SB Nation St. Louis: All Posts by Cody Ulm

Sun Devil Legend Series: No. 73 Danny Villa

2013-06-18T16:00:10Z

The Backstory: We're officially waist-high in offensive lineman territory and with No. 73 comes another Arizona State legend who never had an issue doing the dirty work on the field.

While players like Darryl Harris and Jeff Van Raaphorst might get most the glory for ASU's 1986 Rose Bowl season, they'll be the first to tell you that they never would have found success in Pasadena if it wasn't for our No. 73.

The Player: G/T Danny Villa (1983-1996)

The mid-80s was a dominant era for Arizona State's rushing attack and Villa deserves as much credit as anyone for that fact. From 1985 to 1986, Villa cleared the way for Sun Devil running backs to average over 200 rushing yards a game for 17 consecutive contests.

For that reason, it shouldn't come as much of a surprise that Villa was ASU's first offensive lineman to achieve consensus All-American status in 1986. In the same season as ASU's team captain, Villa also was received the Morris Trophy for the Pac-10's top offensive lineman as well as first-team All-Pac-10 honors. And even though it's difficult to illustrate an offensive lineman's talent level through statistics, Villa still has some pretty impressive numbers to back his skills up.

During the 1986 season with Villa acting as ASU's lead blocker, the team finished 18th in the nation in total offense (406.1 yards per game), 19th in rushing (210.5 yards per game) and ninth overall in scoring (32.5 points per game).

Unfortunately, Villa is now remembered more for his unspeakable off-the-field actions than the mauling damage he did on the gridiron. In 2008, Villa was sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to statutory rape and enticing a minor. Of course, we're not condoning his disgraceful decisions by naming him our No. 73 legend but at the end of the day, we're not naming legends in terms of character, we're naming legends based on on-the-field results. And as a 2002 ASU Hall of Fame inductee, we believe Villa's body of work at the university speaks for itself.

In the Pros: New England spent their fifth round pick on Villa in 1987. During his 12-year professional career with the Patriots, Cardinals, Chiefs and Panthers, Villa played an assortment of positions along the line including guard, tackle and center. The Nogales native started 77 of the 157 games he played in during his lengthy NFL tenure.

Who Wears It Now?

Vi Teofilo - A redshirt sophomore from Moon Valley high school, Teofilo is still looking to find his way along Arizona State's offensive line. But in terms of pure strength, Teofilo might be in a league of his own.

Other Notable 73s

NFL guard John Hannah - Hannah was born in Canton and ended right back there a few years after his professional career ended. As a 10-time All-Pro, nine-time Pro Bowler and a four-time NFLPA Offensive Lineman of the Year selection, you'd be hard pressed to find a better guard in the history of football.

NFL defensive lineman Joe Klecko - The 1981 Defensive Player of the Year is already in the Jets Ring of Honor but he's also in the badass nickname ring of honor as a member of the "New York Sack Exchange."

ASU Football: Notre Dame Game Back On For 2014

2013-06-11T23:56:12Z

Arizona State's persistence paid off in a big way Tuesday with the news that Notre Dame was able to straighten out its scheduling conflict to make room for their 2014 visit to Sun Devil Stadium.

Here's what ASU Athletics Director Steve Patterson had to say about the exciting development in his Pitchfork post piece:

"We're pleased that Notre Dame was able to resolve its scheduling issues in a way that allows it to play at Sun Devil Stadium in 2014," said ASU Athletics Director Steve Patterson. "The game will now be played on Nov. 8, 2014. Our entire Sun Devil family-season ticket holders, fans, students, alumni-and our entire community here in the Valley have been looking forward to playing Notre Dame in Tempe since the original agreement was signed in 2008.

While the game at Notre Dame in 2017 has been canceled, what is most important to us is that the game in Tempe has been saved. Under a separate agreement we also play Notre Dame at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas on October 5, 2013.

These are exciting times for our football program and having a special opponent like Notre Dame travel to ASU will make for another memorable experience."

