Recently on Speak of the Devils Podcast, our panel selected “fantasy teams” comprised of what we believed to be the brightest stars in the history of the Arizona State football program.
Team Joe, by the way, got totally shafted in the Twitter poll…but I digress.
To take the general topic a level deeper, in this edition of Sun Devil Science the record books, archives, box scores, and online bios were dusted off to form a comprehensive “fantasy team” of the best single-season individual efforts in Arizona State football history.
These selections may not necessarily represent the absolute greatest overall player at each position in ASU history – though in many cases they do – but rather the most impressive single-season performances in terms of record-setting statistics, conference and national accolades and other prestigious honors. Some are the highlight seasons of consistently stellar careers, while some fall under the category of one-year wonders.
Selections were made with a heavy emphasis on the unprecedented nature of the statistics posted by each player and how postseason honors compare to others to have played the position at ASU.
Also, selections were entirely made by me, the writer, Joe Healey. Want to shower me with gratitude for such incredibly insightful picks or prefer to berate me for overlooking [enter name here]? Find me on Twitter.
All-Time ASU Single-Season Fantasy Team – Offense
QB: Jake Plummer (1996)
RB: “Whizzer” White (1950), Woody Green (1972)
WR: J.D. Hill (1970), Shaun McDonald (2002), Jaelen Strong (2014)
TE: Todd Heap (1999)
AP: D.J. Foster (2014)
OL: Danny Villa (1986), Randall McDaniel (1987), Juan Roque (1996), Grey Ruegamer (1998), Levi Jones (2001)
Quarterback
Jake Plummer (1996):
The heart-and-soul of the Sun Devil team that fell less than two minutes from claiming its first official national championship, Plummer closed out his college career in tremendous fashion. As a senior, Plummer threw for 2,776 yards with 24 touchdowns – both at the time the second-best single-season outputs in school history – on his way to First-Team All-America accolades.
The 1996 Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year and a First-Team All-Pac-10 pick, Plummer finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting behind winner Danny Wuerffel and runner-up Troy Davis, making him only the third Sun Devil to finish in the top-8 in the Heisman voting. A member of ASU’s Sports Hall of Fame and currently on the ballot for the College Football Hall of Fame, Plummer guided the Sun Devils to an 11-1 record and a No. 4 final ranking in 1996.
Honorable Mention
Joe Spagnola (1970): The Western Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year in 1970, Spagnola was a figurehead of the team that helped launch ASU into national prominence. A First-Team All-WAC pick, Spagnola threw for 2,146 yards and 19 touchdowns – at the time the second-best single-season totals in school history. Spagnola helped the Devils claim the program’s first bowl victory and ASU ended the season ranked as high as sixth in the Associated Press poll.
Danny White (1973): The finale of White’s legendary three-year career at ASU, White was a First-Team All-American and placed ninth in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1973. The Mesa native was named the Western Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year and a first-team all-league selection after setting school single-season records with 2,878 passing yards and 24 touchdowns while leading the Sun Devils to an 11-1 record, Fiesta Bowl victory and an end of season No. 9 Associated Press poll ranking. White would go on to a lengthy NFL career and now resides in both the College Football and ASU Sports Halls of Fame.
Mike Pagel (1981): A team captain as a senior, Pagel set a school single-season record with 29 touchdown passes and added 2,484 passing yards on the year. Included in that overall effort was his conference record seven-touchdown passing day in a win over Stanford featuring John Elway. Pagel was an Honorable Mention All-America and First-Team All-Pac-10 pick in 1981.
Andrew Walter (2002): Despite not starting until the fifth game of what proved to be a 14-game season, Walter still shattered the school record with his 3,877 passing yards – one yard shy of a full 1,000 more than the previous record of 2,878 by Danny White in 1973. Walter also passed for 28 touchdowns and set the school single-game record with 536 yards in an upset win over Oregon. In total, he had four games with at least 400 passing yards. He would go on to set the Pac-10 Conference career passing touchdown mark (85) and finish his career ranked third in league history in total offense (10,142) and fifth in passing yards (10,617).
Brock Osweiler (2011): His only full season as a starter, Osweiler bested Walter’s record by becoming the first Sun Devil to surpass the 4,000-yard passing mark with his 4,036 yards. Osweiler had six games with at least 300 passing yards – four of which resulted in at least 350 yards – and threw 26 touchdown passes on the year.
