Is ASU football an underdog? Dillingham says it’s a trap game for CFP hopeful Texas State

Arizona State Sun Devils head coach Kenny Dillingham is doing his best to fight human nature. His ASU football team enters a road game at Texas State with momentum.

The Sun Devils can prove wins over Wyoming and Mississippi State aren’t fool’s gold by avoiding a loss to Texas State. The Mercury News’ Jon Wilner labeled it a “trap game” for the Sun Devils, a way of complimenting a surprise start.

But Dillingham has his way to twist the narrative into something that can better motivate his team.

“The reality was we opened as a 1-and-a-half-point dog in this football game,” Dillingham told Arizona Sports’ Bickley & Marotta on Wednesday. “So you know, they’re (in) the trap game, not us. We’re the underdog.

“We’re the team that people still think are going to lose. We’re the team that was still picked last (in the Big 12 media poll). We’re the team that played such a bad second half (against MSU). We’re lucky we got off to such a hot start — it had nothing to do with us. We’re still the underdog in this football game.”

Is ASU football actually an underdog vs. Texas State?

For the record, the current line as of Wednesday morning is in favor of ASU at -1.5, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

“It doesn’t matter how you spin it,” Dillingham said. “It’s our first road game … we played five days ago, we got done playing at 11:30 (p.m.), they got done playing at 6. They don’t have to travel, we do. Everything is stacked against us. And we’re playing a good football team.”

To that last point: The Bobcats beat Lamar, 34-27, then smacked UTSA by a 49-10 final score to open the year with their own momentum.

Long-time college football writer Brett McMurphy named the Sun Belt school as a College Football Playoff team — the 12th seed — in Week 0.

CBS Sports’ Brad Crawford is still holding that thinking. If the Bobcats can drop ASU, there is a legitimate chance they could run the table from there.

Dillingham knows that Texas State is seeing those articles. And he knows Arizona State needs to prepare to see a team fighting for its football life.

“If I’m Texas State, this is my game I have to win and every other game I’m favored,” Dillingham said. “And if I win out after I beat Arizona State, I’m in the playoff. This is a playoff game for them, and we got to treat it like it.”

Familiar faces for the Bobcats

Texas State is led by one-time Arizona quarterback Jordan McCloud, who briefly played for the Wildcats in 2021 before suffering a season-long injury.

During an eventual 1-11 season for Arizona, McCloud made two starts and played in three games total, throwing for 481 yards, two touchdowns and five picks. He played the 2023 season with James Madison after sitting out the 2022 campaign.

With Texas State this year, McCloud has completed 68% of his passes with five touchdowns and two interceptions during his fifth college season and fourth stop.

McCloud is backed up by R.J. Martinez, who threw for 4,598 yards while at Northern Arizona from 2021-22. Martinez played sparingly at Baylor in 2023 before landing with the Bobcats.

The Arizona State connection at Texas State is backup offensive lineman Ezra Dotson-Oyetade. He was the top center prospect in the country for the 2021 high school recruiting class but did not break into the lineups at ASU or his last stop, TCU.

How to watch and listen to ASU vs. Texas State

ASU football visits Texas State on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. MST. The game airs on ESPN 620 AM, 98.7 HD-2 and the Arizona Sports app. Watch on ESPN.

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