The future is now: freshman class contributes to Sun Devils’ victory over Kansas State

(Photo: Easton Stockford/WCSN)

TEMPE – Over the course of eight months, Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham planted the seeds for the next wave of talent to come through the program.

Julian Hugo, a four-star edge recruit out of Cibolo, Texas, announced his commitment to the Sun Devils on April 10, 2025. 17 days later, ASU also landed Cardae Mack, a four-star running back from Humble, Texas.

To top it all off, four-star quarterback recruit and El Paso native Jake Fette officially signed with the Sun Devils on Dec. 3, after committing on Sep. 22, 2024.

With ASU (4-3, 2-2 Big 12) in desperate need of a change in momentum at the halfway point of the 2026 season, Dillingham’s harvest came to fruition as all three members of the team’s freshman class played critical roles in a 28-17 victory over Kansas State (4-3, 1-3 Big 12) at Mountain America Stadium on Saturday.

“They just wanted to be Sun Devils,” head coach Kenny Dillingham said. “They chose to be Sun Devils because they showed up, and they saw sold-out crowds. They saw people cheering for our football team. They saw a football team that played hard. They saw positive energy in the city.”

Mack made his presence known right out of the gate with a 9-yard rushing touchdown on ASU’s opening drive after Kansas State took an early 7-0 lead. Although the Sun Devils have had a habit of rotating multiple running backs as the game progressed, the freshman ball carrier received all five handoffs on the team’s first two possessions.

The additional opportunities led to Mack punching it in on a fourth-and-goal situation, putting ASU in front 14-7 at the start of the second quarter. Despite only one handoff out of eight total on the first half not ending up in his hands, he insisted his level of usage was more of a reflection of Dillingham staying away from fixing something that wasn’t broken.

“There was nothing that said he was gonna let me roll,” Mack said. “But he said if we got the hot hand, he was gonna roll with the hot hand.”

However, Mack’s takeover of the backfield coincided with the Sun Devils having to work in three different quarterbacks throughout the game.

Sixth-year Mikey Keene made his first start since Nov. 2024, and led ASU to over 200 yards of total offense before suffering a knee injury with a minute left in the first half. As a result, third-year Cutter Boley returned under center amidst a flurry of boos from the home crowd.

The displeasure brewing within Mountain America Stadium grew to a fever pitch as the offense under Boley produced just 19 yards on three consecutive drives, buying enough time for the Wildcats to take a 17-14 lead midway through the third quarter.

Seeing the Sun Devils lose all velocity as the second half wore on, Dillingham pulled the trigger on giving Fette his first taste of in-game action since the fourth quarter of Week 1.

The freshman signal caller ensured his coach didn’t regret the decision by immediately orchestrating a seven-play, 71-yard drive in which he completed his only pass attempt and flashed his mobility on a positive rushing gain. Fette’s sound decision-making with the ball in his hands led to Mack taking the lead right back for ASU on his third rushing touchdown of the day.

“I think we just wanted the spark there with Jake, and we all know how good of a player Jake is,” Dillingham said. “You want to do everything you can to protect really good freshmen at the quarterback position. You never want to put them in a position that can ruin him, sometimes you can do to a quarterback.

“But at the end of the game, we felt like he gave us the best chance to win because of his confidence.”

Fette completed two more passes for 36 yards two possessions later, but Mack once again ran the show by capping off the drive with an 11-yard touchdown. Not since Demario Richard in the 2014 Sun Bowl had an ASU freshman scored four touchdowns in a game, nor had a freshman rushed for four touchdowns in a single game since Leon Burton in 1955.

Mack became the exception with his performance of 26 rushing attempts for 159 yards and four scores, leaving Dillingham with a very straightforward reaction.

“Stud,” Dillingham said. “Shows up every day to work, great energy, keeps showing up.”

On the ensuing Kansas State possession, Hugo jumped in on the fun by bringing backup fifth-year quarterback Jacob Knuth down the ground for a turnover on downs.

While ASU ultimately failed to add more points onto the scoreboard, his sack led to the offense burning over three minutes off the clock and forcing the Wildcats to try to score 11 points in one minute and 45 seconds.

“Another guy who’s just consistent, who wanted to be a Sun Devil,” Dillingham said. “A lot of people were trying to flip him. Just like Jake. Just like Cardae.”

First-year players being able to provide meaningful contributions right away provides the benefit of imagining how high their ceiling can be as their collegiate career continues to play out.

Hugo currently leads the Sun Devils with four sacks, and Mack is now the team’s leader in both rushing yards and touchdowns with 357 yards and six scores. Furthermore, Fette is poised to expand his level of experience as ASU’s starting quarterback against No. 2 BYU next week.

“He will be the guy next week,” Dillingham said. “I say that, but we’ll see what happens with Mikey, and we haven’t got all that set back.”

At a time when the Sun Devils desperately needed to right the ship, they have found three players who are not afraid to let their freshman status prevent them from stepping into the limelight. Thanks to his efforts over a year ago, the fruits of Dillingham’s labor are beginning to ripen into a foundation he can build upon for the foreseeable future.

“You’re going to have highs and lows, but the challenge is how do you get through them?” Dillingham said. “You can do them together, and I think those guys stayed with it through the highs and lows, and now they’re reaping what they sowed because the first time in adversity, they didn’t just go crazy. They stayed strong, and they stayed with the vision, and they wanted to be Sun Devils.”