ASU Football: Sun Devil Players Make Their Picks on Team Awards

The regular season has come to an end for ASU football.

As the team prepares for the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl, House of Sparky asked 10 key players who and what got their votes for several award categories: Team MVP, Best Newcomer, Most Improved Player, Favorite Moment and Best Play.

Team MVP

Keelan Johnson's pick: Brandon Magee "The MVP of this team I would probably have to say Brandon Magee. He brings a lot of qualities and characteristics to our team and defense. He is a flat out tough player and makes a lot of plays for us."

Osahon Irabor's pick: Will Sutton "I'm going to go with William Early Sutton the Third. My boy big Willie. I think he had a great season and was the anchor of our defense. He kind of had the energy on game day for our team, we followed his lead."

Cameron Marshall's pick: Will Sutton "Got to go with Will Sutton for obvious reasons. Hard to deny an All-American the MVP."

Brandon Magee's pick: Taylor Kelly "MVP of the team, Taylor Kelly. It's easy. Before the season started he was the third string quarterback, as the season started he was starting at quarterback. Lead us with a quick couple wins, and got us through a time and everyone still believed in him. He led the offense, which really helps the defense also."

Taylor Kelly's pick: Will Sutton "I would have to say Will Sutton. He is just a monster, guys feed off his energy. Just his presence out on the field and confidence you got in him and trust. He is just a great player."

Michael Eubank's pick: Will Sutton "The complete team, I would have to say it would be Will. He's definitely a game changer, comes in the game and just dominates even when he is hurt. Changes the game for us."

Josh Hubner's pick: The Offensive Line and Will Sutton "You could say a couple people. I think the offensive line as a whole stepped it up real big this year giving Taylor time to throw the ball. I don't know a whole lot about offenses, but if you are on pace to break a school record for completion percentage, your offensive line is doing something right. And much as he wont it admit it, big Will Sutton really came out performed this year. He is the number one defensive tackle in the Pac-12, and obviously got that award. So, I would think it would be the offensive line and Will Sutton."

Chris Coyle's pick: Marion Grice "I'm going to have to say Marion Grice right now. Marion has done such a great job coming in this year, and switching in with Cameron and all our other great running backs. He has done such a good job of making big plays really when we need them. Busting open long runs and having some long receptions. He has done such a great job for us, and made tons of key plays."

Jaxon Hood's pick: Will Sutton "Definitely Will Sutton. I think he just made the most plays. When he gone his absence was felt the most. Every game he was pretty clutch."

D.J. Foster's pick: Brandon Magee and Will Sutton "I got to give it to both Brandon Magee and Will Sutton just for leading our defense. Besides statistics wise, we all know what Will did. Just the intensity and how he carried the defense this year."

MVP Results

1. Will Sutton: 7 votes

2. Brandon Magee: 2 votes

3. Taylor Kelly, Offensive Line and Marion Grice: 1 vote

Best Play

Johnson: Will Sutton vs. Oregon State "Probably against Oregon State, when Will came in and sacked the quarterback causing a fumble for a touchdown."

Irabor: Himself at U of A "My second interception versus U of A that got called back."

Marshall: Grice's 52 Yard TD Run at. U of A "Grice's run at U of A was nice, I'll probably remember that one. He showed great vision on that, made a couple people miss. He showed some great speed at the end, so it was just all you can ask for in a great run."

Magee: Grice's 52 Yard TD Run at U of A and Robert Nelson's Interception vs. U of A "That draw play, Marion Grice U of A. I was sitting down and so tired, and it was lovely to see him score. It was huge for us. And that Robert Nelson pick U of A game."

Eubank: His QB sneak at U of A "I don't want to sound selfish but it's going to have to be the QB sneak at U of A to seal the deal against the Wildcats. It's definitely going to be a play I remember."

Hubner: His 62-yard punt vs. UCLA "I really like that UCLA punt that bounced off the dude's helmet. I thought that was pretty cool, and a lot of people don't understand and they are like it's just a punt. I'm so fired up when that happens because it's essentially like I tossed a 62-yard pass. The play that keeps playing over in my mind is Kevin Ayers blocked punt at U of A. That was something I don't think I will ever forget."