As Patterson touched on, the game is now being played two weeks later than originally scheduled. But this is certainly a huge turn of events since it was only two months ago that Notre Dame first told Arizona State officials that the Irish didn't want to travel to Tempe due to the program's move to the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In the end, it seems that ASU officials were able to pressure Notre Dame to honoring their original contract with some legal heat. According to the Arizona Republic's Doug Haller, the contract stated that the games could only be canceled due to "an act of God, a national crisis, or other events beyond the control of the host institution." And clearly their general bemoaning at the idea of traveling out west does not fall under any of those categories.

While not being able to settle on the 2017 game is certainly disappointing, today's announcement should still be considered a huge win for ASU athletics. This 2014 matchup with Notre Dame will undoubtedly result in millions of dollars in revenue for the program since this is easily one of the biggest home games for Arizona State football since the turn of the century.

What are your feelings about this development, ASU fans? Post your praise for Steve Patterson and company below in the comments.

Andres Garcia Dismissed From ASU Football, Onyeali Being Investigated For Separate Incident

2013-06-11T22:32:36Z

Arizona State defensive back Andres Garcia has been dismissed from the team after being arrested on two counts of sexual assault and one count of domestic violence stemming from an incident this past weekend, according to the local CBS affiliate.

The Tempe Police Department has shared that Garcia got involved in a verbal argument with "a 21-year-old female acquaintance" early Friday. Their squabble then escalated to a point in which Garcia allegedly knocked the female unconscious by shoving her backwards into a wall. According to the police, Garcia helped take the victim home once she regained consciousness but then allegedly sexually assaulted her once they were alone.

Clearly these are some pretty serious allegations so it shouldn't come as much of a surprise that Todd Graham and company wasn't willing to wait around to see how this plays out. Garcia, a senior walk on, joined the team last season and saw limited action on special teams.

Sadly, after a relatively transgression-free first season, Graham is now dealing with a recent wave of misconduct as defensive end Junior Onyeali is also facing criminal charges for a separate incident involving the mistreatment of a woman. According to Tempe Police, Onyeali allegedly smashed in his girlfriend's window after a fight last month.

Onyeali has not been arrested at this point but the university has said they are aware of the situation and "have engaged campus resources to review," according to Fox Sports' Tyler Lockman. So although Onyeali isn't currently suspended, there could still be some repercussions down the road.

Stay plugged into House of Sparky for continued updates on both of these developing stories.

Will Sutton Makes Phil Steele's Preseason First-Team All-American List

2013-06-05T22:10:38Z

Arizona State defensive tackle Will Sutton earned First-Team preseason All-American honors Wednesday as the only Sun Devil to make Phil Steele's renowned list.

Sutton was ASU's 18th consensus All-American last season after compiling 23.5 tackles for loss and 13 sacks in 2012, both of which numbers rank fourth in the school's single-season record books. On top of those impressive stats, Sutton tallied 63 tackles, three forced fumbles and five passes defended. The senior stopper earned the Pac-12 Pat Tillman Defensive Player of the Year award for his breakout campaign as well as the Morris Trophy for the conference's top defensive lineman.

Sutton, who also made Steele's preseason All-Pac-12 First Team squad, was one of six Pac-12 players to make Steele's preseason All-American First Team; on the offensive end, USC WR Marqise Lee, Washington TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Stanford OG David Yankey made the cut while UCLA LB Anthony Barr and Stanford S Ed Reynolds joined Sutton on the defensive side.

Sun Devil Legends Series: No. 87 Roger Locke

2013-06-04T16:00:10Z

The Backstory: We're officially in full blown tight end territory, folks. To most Arizona State fans, this is a position of pride. From Zach Miller, to Todd Heap, to our current No. 87 Chris Coyle, Sun Devil tight ends have found success both on the collegiate and professional level.

But when it comes to compare and contrast situation like the one we're currently in, the tight end position might be the biggest headache in all of football. Over the past 50+ years, no position has evolved more than tight ends. Once simply glorified blockers, tight ends are now sometimes the best athletes on the field.

