The Arizona State football team has a tremendous recruiting opportunity over the next two weeks with Thursday’s away game against Texas State and a Week 4 game at Texas Tech, said first-year athletic director Graham Rossini Burns & Gambo by Arizona Sports.
Rossini said the Texas State game outside of the conference has been on the schedule for about a decade and should give ASU the opportunity to play in that football state and give recruits a closer look.
“Now we’re a decade later, and ironically, we’re back to back with our game in Lubbock and Texas Tech next week,” Rossini said Thursday before the game against Texas State.
“So we’re really trying to maximize our time on the ground. Some of our coaches are going to stay after the game tonight and get a chance to recruit in Houston, Dallas, Austin and some of the surrounding areas as well as San Antonio. … We need to have a presence tonight. We need to showcase ourselves, but we also know that if we play well tonight and next weekend, it will bring tremendous recruiting benefits.”
The Sun Devils enter Thursday night’s game at 2-0 after defeating Wyoming and Mississippi State. Texas State is also 2-0 after a blowout win over UTSA. The game will be televised on ESPN as the only nationally televised college football game of the day.
ASU is currently in a conference with four Texas schools (Texas Tech, TCU, Baylor and Houston) with no California teams. It remains imperative to gain a foothold in the Golden State, but taking advantage of Big 12 play in new states is a priority for the program, Rossini said.
“We need to keep Southern California, and we will,” Rossini said. “But of course, the Big 12’s connection with the state of Texas provides a tremendous opportunity to bring more attention to ASU throughout the conference’s catchment area. And then you add Florida, because Central Florida is also in the conference.”
“There’s a reasonable chance we’ll be on a lot of people’s radar because we’re competing against UCF, competing against the four Texas schools and maintaining our presence in Southern California. So it’s the best of all worlds in many ways.”
Arizona State will face UCF on November 9 at Mountain America Stadium.
ASU’s top-ranked recruit for 2025, wide receiver Adrian Wilson, is from Texas, while the program’s next class of freshmen includes 12 players from California and Texas.
Watch the ASU vs. Texas State game, kickoff is at 4:30 p.m. MST. Tune in to the Arizona Sports app or ESPN 620 AM or 98.7-HD-2.
