ASU’s Kenny Dillingham not letting London setting take away from Kansas game prep

Head coach Kenny Dillingham is hard at work not letting the setting of Arizona State’s next game — college football’s first in London — get in the way of his game preparation to play Kansas on Saturday.

Dillingham told reporters Tuesday that he’s been locked in for his preparation for the Union Jack Classic at Wembley Stadium. He added that it’s been an adjustment for him and his team after leaving for London Saturday night, following ASU’s loss against Texas A&M.

“I didn’t sleep the first 36 hours I was here. That was fun,” Dillingham said. “Early in weeks, I get locked in a cave.”

After getting differing advice from coaches and mentors about how to approach the London trip following the Texas A&M game, Dillingham said it was best for the team to head to London instead of heading back home for an off day.

“That was the kind of advice I got from people, was to get out there fast because we have an away game before,” Dillingham said.

ASU (1-1) looks to bounce back after last week’s 48-20 loss to the Aggies, which saw the Sun Devils commit four turnovers.

While Dillingham doesn’t know what lasting effect the London game could have on college football, he does see it as a great opportunity to grow the university’s presence in London.

“I definitely think getting out and playing here is an opportunity for Arizona State University to grow … we got a new campus here, so I think for London to be exposed to Arizona State University and kind of brand ourselves over here and hopefully have a sold-out crowd of ASU fans would be awesome,” Dillingham said.

Dillingham knows Kansas fans and those unfamiliar with American college football could join the hard-core Sun Devils who traveled for the trip.

For the group of neutral fans, he had this message:

“If you’re rooting for Kansas, you cheer as loud as possible when Kansas is on offense,” Dillingham said dryly. “If you’re rooting for Arizona State, you cheer as loud as possible for when Kansas is on offense. So that’s the cheering rules that I hope get applied.”

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