Making the analysis process all the more complicated is the fact that each team uses their tight ends differently. Some still like the bulky bruising types to act as a sixth offensive lineman while other teams use theirs purely out of the slot to create mismatches.

Tired of this rant yet? Well, just keep it in mind before you get too angry at me for passing up the man who could own every major tight end record by the time his ASU career is over.

The Legend: TE Roger Locke (1960-1962)

In 1961, Locke lead the Sun Devils in receiving with 222 yards and two touchdowns on 14 receptions. Fifty-one years later, Chris Coyle accomplished the same feat, only with 474 more receiving yards, 49 more receptions and three more touchdowns. Now do you see my frustration in comparing apples to great, big, modern oranges?

Even factoring in inflation, you're still probably wondering how Locke earned Legends honors. Well, first off, his body of work is just far more well-rounded. Sure, you could make a case for Coyle's 2012 being the best tight end season in Arizona State history. But at the end of the day, that only earned him All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention honors.

During his tenure at ASU, Locke accumulated All Border Conference and All WAC team honors even with numbers that are less than flashy by today's standards. Renowned for his speed and blocking ability, Locke was also a natural born leader on the field, earning captain honors for the 1962 Frank Kush-lead team that went 7-2-1.

No, Locke was no Mike Ditka. But by all accounts, he had plenty of natural-born ability so it would have been mighty interesting to see him play in another era.

In the Pros

Locke was invited to the Senior Bowl and impressed scouts enough to become the 49ers eighth round selection in 1963. Yet with the little to no information on his professional career readily available, we're going to assume it wasn't exactly a memorable one. The Internet never lies.

Honorable Mentions

TE Jeff Gallimore: Gallimore was a team captain on one of the greatest Arizona State football teams ever, the 1986 Rose Bowl 9-1-1 winning squad. Still, it's hard to give him legend honors when his entire three-year statistical career at ASU is less than what Coyle did in 2012 alone.

TE Chris Coyle: Coyle's name is all over the ASU record books after last season but as we touched on already, some of that credit goes to the evolution of the tight end position and the passing game in general.

Who Wears It Now?

Oh, just some breakout star at the tight end position that goes by the name Chris Coyle. Fun fact alert: despite leading the Sun Devils with 696 receiving yards last season, Coyle only managed to have two games with over 87 yards receiving.

Notable 87s

NHL C Sidney Crosby: The youngest captain in the history of the NHL has had a rough time with injuries as of late but it's still hard to argue that Sid the Kid isn't the epitome of greatness on ice.

NFL WR Dwight Clark: While Clark may have only made two Pro Bowls in his nine-year 49er career, he'll always have "the Catch." And that's got to be worth at least three Pro Bowls by itself.

NFL WR Reggie Wayne: If he retired today, Wayne would easily slide right into the Hall of Fame. The scariest part of it all is that he still is as good as ever after his career renaissance in 2012 sans-Peyton Manning.

ASU Football Milestone Monday: Will Sutton Sack Total

2013-06-03T18:53:44Z

This is the first of many Milestone Mondays this summer in which our staff will debate if a given statistical goal is an achievable feat for a certain Arizona State football player. To get the party started will be Will Sutton with the lofty goal of 15 sacks.

Player: Senior DT Will Sutton

Goal: 15 Sacks

Notes: Last season, Sutton recorded 13 sacks, but was also hampered by injuries. Jarvis Jones led the NCAA with 14.5 sacks. In 2011, defensive end Whitney Marcellus was the only player to hit 15 sacks as he had 16 for Illinois. In 2010, Da'Quan Bowers was the only player with 15 sacks as he had 15.5 for Clemson.

The Roundtable

Kerry Crowley: After watching Sutton play when healthy, it's hard to imagine that there's a more dominant defensive lineman this side of Jadaveon Clowney. That being said, I think it's much easier for a defensive player to burst onto the scene and achieve 15 sacks than it is for a proven commodity like Sutton to do so. Every team will be game planning around Sutton because he's the All-American. A lot of things will have to go right for him, but I still think that 15 sacks is attainable.