Taylor Kelly (2013): The first true “dual threat” starting quarterback for ASU since the Mark Malone days of the late 1970s, Kelly enjoyed a sensational junior season as the leader for the Arizona State squad that finished as the Pac-12 south division champion. Statistically, Kelly threw for 3,635 yards (third best at the time in school history) with 28 touchdowns and rushed for 608 net yards with nine scores and he completed a school single-season record 67.1 percent of his passes. A Second-Team All-Pac-12 pick, Kelly also became the first Sun Devil quarterback since Malone in 1978 to rush for more than 600 net yards as he guided ASU to a 10-4 record and a No. 20 final ranking in the Coaches Poll.
Running Back
Wilford “Whizzer” White (1950): The first true superstar of Sun Devil football, White capped his collegiate career in spectacular style as a senior in 1950.
In just 10 games played, White rushed for 1,502 yards on 199 carries – a rushing total that made him the national leader that year and remains the second-best single-season running effort in ASU history nearly 70 years later. For his efforts, White was recognized as a Second-Team All-American by the Associated Press.
White had eight 100-yard rushing games including three games with more than 200 rushing yards (236 vs. Brigham Young, 232 vs. Northern Arizona, 214 vs. Utah State) and left Tempe as the school’s rushing leader, a title he held until Woody Green surpassed White’s total in 1973.
In all, White scored 22 total touchdowns (17 rushing) and added a one-point conversion and a field goal to his scoring total, giving him 136 points on the year – a scoring mark that would not be broken until Zane Gonzalez’s freshman season of 2013. White’s mark of 22 total touchdowns remains the school record.
Woody Green (1972): A Consensus All-American and First-Team All-WAC honoree as a junior, Green established what remains the school’s single-season rushing record by totaling 1,565 yards on 234 carries in 1972 – breaking White’s Sun Devil mark that lasted more than 20 years. Green’s 19 rushing touchdowns also remain a school single-season record.
Green also was named the 1972 WAC Offensive Player of the Year and ranked third in the nation in rushing yards and yards from scrimmage (1,478) and seventh in rushing touchdowns and rushing yards per attempt (6.5).
Not only has no player since surpassed Green’s single-season rushing total at ASU, only two other players (Freddie Williams, 1974-75 and Ryan Torain, 2006) have accumulated more than 1,200 rushing yards in one season for Arizona State since 1973.
Green had five games with at least 195 rushing yards, including what would stand as his career-high with 202 rush yards on 25 carries with four touchdowns when he was named Offensive Most Valuable Player in ASU’s 49-35 victory over Missouri in the second Fiesta Bowl.
Honorable Mention
Leon Burton (1957): The 1957 national leader in rushing yards (1,126), rushing yards per attempt (9.6), yards from scrimmage (1,320), touchdowns (16) and points (96) on an undefeated Arizona State team in Dan Devine’s final year in Tempe, Burton was a First-Team All-Border Conference selection as a result of his spectacular season.
Art Malone (1968): A Second-Team All-American and the WAC Offensive Player of the Year, Malone rushed for 1,431 yards on 235 carries with 16 total touchdowns (15 rushing). His rushing total that year remains the third-highest single-season rushing total by a Sun Devil behind Green and White and ranked fifth in the nation that season as well.
Freddie Williams (1975): An absolute workhorse for ASU, Williams owns the top two single-season marks for total carries in a year at Arizona State including the school record of 266 carries in 1975. That season, Williams posted what remains the fourth-best rushing total by running for 1,427 yards (a single-season total that since hasn’t been surpassed) on ASU’s undefeated, Fiesta Bowl champion team on his way to Honorable Mention All-America and First-Team All-WAC recognition. That year, Williams ranked sixth in the nation in rush attempts and seventh nationally in rushing yards.
Terry Battle (1996): One of only two running backs in school history to earn First-Team All-America honors, Battle did so in astonishing fashion as he didn’t become the team’s starter until midway through the season.
In all, Battle rushed for 1,077 yards on 178 carries as a driving force on ASU’s Pac-10 champion squad, most of which coming after his role increased dramatically following the season-ending injury suffered by Michael Martin. Battle’s 18 rushing touchdowns and his 20 total touchdowns both remain tied for the second-most in a single season by a Sun Devil, while only one running back in school history – White in 1950 – has scored more points in a single season.
