Arizona State may not have beaten the Houston Cougars, but the loss brought the Sun Devils and the Dillinghams closer than ever. The game saw ASU struggle with a physical Houston squad that built a 24-0 lead deep into the fourth quarter. The offense faltered early, missing field goals, losing a fumble, and suffering from 12 penalties. But off the field, the biggest sting came from senior edge rusher Prince Dorbah staring at the losing 24-16 score line.

The coaches listed the 24-year-old as a game-time decision for the Houston game. But they didn’t call him onto the field. Unfortunately, the Sun Devils’ 10-game home winning streak came to an end. After the game, the senior defensive lineman was soaking in the loss with teary eyes.

But the real moment happened after the game, when Kenny Dillingham’s wife, Briana Dillingham, quietly walked over, checked on him with genuine concern, and put her arm around his shoulder. Together, they walked down the tunnel. Now, Bri is the type of person who was more invested in Arizona State than the HC, Kenny himself.

“I was actually more invested in ASU (than Kenny) from the get-go,” Bri said, “because I danced for them the whole time that I was there. I was at every football and basketball game, women’s and men’s, and … every marching band practice for all those years.” This pretty much sums up why Briana’s involvement with the Sun Devils goes beyond her husband being the head coach.

Bri graduated summa cum laude from Arizona State in 2013 with a degree in biological sciences. After that, she jumped into ASU’s post-baccalaureate nursing program to get her BSN-RN and became a registered nurse. That’s why helping out Dorbah during that sad moment wasn’t a big deal for Bri. She was just fulfilling her duty to her alma mater. That’s not the only time that the cameras captured Kenny Dillingham’s wife’s efforts towards the star ASU players.

Last year, she hugged star RB Cam Skattebo and shared words of wisdom on the sideline in the final seconds of the Big 12 championship game victory against Iowa State. Not to forget, she’s baking cookies for the entire ASU football team, about 200 cookies each week. The Suns Devils HC doesn’t hesitate in reminding everyone why her wife is important to her.

“I literally couldn’t survive in the real world. I don’t know anything. … She is the key to it all actually working.” So, it’s not surprising when Bri consoled the senior defensive lineman. Dorbah has stacked up to 15 total tackles this season. He also contributed 4 sacks and a single fumble. His injury status impacts the defensive line depth significantly.

Sam Leavitt’s repeated injury scare

Coaches officially ruled out star wide receiver Jordyn Tyson. He was struggling to shake off a nagging hamstring issue that had him pushing through the last game. Tate Romney, Christian Hunt, and players like Kyson Brown, Xavion Alford have been sidelined for a while. The injuries are stacking up over the Sun Devils, and at this point, all of it is turning into the Sam Leavitt curse.

ASU was riding high to face off against the Cougars after their 26-22 win against Texas Tech. But things quickly unraveled when Leavitt had to leave the game twice because of injuries. That setback forced Kenny Dillingham to call upon back QB, Jeff Sims. Before taking the sidelines, Leavitt completed 18 out of 35 passes for 270 yards with a TD.

Early in the Houston game, he tweaked an injury, then, after some imaging and recovery time, he pushed to get back on the field. But as the head coach, Kenny Dillingham wouldn’t let that happen. ‘No, you’re going to get imaging. Before you go back in, I don’t care how you feel.’” What makes the “curse” feel real is the pattern. Now, Leavitt also missed the earlier Utah game due to a different injury. Thus, these repeated setbacks have impacted the Sun Devils’ rhythm.

The quarterback carousel has disrupted offensive continuity and put extra pressure on the coaching staff and players. On top of that, the ASU roster is pretty beat up and is still trying to find some stability. Jeff Sims, however, did a pretty decent job. He completed 6 of 11 passes for 58 yards and even entered the end zone once. But with this injury hiccup, and the team’s Big 12 title hopes slipping, Dillingham and his staff really need to come up with a better option.