Step one will be an immediate impact from Carl Bradford and Jaxon Hood. If that duo can prove that they can get to the quarterback, it's no longer as easy for offenses to stop Sutton. Step two will be staying healthy. We all know about Sutton's injuries from last season, so it's important that he does what he can to play smart football. I think 15 sacks is attainable, but I think it's a lot more likely that we see 10 apiece from Sutton, Bradford, and Hood.

Ryan Bafaloukos: This is a difficult one for me because a lot of how Sutton plays this season is dependent on others. Does every team double team him, leaving Bradford and Hood 1-on-1? Are Bradford, Coleman, Hood Onyeali (etc.) able to have enough production to stop teams from doubling Sutton.

I do agree with Kerry though that I do not think this is likely. Once everyone knows how good you are, they will do everything they can to take you away and I believe that is what happens with Sutton. I think 10-12 is a number easily obtainable by Sutton.

Cody Ulm: There's absolutely no way Sutton hits 15 sacks. With the way teams will be game-planning for him, I'd be proud if he manages to compile a 10-sack season. Like you both touched on, I believe that means Bradford and Hood will be the main beneficiaries of his presence and could see a nice bump in their QB takedown totals. But I just can't imagine a scenario in which Sutton's 2013 is on par with his 2012.

For a player to have a 15 sack season like that, they usually have to come out of no where. Furthermore, that player is usually coming off the edge, not rushing the passer by trying to collapse the interior line. Don't get me wrong; I don't think Sutton's 2012 was a fluke or anything. I just don't think his position and circumstances will lead to statistical improvements even with another year in the system.

Ben Haber: Sorry boss man Kerry Crowley, you set the over-under too high on Will Sutton's sacks at 15. Therefore, the entire staff came to a rare unanimous decision here. Sutton posted 13 sacks last season, and that's extremely rare for an interior defensive lineman. Nobody can be expected to accumulate 15 sacks, not even the nation's most dominant player and pass rusher in Jadeveon Clowney.

Opposing offenses used to be unfamiliar with Sutton, but teams know him well now, meaning coaches will devise a game plan based around locating #90. Carl Bradford is more likely to get 15 sacks than Sutton, simply based on the difference in positions. Although, I strongly doubt either happens.

Sacks make the highlights and are undeniably game changers, but Sutton should be more focused on helping stop the run. ASU defensive coordinator Paul Randolph will bring plenty of pressure, per usual, yet I believe the wealth to spread out. Don't get me wrong, I still expect Sutton to earn All-American honors and wreck havoc.

Mitch Terrell: Will Sutton will have, at best, the same amount of sacks as he did last season, barring he remains healthy. Like everyone has stated, offensive coordinators will directly create a game plan around Sutton considering the Sun Devils have not had any other stand-out players on defense other than Brandon Magee last season. While we all see Carl Bradford as a threat and a potential star this season, I feel the majority of the attention will be spent on #90.

I agree with Ben that Bradford is more likely to reach 15 then Sutton. I don't think it is any secret the schedule is more grueling in 2013 compared to 2012, thus making that feat that much harder.

While we all express our doubts of 15 sacks being obtainable, we have all seen the beast Sutton was last season, even after missing several games. We never got to witness his real, true test last season against Oregon's All-American offensive line. However, the thing that makes me antsy as ever to see if he can do the unthinkable is what we did see in one play during that Oregon game: a strip fumble on the very first play that took Sutton out for the remainder of the game.

Sun Devil Legends Series: No. 90 Will Sutton

2013-06-01T16:00:10Z

The Backstory: Congratulations gang, we've made it through our first ten Arizona State football legends. Crazy how time flies when we're going out on a limb to call someone a "legend" due to No. 99-91 being so barren, right?

Well, just to make things interesting, it's time we introduced our first active player onto the list. And yes, that means coming to terms with the fact that we're all actually watching a legend unfold right before our very eyes.

Heavy stuff, I know. But Will Sutton is a heavy man.

