“Had to turnaround and stop”: ASU coach Kenny Dillingham shares a heartwarming exchange with a die-hard fan

Kenny Dillingham is a Sun Devil through and through. The current coach of the Arizona State Sun Devils is an alumnus of the school, having attended there in the late 2000s and early 2010s while also coaching at local Chaparral High School.

It was also at Arizona State that Dillingham's coaching career started, with him being hired as an offensive assistant in 2014.

All this to say that Dillingham evidently had very close ties to the Sun Devils and that he feels deeply for the program and its people. Those people include the younger fans who might one day aspire to follow in his footsteps.

In a heartwarming Instagram story this Tuesday, the coach shared a picture of himself with a young fan selling lemonade on the roadside. He also added the following explanation about the encounter:

"My man was in an ASU shirt selling lemonade! Had to turnaround and stop," wrote Kenny Dillingham.

One might even imagine a younger Dillingham on the roadside selling lemonade in an Arizona State University shirt.

Kenny Dillingham's goal for Arizona State: Be the best

Speaking on the "Big 12 Today" podcast this week, Kenny Dillingham set a very clear goal for the Arizona State Sun Devils in 2025. It is to be their very best selves, and everything else will take care of itself:

“Our goal is not to win a national championship. Our goal is not to win the Big 12 championship … none of these things exist to me. To me, it’s just be the very best we can be.

“Like, I tell our guys, the better you end up being, the bigger the moments become, naturally. So if you just double down on being the very best over and over again, you’re going to create a bigger moment and a bigger moment and a bigger moment."

Dillingham is about to enter his third season with the Sun Devils. It's on the back of a highly successful 2024 campaign that saw them get an 11-3 record, win the Big 12 championship and reach the CFP quarterfinal.

That's great progress after taking the reins of a program that had a 1-9 overall record in 2022 (two wins vacated due to NCAA rules violations) and had a 3-9 record in a 2023 season.

About the author

Andres is an analyst who has reported on college basketball and college football at Sportskeeda since 2023. Currently pursuing a Bachelor's degree in law from Universidad Metropolitana in Venezuela, and has minor in International Relations. Andres holds a college certificate in Sports Entities Management from Unisport Management School in Spain. He is also an alumnus of the FIFA/CIES International Programme in Sports Management by FIFA and Universidad Metropolitana, and has been accepted into the Harvard CORe online program for which he was awarded a grant.

Given his background in sports management, law and business, Andres loves any chance to jump into the industry side of things and explain what's happening behind the curtain. He takes care when it comes to separating the wheat from the chaff and ensures he refers only to appropriate and respected sources.

His favorite college team is the Arkansas Razorbacks. While Troy Aikman and Joe Montana are two of his most favorite QBs, he is also an admirer of Joe Burrow's style and is rooting for Riley Leonard to do well.

Andres is an avid reader, likes adventure sports, dabbles in rock climbing, and is also a scuba diver. He is also an enthusiastic gamer, especially when it comes to strategy PC titles and loves his fair share of Halo.

Know More

Arizona State Sun Devils Fan? Check out the latest Sun Devils depth chart, schedule, and roster updates all in one place.

Edited by Akshay Saraswat