Graham, Sutton spotlight ASU’s All-Conference Awards

After finishing the season with the best conference record, the Arizona State football team received a lot of accolades as a result as the Pac-12 announced it’s players and coaches of the year as well as the first and second-team as well as honorable mention performers. The Sun Devils had a total of 16 players named which is tied for second most in school history with the 1996 Rose Bowl team.

At the forefront, after finishing off a 10-2 season and 9-1 conference record, ASU’s second year coach Todd Graham was named the Coach of the year. In 2013, ASU reached six conference victories for only the fourth time in their 36-year membership of the Pac-10/12 Conference.

“I am obviously really honored to receive that but I can tell you that’s another deal that is reflective of our staff,” said Graham on Monday. “To me that is a coaching staff recognition. And I am very proud of our guys and what we have been able to accomplish.”

For the second consecutive season, Sun Dcvil defensive lineman Will Sutton was named the Pat Tillman defensive player of the year in the conference. Sutton is only the second player in conference history to win the defensive player of the year two seasons in a row. That last was Washington’s Steve Emtman. He closed out the regular season with 42 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, a fumble recovery, three passes defensed and an interception for 2013.

“I was like a kid on Christmas,” said Sutton when asked what he felt when he found out. “To be honest, I didn’t think I would get the defensive player of the year again because my numbers were down and everything so I thought ‘oh well.’ But we were winning and that’s all that mattered to me. But winning it, it’s crazy.”

Here is a complete list of the Sun Devils honored in Pac-12 regular season awards:

First-Team:

-TE, Chris Coyle

-OL, Evan Finkenberg

-DL, Will Sutton

-DB, Alden Darby

-DB, Robert Nelson

-K, Zane Gonzalez

Second Team:

-QB, Taylor Kelly

-RB, Marion Grice

-WR, Jaelen Strong