ASU's 50 Best Professional Athletes No. 43: UFC Hall-of-Famer Don Frye

You know a collegiate wrestling program is doing something right when it continues to produce UFC Hall of Famers.

Don Frye, a former Arizona State Sun Devils wrestler who competed in Tempe from 1984-1988, was among the first Sun Devil wrestlers who made the jump to mixed martial arts and is considered a pioneer in the MMA community.

Frye was recently inducted in the UFC Hall of Fame on July 10, becoming the second Arizona State alumnus to be inducted behind Dan Severn (who we will see on our list in the coming days).

Starting as a professional boxer and earning a second-degree black belt in judo after college, Frye made the jump to MMA and joined the UFC in 1996. Frye fought in four UFC events, which were set up in tournament formats at the time, winning titles at UFC 8 and UFC Ultimate 96.

After leaving the UFC for a professional wrestling stint in Japan in 1997, Frye returned to MMA in 2001 under the now-defunct Pride Fighting Championships.

Frye also fought under the K-1 promotion, King of the Cage, DEEP and Shark Fights promotion. Frye's last professional fight was a knockout loss to Ruben Villareal in 2011 for the Gladiator Challenge Light Heavyweight Championship.

Frye left the sport with a professional record of 20-9-1 (7 KOs, 1 NC).

At ASU, Frye was a member of the 1988 NCAA Wrestling Championship team and helped the Sun Devils win three Pac-10 team titles, with Severn serving as his assistant coach. Frye later transferred to the Oklahoma State Cowboys' wrestling team in the 1988 season.