ASU athletic director Rossini is excited about the future of the football program

ATLANTA – Timing is everything.

Arizona State athletic director Graham Rossini thought the eve of his school’s historic Peach Bowl showdown against Texas at Mercedes-Benz Stadium was the perfect time to make a formal announcement that head coach Kenny Dillingham wasn’t going anywhere. So he did just before midnight at an invite-only meeting of ASU donors and supporters in downtown Atlanta.

The 34-year-old Dillingham was rewarded with a five-year contract extension. While the Board of Regents only grants extensions for a maximum of five years, there is a “path” to ten years.

As football fans watch the nationally televised quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff, the networks will be talking about a coach who has signed a long-term contract. What better time to spread a message?

“It is important that we continue to build momentum in our football program and signal to the rest of the nation that we have awarded our coach a long-term contract extension,” Rossini told The Arizona Republic.

“There is Kenny up to 10 years. This is important for longevity. He’s talked a lot about wanting to be here. We have always shared this feeling. This goal. To protect his family. Giving him longevity, rewarding performance and giving him what he needs so many resources to retain good coaches.

Rossini, speaking to The Republic an hour before the start of the game, said that extension talks had not started at any particular point. He said he knows Dillingham wants to be here long-term, so discussions are just now underway. Rossini also highlighted school President Michael Crow and his support for suspending the coach long-term.

Dillingham was unanimously named Big 12 Coach of the Year and was a finalist for several national coaching awards. Dillingham is finishing his second year and became Big 12 champions in ASU’s first season competing in the conference – after being predicted to finish last among the 16 schools.

The school completed three to nine consecutive seasons amid an NCAA investigation into recruiting violations stemming from the previous coaching regime. Dillingham did what he did this year, still handcuffed by certain sanctions. The 2025 season will be the first in which there will be no NCAA restrictions.

Terms were not disclosed, but the deal is expected to bring Dillingham closer to the Big 12’s top coaching echelon. In the fall, USA Today released its annual football head coaching salary report, showing that Dillingham’s annual salary of $3.95 million ranked twelfth of the 15 conference coaches whose salaries are publicly available. As a private institution, BYU does not have to make this public.

Dillingham had significant incentives. He collected an additional $200,000 when his team defeated BYU for its ninth win of the season. He decided to split this up among 20 off-field staff. According to sources, this new deal is expected to give him bonus money that he can distribute to employees as he sees fit, so he isn’t being paid out of pocket.

He received another $395,000 bonus for winning the Big 12 title game. A berth in the 12-team CFP playoffs resulted in another bonus of 30% of his annual salary, about $1.185 million. He will receive an additional 5% of his salary with a win in the CFP quarterfinals and another 5% with a win in the CFP semifinals.

Dillingham, a Chaparral High School graduate and ASU graduate, has made no secret of his desire to lead the program long-term.

He has also expressed a desire to take care of his employees. Offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo and defensive coordinator Brian Ward agreed to a three-year extension.

Rossini added that he wanted to get the message out that school leadership is willing to put all resources into the football program to ensure this isn’t a one-year slump. Rossini said 20 scholarships will be added, bringing the total to 105 per year.

The school also participates in revenue sharing.

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ASU athletic director Rossini is excited about the future of the football program

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