Jake Fette starts for Arizona State at BYU October 31

Kenny Dillingham had spent the week hinting at it. Saturday night the word came down from the beat.

Pete Nakos

@PeteNakos

Jake Fette will start for Arizona State at quarterback at BYU. t.co/dG8UoLIZw5

DevilsDigest.com

@DevilsDigest

BREAKING: Kenny Dillingham announces that Jake Fette will start next week at BYU, barring Mikey Keene being available.

Look at how Arizona State got here. Cutter Boley opened the season as the transfer starter. Then Dillingham went to Mikey Keene, the Chandler kid in his 6th and final college season, who finally got his first start since coming home to the Valley against Kansas State. Keene had gone 10-of-19 for 160 yards and led 2 scoring drives when a defender rolled into him late in the first half, and he did not come back.

Boley went back in and it did not go well: 3 second-half drives, 10 plays, 19 yards, 1 completion. Dillingham pulled him and turned to Fette, who had barely played outside the opener against Morgan State. The offense came alive right away. Fette hit a 9-yard play-action throw on his first attempt, scrambled on the next snap, and Cardae Mack ran in touchdowns from 12 and 11 yards out. Arizona State held on to win 28-17, with Fette finishing 3-of-6 for 45 yards. That's a small sample, but it was the only stretch of the second half where the Sun Devils looked like they knew what they were doing.

Dillingham was not subtle about why. "Jake's got that look in his eye. Jake's got the swagger, you know, the confidence when he moves around, and so I think we just wanted to spark there with Jake," he said this week, and he tied the call to Keene's knee. If Keene can't go, it's Fette. Everything coming out since points the same direction.

Arizona State fans have been waiting for this kid. Fette was a top-10 quarterback in the 2026 class, ranked No. 4 at the position by ESPN, and he averaged 100 rushing yards a game as a high school senior. He's also the most mobile quarterback on the roster, which matters a lot for a team whose offensive line has been inconsistent all year. When the pocket is collapsing every week, a guy who can get out of it is worth more than a guy who reads it well.

Now for the bad news. The first career start comes on the road in Provo, against a ranked BYU team, at 12:30 PM MST on Halloween. Arizona State is 4-3 and 2-2 in the Big 12, so this is close to the last chance to stay relevant in the conference race. Throwing a true freshman into LaVell Edwards Stadium for his debut is a huge ask, and the betting line will move depending on whose name is on the depth chart.

What to watch this week: any update on Keene's knee, and whether Dillingham keeps saying Keene could play or just hands Fette the keys outright. Either way, the Arizona State quarterback carousel has gone 3 deep in 1 season. If Fette plays well in Provo, he probably ends it.