Coyle: His TD catch at USC "My first touchdown in USC's stadium. It was in front of a lot of fans from back home. That was the first game my grandma was actually able to come see, and she was right down there in that end zone. I'm going to remember that for the rest of my life."

Hood: His sack against Missouri and Oregon State "For me it was probably my first college sack against Missouri. Or my sack against Oregon State because it was on national TV. Those were both good moments."

Foster: Start of Oregon game "The best two plays were the start of the Oregon game, I thought that was crazy even though it didn't end pretty. Just the start when Will came out and forced the fumble, and the first play we scored Taylor Kelly to Kevin Ozier. Those back to back plays were big."

Overall Best Play Results

1. Marion Grice's 52 TD Run at U of A: 2 votes

2. Opening 2 play sequence of the Oregon game: 1 vote

3. All 7 other plays pertained to personal accomplishments

Best Newcomer

Johnson: D.J. Foster and Marion Grice "I would have to say it's a tie between D.J. Foster and Marion Grice. They both run the ball very well and make big plays for the offense."

Irabor: D.J. Foster and Marion Grice "Best newcomer, It's a tie between D.J. Foster and Marion Grice. They both had a great season on offense."

Marshall: D.J. Foster "Got to go with my man D.J. Foster, he balled out this year. He showed he can do everything, and I think he's going to have a great career here as a Sun Devil."

Magee: Marion Grice "Marion Grice, that kid is explosive. I love watching him run, and he looks so smooth with it."

Kelly: D.J. Foster and Marion Grice "I would have to say either D.J. Foster or Marion Grice. Those guys are great and I got great confidence in them. They are just playmakers and they know how to play the game of football."

Eubank: D.J. Foster and Marion Grice "The best newcomer, It has to MG and D.J. Both of them definitely contributed a lot and get yardage when it's needed. Especially tough yardage, D.J. is a tough runner and Marion Grice can always pull something out of a hat. They are both really good runners."

Hubner: D.J. Foster "I think D.J. Foster, he really stepped up. All-purpose wise, I think he broke some sort of freshman record. He is just a fast explosive kid; he always keeps his feet moving. He is always working hard, and he doesn't ask for anything in return. He's real humble."

Coyle: Marion Grice "Best newcomer I'm going to have to say Marion Grice. Just to come into this new offense and the way he has able to pick it up and execute all of his assignments. We couldn't have asked for a better performance from him this season."

Hood: D.J. Foster "I think D.J. Foster was, and I think he was one of the most dynamic players on our offense. It was his first year and he was making big plays, big catches, and big runs."

Foster: Marion Grice "Marion Grice, he works hard and every time he gets the ball you don't know what it's going to happen. He definitely has an explosiveness and smoothness to score every time. So Marion Grice by far."

Overall Best Newcomer Results

1. Marion Grice and D.J. Foster: 7 votes

Most Improved Payer

Johnson: The Secondary "I would have to give it to our secondary. Just everybody back there, came from bottom and now at the top."

Irabor: Keelan Johnson "Most improved, I'm going to give it to Keelan Johnson. Just because this was his first year as a full time starter and I think he had a great season. He really showed what kind of player he is."

Marshall: Keelan Johnson "I'll go with Keelan, he had a good year last year but I think he definitely stepped it up another notch."

Magee: Carl Bradford "I would go with Carl Bradford because he always had the potential. He is a beast in the weight room, and I always said if he watches more film and practices harder he's going to be a monster. Every single game this year he has gotten better."

Kelly: Kevin Ozier "I would have to say Kevin Ozier. KO did a great job this season, making big plays on third downs. Making big catches when we needed him."

Eubank: Deveron Carr "Jeez, this is a hard one. I would definitely say Deveron Carr. He has definitely improved a lot this year, and is not getting beat deep. He is sticking with guys and playing really really good defense."

Hubner: Carl Braford "Carl Bradford, definitely. Kid worked his tail off in the weight room this off-season, and people started noticing that. Then he came out and you see his performance, he really stepped it up."

