Dillingham was an easy choice for the award as he increased his regular season win total by seven wins from 2023 to 2024. His abrupt turnaround pitted No. 15 Arizona State (10-2, 7-2) against No. 16 Iowa State (10-2, 7-2) at AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys, on Saturday.

The Sun Devils coach didn’t conquer the conference alone – he did it with great players. Dillingham dominated the transfer portal in the offseason, bringing two of the conference’s brightest stars to the Valley: redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt and redshirt sophomore wide receiver Jordyn Tyson.

ASU’s dynamic quarterback-receiver duo turned heads in the Big 12 all year long and were rewarded for it. Leavitt was named Offensive Freshman of the Year and Tyson was named the conference’s Offensive Newcomer of the Year. Tyson was also named All-Big 12 First Team and Leavitt was named All-Big 12 Second Team.

Leavitt finished his first regular season as a Sun Devil completing 180 of 287 passes (62.7%) for 2,444 yards, 21 touchdowns and just 5 interceptions in 11 games. With 498 yards and 4 touchdowns on the ground, he added an additional element to ASU’s dominant rushing attack.

The Michigan State transfer missed just one game this year after suffering a hard hit that broke a rib in a blowout upset against Utah in October, but was there for Dillingham and his team in every other game. He threw a season-high four touchdown passes in ASU’s 35-31 win over Kansas, marking one of five games with more than three passing touchdowns this season. He threw for more than 225 yards seven times and threw for a season-high 304 yards in a 42-21 win over Oklahoma State.

Leavitt has hit 15 different goals this season, but he owes most of his success to fellow transfer and Newcomer of the Year Tyson.

Tyson seemed to have finally found his home in Tempe after moving from Colorado. It almost seemed like he was the only person who could see Leavitt on the field. He posted team-highs in receptions (75), receiving yards (1,101) and receiving touchdowns (10). The team’s next leading receiver in receptions and yards is ASU running back Cam Skattebo with 468 yards on 35 catches. Redshirt junior tight end Chamon Metayer – a two-way transfer – is second on the team with five touchdowns.

Skattebo was named All-Big 12 First Team, along with redshirt-senior offensive lineman Leif Fautanu and redshirt-junior defensive back Xavion Alford.

A total of 11 Sun Devils were honored by the Big 12. Here’s a look at every Arizona State player honored:

Arizona State players receive Big 12 honors

Coach of the Year: Kenny Dillingham

Offensive Freshman of the Year: Redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt

Offensive newcomer of the year: Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Jordyn Tyson

All-Big 12 First Team: Senior running back Cam Skattebo, redshirt sophomore wide receiver Jordyn Tyson, redshirt senior offensive lineman Leif Fautanu, redshirt junior defensive back Xavion Alfford

All-Big 12 Second Team: Redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt, redshirt junior tight end Chamon Metayer, sophomore defensive lineman CJ Fite, junior linebacker Keyshaun Elliott,

All-Big12 Honorable Mention: Redshirt junior defensive back Hughes (Defensive Freshman of the Year), redshirt senior linebacker Caleb McCullough, junior defensive back Myles Rowser, senior running back Cam Skattebo (Offensive Player of the Year)