Ryan Torain (2006): Few offensive players in Sun Devil history made a greater impact in less time than Torain, a JUCO transfer who appeared in just 19 games over two years as his senior season was cut short due to a foot injury. As a junior, however, Torain exploded in his debut year in Tempe as he rushed for 1,229 yards with 10 total touchdowns on his way to Second-Team All-Pac-10 honors. His rushing yardage total remains the most by a Sun Devil since Freddie Williams in 1975 and is the eighth best single-season total in program history.
Cameron Marshall (2011): Marshall was a pay dirt specialist on the ground during his junior season as his 18 rushing touchdowns ties for the second highest single-season total in Arizona State history. He also became just the third Sun Devil at the time in the 21st century to surpass the 1,000-yard rushing mark when he totaled 1,050 net rush yards on the year. Consistently featured in the Sun Devil offense, Marshall’s 230 carries rank as the sixth most in school history and the highest total in a season by a Sun Devil since Mario Bates in 1993.
Wide Receiver
J.D. Hill (1970): After a year away from football, Hill returned with a vengeance as a senior in 1970 by becoming the first player in school history to top the 1,000-yard receiving mark.
Altogether, Hill caught 61 passes for 1,009 yards and 11 touchdowns – establishing what at the time were single-season school records in all three categories. He also found paydirt with tremendous reliability as he scored at least one touchdown in all 11 games of the year and is credited with 15 all-purpose touchdowns.
For his efforts on ASU’s undefeated team that both won the Western Athletic Conference and reached a bowl game for the first time in 21 years, Hill was a First-Team All-American and went on to become the fourth overall pick in the 1971 NFL Draft – to this day still the second-highest a Sun Devil has ever been drafted.
Shaun McDonald (2002): A statistically spectacular season in Dirk Koetter’s high-powered pass offense featuring Andrew Walter in his first full year as starting quarterback, McDonald set what remain school single-season records in receptions (87) and yards (1,405) and his 13 touchdown receptions fell one short of tying ASU’s single-season record. The Phoenix native had four games of at least 150 receiving yards and two with more than 200 and was a Third-Team All-American, First-Team All-Pac-10 pick as well as a finalist for the 2002 Biletnikoff Award.
Despite leaving school a year early to enter the 2003 NFL Draft, McDonald finished second in school history in receiving yards and third in receptions and receiving touchdowns.
Jaelen Strong (2014): One of the most outstanding junior college transfers in Arizona State history, Strong’s final of two seasons left a lasting mark on the Sun Devil football program. Statistically, Strong caught 83 passes for 1,165 yards which are good for third and fifth, respectively, in terms of single-season highs in ASU football history. A First-Team All-American – the first Sun Devil receiver to earn first-team accolades since 1980 – a First-Team All-Pac-12 pick and a Biletnikoff Award semifinalist, Strong also provided one of the most unforgettable plays in program history with his game-winning “Jael Mary” touchdown catch from Mike Bercovici to defeat USC as time expired. To the surprise of none, Strong bypassed his senior season at ASU to enter the 2015 NFL Draft.
Honorable Mention
Steve Holden (1972): A First Team All-American and a First-Team All-WAC member as both a receiver and returns specialist, Holden set what at the time was the school record with 12 receiving touchdowns – a total that has since only twice been outdone. A dynamic playmaker, he had 911 receiving yards on just 42 catches – a striking average of 21.7 yards per catch – and added one rushing touchdown and one punt return touchdown.
John Jefferson (1977): A Consensus All-American in 1977 who ultimately went on to become a College Football Hall of Fame inductee, Jefferson had collegiate career highs of 58 receptions for 968 yards and eight touchdowns as a senior.
Keith Poole (1996): The preferred target of star quarterback Jake Plummer, Poole became just the fourth Sun Devil to post a double-digit touchdown reception total in a season as he totaled 47 receptions for 867 yards with 11 scores as a senior in 1996. As a key part of ASU’s unforgettable Pac-10 champion team, Poole was a Second-Team All-American and for the second consecutive year earned First-Team All-Pac-10 accolades.
