ASU’s Returning Linemen Give Dillingham a Real Choice Before Texas Tech

Arizona State’s Tuesday update offered Kenny Dillingham something more useful than a noisy practice: two additional offensive-line options for Saturday’s visit to No. 10 Texas Tech. Wade Helton and Tana Alo-Tupuola are expected to be available, giving the Sun Devils a tangible reason for optimism as they prepare in Tempe.

Their absences came with different explanations. Helton has been away since the Texas A&M game because of an injury. Alo-Tupuola did not play against Hawai‘i because of personal reasons.

Dillingham’s update supplied no diagnosis, workload projection or promise that either player will reclaim a starting spot. It did establish that both should be usable in Lubbock, which matters for a unit where the quality of the alternatives can shape an entire game plan.

An available lineman does not automatically make the protection sound. Helton has missed time, and Alo-Tupuola is returning after sitting out the previous game. The coaching staff still has to determine how much each can handle, how quickly each fits into the communication required up front and whether the existing combination has earned continuity.

But the decision is healthier when a coach has choices. ASU’s line now appears to have more than one answer if the first answer falters.

That is the distinction between Tuesday’s substantive news and Tuesday’s atmosphere. Dillingham characterized the practice as the first this season that carried a game-day feel. Reporting from the session described more talking and energy, with coaches and staff helping establish the tone before players followed.

Those habits matter, especially before a road game. They also remain vulnerable to disappearing once an opponent creates pressure, noise and a scoreboard problem.

The sharper evidence of Dillingham’s standard came from a personnel correction in the secondary. During one 11-on-11 period, Caleb Chester and fellow reserve Daquwan Dunn joined the first group after the initial starters struggled. Ashton Stamps and Rodney Bimage Jr., who had been with that top unit, shifted to the twos for that segment.

It was a single period, not a depth-chart announcement, but it showed that the staff was willing to alter the picture when performance fell short.

That same principle now applies to the offensive line. Dillingham left the starting arrangement unresolved, allowing for changes without identifying who would move where. The uncertainty is appropriate. Tuesday’s report cannot establish whether Helton is ready for a full workload, whether Alo-Tupuola immediately fits the best five-man combination or whether continuity with the current group might outweigh the appeal of a returning player.

Texas Tech makes that decision more consequential. The Sun Devils are not preparing for a controlled exercise in which a shaky series can be filed away as practice noise. A road matchup with the No. 10 team in the country will test communication, protection and the ability to recover when an assignment breaks down.

Two extra linemen do not solve those problems, but they give Dillingham more ways to address them before and during the game.

There is a reasonable counterpoint: a player can be listed as available and still have a limited role, while one energetic Tuesday can say little about Saturday execution. That is why this update should be treated as an improved set of options rather than a forecast of a better performance.

ASU still has to choose the combination that blocks and communicates best, not simply the one with the newest return story.

Still, the week has produced something concrete. Helton’s return from an injury absence and Alo-Tupuola’s return after missing Hawai‘i give Arizona State more bodies for a position that cannot afford many thin spots. Dillingham’s rotating cornerback period suggests the staff is prepared to reward the players who meet its standard.

Before the Sun Devils leave for Lubbock, that combination — actual availability and a willingness to make hard lineup choices — deserves more attention than the volume of Tuesday’s chatter.

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