Coyle: Taylor Kelly "I'm going to have to say Taylor Kelly. He started out real strong, but the level of competition was a little bit lower at the beginning of the season. Flustered, floundered a little bit in the middle, but the he was able to come back at the end and get us some wins when we really needed it. He has done such a great job at maintaining his composure out there, even though he could've let up and let some of those loses get to him. He did a really good job of bringing it back together."

Hood: Secondary "Most improved, I would say the whole secondary. Last year I used to watch and the secondary wasn't very pretty. But I think this year we obviously have one of the best secondaries in the country. So I would say the whole secondary, they played phenomenal all season and are the most improved."

Foster: Taylor Kelly "Taylor Kelly being a first year starter, and that's a hard position to come in and do as a first year. He led a team like he did and had a good offense like we did this year until the end."

Overall Most Improved Results

1. Secondary, Keelan Johnson, Carl Bradford and Taylor Kelly: 2 votes

2. Kevin Ozier and Deveron Car: 1 vote

Favorite Moment

Johnson: Win over U of A "Beating U of A and getting into this bowl, getting ready to play another game."

Irabor: Win over U of A "I'm going to with beating U of A man! Down there in Tucson, silencing that crowd was pretty big for our program to end with a win."

Marshall: Win over U of A "Beating U of A in Tucson."

Magee: Win over U of A "Beating U of A, hands down."

Kelly: Win over U of A "Definitely the win over U of A and celebrating afterwards with the team."

Eubank: Holding the Territorial Cup "My favorite moment of the season is being able to hold the Territorial Cup up to our fans. I've always seen it on TV but I never really got a chance to touch it. That's definitely a great memory I'm going to have."

Hubner: Win over U of A "Beating U of A hands down, bar none. Because you can go 0-10 and go down to Tucson and play that team and beat team and it's still a successful season. Bringing that Cup home, bringing it back to Tempe where it belongs. We did it for the fans and we did it for the people that pay to come out watch us do big things every Saturday. Especially a good note to go out with for the senior year."

Coyle: Win over U of A "Favorite moment got to say winning the Territorial cup. Just such a great feeling going into Arizona's stadium and beat them in from of their home crowd. It's such a great feeling having the territorial cup back here at ASU."

Hood: Win over U of A "Beating those guys down South. It was just the best feeling ever, and hoisting that trophy on their field. By far the best moment of the season."

Foster: Win over U of A "Beating U of A, I mean it was my first time experiencing the rivalry. It was great how the team came together. Just the story of the game itself was a good game."

Overall Favorite Moment Results

1. Win over U of A: Of course.

Lastly, here's my personal opinion on the awards:

Team MVP: Will Sutton. Will Sutton garnered All-American honors, proving to be one of the nation's best defensive players and arguably the premier defensive lineman. It's extremely rare to see such a game changer from his position, displaying relentless effort and incredible brute strength.

Best Newcomer: Marion Grice. Like the players, choosing best newcomer honors was beyond difficult. Picking between Grice and Foster is splitting hairs. However, Grice got my vote because of numerous big time plays and an impressive 17 total touchdowns.

Most Improved Player: Taylor Kelly. Kelly's journey to become ASU's signal caller was remarkable, yet was a controversial decision. Although, the redshirt sophomore from Eagle, Idaho proved many doubters wrong. Kelly continued to grow and progress throughout the season, going from a third-string option to setting school records.

Favorite Moment: Win over U of A. Let me be clear, I'm a proud/current Sun Devil student. My love for ASU can't be understated, which goes along with natural hate for U of A. During the last eight minutes of action, I was on the field witnessing the crazy series of events. In addition, I got to run around and interview players once the clock struck double zero.

Best Play: Marion Grice's 52 Yard TD Run at U of A. Marion Grice's 52 yard touchdown scamper was not only the best ASU play, but also ranks amongst the best runs in college football during 2012. The Devil's were down 6-0 at the time and desperately needed life offensively. Looking back, Grice shook off at least four defenders, making numerous quick decisive cuts while showcasing top notch speed.