Derek Hagan (2004): The most productive receiver in school history, Hagan’s junior season statistically stands as his best as he caught 83 passes for 1,248 yards and 10 touchdowns. Hagan had three games with at least 150 receiving yards and his receptions total remains the second-best single-season total in ASU history while his yardage in 2004 ranks third. As a result of his outstanding season, Hagan was a Second-Team All-American and a Biletnikoff Award semifinalist.
Gerell Robinson (2011): A former top-100 recruit from nearby Chandler Hamilton High School, Robinson saved his absolute best for last as he outperformed the combined statistics of his freshman through junior seasons as a senior in 2011. After catching 58 passes for 674 yards and five touchdowns in 34 games from 2008-10, Robinson exploded with 77 receptions for 1,397 yards with seven scores as the go-to target from record-setting passer Brock Osweiler. Robinson’s yardage total stands as the second-highest single season total in school history and in his final game he recorded the second-most receiving yards in a game in Sun Devil history by totaling 241 yards on 13 catches (the third-best single-game total in school history) against Boise State in the MAACO Las Vegas Bowl.
Tight End
Todd Heap (1999): The most athletically gifted tight end in school history, Heap’s top statistical season came as a sophomore in 1999. In just his second year in the program, the Mesa native caught 55 passes for 832 yards – both at the time stood as single-season records by a tight end at ASU. Heap had all three of his career 100-yard games in 1999, including what proved to be a career-best 170 yards on seven catches with a touchdown in ASU’s Territorial Cup win over Arizona in Tempe.
The yardage mark is still the Sun Devil standard for a tight end, with second place being more than 100 yards away in Chris Coyle’s 696 yards in 2012. ASU’s leading receiver on the year, Heap was a Third-Team All-American and First-Team All-Pac-10 selection.
Honorable Mention
Zach Miller (2006): It wasn’t quite his top statistical season but Miller still posted an excellent junior campaign and earned the greatest single-season national acclaim by an ASU tight end as he was both a Consensus All-American and Mackey Award finalist after leading the Sun Devils with 50 catches for 450 yards.
Chris Coyle (2012): After very limited opportunities his first two seasons, a coaching change at ASU made a world of difference for Coyle as in 2012 he was the focal point of the passing game with 57 receptions for 696 yards and five touchdowns. His receptions total set a school single-season record for a tight end while his yardage total ranks second.
All-Purpose
D.J. Foster (2014): The most incredible all-purpose athlete in Sun Devil history, Foster’s junior season was a showcase of the numerous ways he was able to create an impact at Arizona State. As the team’s top running back, Foster rushed for 1,081 yards on 194 carries with nine touchdowns while ranking second on the team behind All-American Jaelen Strong with 62 receptions for 688 yards with three scores. In total, Foster accumulated 1,769 all-purpose yards – an average of 136.1 per game. Foster, who would go on to become one of only five NCAA Division I players to rush and receive for more than 2,000 career yards, caught at least five passes in seven of 13 games in 2014 while also rushing for at least 100 yards on four occasions. Also in 2014, Foster was the only FBS player with over 1,000 rushing yards and 600 receiving yards.
Honorable Mention
Bobby Mulgado (1957): In terms of taking on a multitude of roles all over the field, no player in program history has embodied the “all-purpose” designation quite like Mulgado did for the Devils in the 1950s. As a do-it-all senior team captain in 1957, Mulgado ranked second on the team in rushing behind national leader Leon Burton, second in receptions and receiving yards, was ASU’s primary punter, averaged 19.1 yards on punt returns with two touchdowns, was the team leader with six interceptions and also threw a pair of touchdown passes.
His 1,020 total yards from scrimmage ranked fourth in the NCAA in 1957 – giving ASU two of the top four-yard gainers in the nation as Burton was the national leader in the category – as Mulgado was one of the key figures of Arizona State’s undefeated Border Conference champion team that finished the year ranked 12th nationally with a perfect 10-0 record. Mulgado’s jersey number 27 was retired immediately after he ended his collegiate career.
Rudy Burgess (2005): The first known player at ASU with more than 600 receiving and rushing yards in a single season, Burgess was the only FBS athlete to accomplish the 600-600 feat in 2005 as he rushed 145 times for 667 yards with six touchdowns while catching 59 passes for 655 yards and four touchdowns. His 10 total touchdowns were the team high for the season.
