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Maroon Madness: No. 2 Randall McDaniel vs. No. 7 Dan Henderson

Two of the toughest Sun Devils ever.

QBsneak.com/Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports

The Matchup: Two of the scariest men to ever compete at Arizona State, Randall McDaniel led a 14-year-career in the NFL as one of the greatest offensive lineman in the history of the game, while Henderson is widely regarded as one of the greatest mixed-martial artists of all-time. He’s beat over 20 MMA world champions in his career.

No. 2 Randall McDaniel

Basic info: Born: December 19, 1964 in Phoenix, Arizona. High school: Agua Fria (Arizona) Football, Track and Field and Basketball. ASU career: 1987. NFL career: 1988-1999 (Vikings), 2000-2001 (Buccaneers). McDaniel also started 202 consecutive games in his career.

Notables: Where do we even start? Inducted into the 2009 NFL Hall of Fame and 2008 College Football Hall of Fame. McDaniels was invited to 12 straight Pro Bowls and was awarded First Team All-Pro for nine-straight seasons. McDaniel also started 202 consecutive games in his NFL career and was later named to the 1990 NFL All-Decade team.

What you don’t know: The 6-4, 287 pound lineman was a standout sprinter at Agua Fria. McDaniel made it to the state meet in the 100-meter dash, recording a school record of 10.64 seconds. McDaniel also dabbled at the fullback position with the Vikings, destroying sorry defenders in short-yardage situations.

McDaniels’ Resume

ASU Career
ASU Career
1987 Rose Bowl Champion
two-time first team all-american (1986-1987)
Pac-10 offensive lineman of the year (1986)
Pro Career
Pro Football Hall of Fame
Tied with two others for most Pro Bowl appearences (12)
Minnesota Vikings Ring of Honor

No. 7 Dan Henderson

Basic info: Born: August 24, 1970 in Downey, California. High School: Victor Valley High School. Height/weight: 5-foot-11, 195 pounds. Career: Fought at Cal State Fullerton and ASU for one season each, then led a long career in both Greco Roman wrestling and mixed martial arts.

Notables: Henderson was the first mixed-martial artist to concurrently hold two titles in two different weight classes in major MMA promotion. Henderson received a bronze medal at the 1995 Pan American Games, and competed for the U.S. in both the 1992 (Barcelona) and 1996 (Atlanta) Olympics. He holds 32 career wins, with 16 of those by means of knockout.

What you don’t know: Henderson’s grandmother, Alice (Bergevin) LeJune owns land on the Umatilla Indian Reservation and is an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes. This means that Henderson is officially one-sixteenth Walla Walla Native American.

Henderson’s Resume

ASU career
ASU career
Qualified for the NCAA championships (1993).
Pro career
1995 UFC 17 Middleweight Tournament winner.
Represented the U.S. twice in Olympic Games ('92, '96).
6th Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion.
1995 Pan American Games bronze medalist.
2000 Pan American Games gold medalist.