The ASU Sun Devils are making sure one of their biggest heroes is remembered by the younger generations. HC Kenny Dillingham, now leading the cause of taking ASU to higher places during his tenure, is honoring a late legend of the program. He is a war hero and a program leader, and Dillingham has a unique initiative to carry on his legacy. The iconic linebacker not only made his school proud of his career. This veteran figure had a nation in awe of him.
Pat Tillman played for ASU from 1994 to 1997. Dillingham, the new HC, was born three years after the late veteran player graduated from the program. In the span of those three years, Tillman tallied more than 150 tackles and earned a slew of accolades. Pac-10 Conference Defensive Player of the Year Award, All-American Honors, and more awards came his way. But his short-lived NFL career is proof of his grit, determination, and love for his country. Tillman played only 4 seasons for the Arizona Cardinals and then enlisted in the U.S. Army. Unfortunately, in 2004, Tillman lost his life in friendly fire.
Dillingham is making sure the new generation of Sun Devils honors him the way he should be. He said in a May 21 episode of The Jim Rome Podcast that it was “absolutely critical” to have his legacy remembered even today. The HC does this by way of the Pat Tillman Leadership Council, and a small group of players gets voted on to it. He explained the reason behind using the hero as an inspiration for this council. “What better leader was there, not just in sport, but in our country than Pat Tillman?”
“Everybody on our leadership council gets a little Pat Tillman patch to wear on game day,” Dillingham said further. “When a TV crew comes out, they’re going to ask, ‘What is that patch?’… It’s a plan in the fourth quarter to talk about that patch and to educate the next generation of people on what that patch means,” the HC added. Dillingham also said that this initiative was “important not just to [the] ASU football program” but to “Pat Tillman’s legacy” as well.”
Pat Tillman’s death came as a shock to football fans. Tillman was a loyal Arizona man through and through, having denied an offer from the St. Louis Rams to stay with the Cardinals. His loss continues to be an educational and inspiring aspect of Tempe. Younger players today follow in the footsteps of the older ones, and who better for the new generation of Sun Devil than Pat Tillman?
Kenny Dillingham is a fresh breath of air to the ASU program, which is now a rejuvenated program. By honoring such a veteran figure, he’s making sure that locker room culture knows what ideals to honor and cherish both on and off the field.
Kenny Dillingham’s powerful message to the locker room
In just two years, the HC has done a complete makeover of the Sun Devils. This year, they’re bound to make some more noise than last. And he’s keeping Sam Leavitt and Co. motivated with a very important message. He told the Big 12 Today podcast, “Our goal is not to win a national championship. Our goal is not to win the Big 12 championship… none of these things exist to me. To me, it’s just be the very best we can be.”
“The better you end up being, the bigger the moments become, naturally. So if you just double down on being the very best over and over again, you’re going to create a bigger moment and a bigger moment and a bigger moment,” Dillingham added. That is the mentality that led to the Sun Devils’ turnaround last season. They shot up to an impressive finish of 11-3 after a 3-9 record in 2023. Not many programs are able to transform by this much. But Kenny Dillingham did it.
He’s also changed the program’s culture intrinsically as well. Dillingham’s focus on being humble during their careers pushed Leavitt to donate his entire NIL fund back to the ‘Sun Angel Collective.’ Moreover, the culture is such that both Leavitt and Jordyn Tyson decided to play one more year at ASU. Compare the situation with the vast majority of CFB programs, where players are jumping ship every other day. And NIL has become the dealbreaker in college recruitment. Then there’s the ASU QB, who’s giving back whatever he earned.
Dillingham made stars out of Sam Leavitt and Cam Skattebo, who’s now in the NFL. And by honoring the legacy of the greats that came before him, we can definitely say that the culture at ASU is in good hands.
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