Marion Grice (2013): Despite missing the final three games of the season due to injury, Grice still totaled an amazing 19 touchdowns as he rushed for 996 yards with 14 scores and caught 50 passes for 438 yards with six touchdowns. A pay dirt specialist, the two-year player scored 39 touchdowns in just 23 games at ASU and scored multiple touchdowns in seven of 11 games as a senior in 2013. Also ASU’s primary kick returner, Grice totaled 1,941 all-purpose yards in 2013, making him the only FBS player with at least 400 yards rushing, receiving and on kick returns.
Offensive Line
Danny Villa (1986): Though his personal legacy beyond football has been disgraced, in a strictly athletic sense Villa remains one of the top linemen in Sun Devil history. A Consensus All-American on ASU’s Rose Bowl champion team, the Nogales native also earned First-Team All-Pac-10 recognition in 1986 and was named the offensive Morris Trophy winner for the league.
Randall McDaniel (1987): Possibly the most talented offensive player of any position in Arizona State history, McDaniel ended his Sun Devil career in excellent form before going on to be named to a dozen Pro Bowl rosters in the NFL and ultimately wind up in both the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame. Like Villa the year before, McDaniel earned Consensus All-America honors, while the Avondale native also received First-Team All-Pac-10 distinction for the second consecutive year and like Villa before him was named the offensive recipient of the Morris Trophy in 1987.
Juan Roque (1996): A physical and emotional force on ASU’s historic 1996 team, Roque followed his Second-Team All-America performance from his junior season to become a Consensus All-American as a senior. Roque also was listed as a First-Team All-Pac-10 member for the second straight year as a senior in 1996. Roque’s protection helped quarterback Jake Plummer become the Pac-10 Conference Offensive Player of the Year and a Heisman Trophy finalist while running back Terry Battle joined Plummer and Roque as First-Team All-Americans.
Grey Ruegamer (1998): A First-Team Walter Camp All-American, Ruegamer also was named a First-Team All-Pac-10 honors recipient for the second consecutive year as a senior in 1998. Among his blocking duties, Ruegamer cleared lanes for First-Team All-Pac-10 honoree J.R. Redmond at running back.
Levi Jones (2001): A Second-Team All-American as a senior, Jones paved the way for 1,000-yard rusher Delvon Flowers. A First-Team All-Pac-10 selection, Jones also was the offensive winner of the league’s Morris Trophy – the most recent Sun Devil to win the award on offense. Following the 2001 season, Jones would go on to become the highest drafted offensive lineman in Arizona State history when he was picked 10th overall by Cincinnati in the 2002 NFL Draft.
Honorable Mention
Gary Venturo (1970): A driving force on the undefeated team that kick-started ASU’s dominance in the 1970s, Venturo was a Second-Team All-American and a First-Team All-WAC pick for the second straight year. Blocking for the likes of Bob Thomas, Monroe Eley, Brent McClanahan and Dave Buchanan, Venturo helped ASU rush for nearly 300 yards per game, while Venturo also protected quarterback Joe Spagnola, the WAC Offensive Player of the Year in 1970.
Dan Mackie (1981): A Second-Team All-American, Mackie remains one of only nine Sun Devil offensive linemen to have earned first or second-team All-America distinction. In 1981, Mackie helped protect quarterback Mike Pagel, who set the school’s single-season passing touchdowns record (29) which wouldn’t be broken until 2004, while also blocking for the outstanding rushing trio of Willie Gittens, Gerald Riggs, and Robert Weathers – a group that combined for nearly 2,000 yards on the ground.
Kyle Murphy (1997): One of two All-American offensive linemen on the 1997 squad, Murphy earned Second-Team All-America recognition as a senior to join Ruegamer as a third-team honoree. Also a First-Team All-Pac-10 honoree, Murphy helped open holes for the stellar rushing pair of Michael Martin and J.R. Redmond, each of which ran for more than 900 yards on the year – still the only season at ASU since 1973 that the Sun Devils had two players each rush for 800 or more yards.
Marvel Smith (1999): The most recent Sun Devil to earn First-Team All-America accolades, Smith was also named to the All-Pac-10 first team in 1999. In Smith’s final season at ASU before leaving early for the NFL, he helped enable senior running back J.R. Redmond to set career rushing highs with 241 carries for 1,174 yards and 12 touchdowns.
