State faced BYU back in 2024:
“How I acted was not OK.”
📸: @SunDevilSourcepic.twitter.com/a8OwshUhMa

— Jackson Payne (@jackson5payne) October 27, 2026

BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier was still a high schooler — and Stanford commit — when the Cougars last played Arizona State, with Dillingham saying the star sophomore “does everything well.”

“He’s really good at the things that win games, and I think that’s the greatest compliment you can give a quarterback, you’re good at the things that win games,” Dillingham said. “He plays his best in the biggest moments, which is why they’ve won so many close games this year and last year with him. He plays his best in the biggest moments.”

Despite being gashed for 463 total yards and 39 points at UCF this past weekend, Dillingham is still impressed with BYU’s defense, acknowledging the challenges it presents against his offense.

“There’s so many multiples in their pass defense ... you don’t know what you’re going to get. It’s very confusing because they play so many different coverages and they line up with three high safeties.

“They line up in regular odd. They line up in an odd stack. They line up in four down. This is one of those teams that lines up and does so many things defensively to create chaos and to create miscommunication, and that’s why they’ve been so successful,” Dillingham said.

“That’s why I think (Kalani Sitake) is one of the best coaches in college football. He’s been very successful on defense for a long time. I remember playing him back in the day when I was here as a GA, I remember him having one of the better defenses, and he just does a phenomenal job.”

As for the Sun Devils, there is still uncertainty at quarterback, with starter Mikey Keene questionable to play Saturday with a knee injury and freshman third-stringer Jake Fette potentially set to make his first career start.

“I think regardless of who takes the field, we’re going to put together a plan, and we’re going to practice hard and prepare to try to go win a football game,” Dillingham said.