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ASU Moment of the Year seed No. 1: Sun Devils capture Pac-12 South title

Can anything top what happened that November night in Los Angeles?

By Ryan Bafaloukos
Harry How

Next week House of Sparky will begin our "ASU Moment of the Year" tournament, with the 16 best moments from the athletic season. This week we will randomly introduce all 16 moments, then reveal our seedings and match-ups next week, where you, the reader, will vote on what was the ASU athletics Moment of the Year.

Throughout the 21st century, Arizona State football has gained a reputation of not being able to take that next step into elite status. Didn't Arizona State have all the makings of a football powerhouse? Large school, great location, good recruiting territories, improving facilities, what was missing?

When Todd Graham was hired in December of 2012, he immediately began talking championships. In his second season, he delivered a Pac-12 South championship when the Sun Devils went on the road and defeated the UCLA Bruins.

It was a game contested on Nov. 23, 2013 between the two preseason favorites in the South. It was a high scoring affair from the start, with the teams combining for 24 points after the first quarter.

In the second, the Sun Devils began to distance themselves from the Bruins thanks to a Carl Bradford pick-six and a Jaelen Strong touchdown reception with five seconds left in the half. Arizona State led 35-13 at halftime.

However, UCLA crept back in the game in the third quarter, outscoring the Sun Devils 14-3 in the third frame to pull within 11 with 15 minutes to play. With just over 11 minutes left in the game, Brett Hundley found Shaquelle Evans on a 27-yard touchdown pass to pull UCLA within five (two-point conversion failed).

In the final minutes of the game, the key plays went the Sun Devils way and thanks to a missed field goal by the Bruins and a crucial sack by Chris Young in the redzone, the Sun Devils came out on top by a score of 38-33. The Sun Devils had won the Pac-12 South and would be playing for a trip to the Rose Bowl.

We named it as our best moment from the athletic season, the question is do the readers agree?

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