TEMPE, Ariz — Editor's note: The above video is from a Locked On Podcast episode from July 2024.
As Arizona State begins Big 12 Championship week, the team is already facing an obstacle it will have to overcome.
On Monday, head coach Kenny Dillingham announced that leading receiver Jordyn Tyson will be out for an extended period for an undisclosed injury. It forces the Sun Devils to head to Arlington not just shorthanded, but without their most reliable set of hands.
"I don't want to give a complete 3-4 month out timetable, but he's going to be out indefinitely," Dillingham said.
Dillingham did not go into further details, but he did double down shortly after when asked if Tyson could return at some point later this season.
"I don't know the depth of that, I just know he's out indefinitely," he said, noting his offense will have to adjust without its alpha receiver. "He demands two people to cover him. So if teams don't have to demand two people, then they can load the box. You got to find more creative ways to win those one-on-one matchups."
Tyson was injured in the third quarter of the No. 12 Arizona State's 49-7 win over Arizona last Saturday after landing hard on his left side while being tackled, the Associated Press reported. He left the stadium wearing a sling on his left arm.
For the Sun Devils, the mantra is now "next man up." Situations such as this one have been the story of the season.
"All the challenges to get to this point that you're one game away from accomplishing something that people said couldn't be done, that's significant," Dillingham said.
The Big 12 Championship would have been a homecoming for Tyson. His hometown of Allen, Texas, is 45 minutes from AT&T Stadium. He is one of 22 players on the roster with Lonestar State roots. Dillingham said the trip to Texas is a chance to add more.
"I do think playing a game there and being televised there, being one of the things on the billboards there is huge for the brand of Arizona State football," he said.
With the three-day early signing window opening Wednesday, the timing is on point, though Dillingham thinks it misses the bigger picture.
"Should that take one minute of time away from how you should prepare to pour everything into these players and this game? Absolutely not," he said, adding that this week is about the present, not the future. "It's always about the kid on our roster. And I really believe if you treat your own people well, they'll recruit for you."
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