The Legend: No. 90 DT Will Sutton (2009-present)

Twelve months ago, Will Sutton was a talented yet underachieving returning starter on a porous defense about to make a drastic scheme change. Funny how much can change in a year.

Heading his senior season, Sutton has emerged as not only the premier defensive player in the Pac-12 but one of the best interior stoppers on all of college football. Sure, one might say a singular spectacular year ins't enough to earn legend status but Sutton's 2012 might have been the most dominant season by any Sun Devil ever.

Sutton led both ASU and the entire Pac-12 conference in sacks (13) and tackles for loss (23.5). Both statistics were fourth most in university single-season history and both we're acquired with mind-boggling efficiency. Sutton was second in the nation in tackles for loss per game (1.92) and third in nation in sacks per game, missing essentially two full games with a knee injury.

Sutton didn't just spend all his time setting up camp in the opponent's backfield either. He also put on swat clinic (five passes deflected), created turnovers (three forced fumbles) and made him teammates substantially better just by being on the field (as evidenced by ASU shockingly leading the Pac-12 passing defense).

The best part of all? On top of all those sweet, sweet numbers, Sutton took home some serious hardware. For his extraordinarily disruptive efforts Sutton earned both the Pac-12 Pat Tillman Defensive Player of the Year Award and the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl Defensive MVP Award all while becoming Arizona State' 18th Consensus All-American.

No, his numbers before 2012 were nothing special (3.5 sacks and 8.5 tackles for loss in two seasons). But Sutton's finest season so far resulted in more production than the average player gets out of an entire four-year career.

Yet you want to know that craziest part of all? We could be talking about Sutton being the greatest defensive player in the history of Arizona State this time next year.

In the Pros

Soon, young padawan. Very soon.

Honorable Mentions

LB Scott Stephen (1982-1986): While not as flashy as Sutton, Stephen had a long productive career at Arizona State before becoming a third round pick of the Green Bay Packers. It's a rarity to see a versatile four-year letterman get runner up but unfortunately for Stephen, Sutton decided to don No. 90 two decades later.

DT Randy Moore (1972-1975): Moore was starter across the defensive line for a number of Frank Kush's finest squads (including a certain 12-0 team in 1975). He may have fizzled out in the NFL quickly but we'll always have that Fiesta Bowl.

Other Famous 90s

NFL DE Neil Smith (1988-2000): Although he clearly wasn't a huge fan of allegiances by the way he traveled throughout the AFC West, Smith's ability to get to the quarterback was undeniable. With a wingspan over seven feet, Smith used his long arms to wrangle in 104.5 sacks in his career.

NFL DE Julius Peppers (2002-present): A top three draft pick like Smith, Peppers already has surpassed the NFL legend with 111.5 sacks and counting. Considering that 22.5 of those have come in the last two years, it wouldn't be entirely shocking to see Peppers join the 150-sack club.

Sun Devil Legends Series: No. 94 Brent Burnstein

2013-05-28T16:00:06Z

The Backstory: With No. 94 comes comes a true test of what legends are made of. To most, legends are defined by both the sheer the quantity of their greatness, yet the quality of a particular shining moment has been known to earn a player that label as well.

But would it be a stretch to call someone a legend when their one shining moment ultimately resulted in an heartbreaking outcome in spite of their game-changing efforts? A complex question, I know. But we in the biz call that a Brent Burnstein.

The Legend: No. 94 DE Brent Burnstein (1992-1996)

In 1997, Burnstein almost single-handedly turned the tides of one the greatest Rose Bowls ever with a momentum-stealing field goal block. Making this moment all the sweeter is the fact that Bernstein beat arguably the greatest offensive lineman ever, Orlando Pace, to make the incredibly timely play.

With Ohio State threatening to extend its lead to seven with just under six minutes to play, Burnstein used his 6'8" frame as leverage to force his way through Pace and slap away Josh Jackson's 38-yard attempt. Fellow ASU defensive end Derrick Rodgers then took advantage of the frenzy on the field by scooping up what appeared to be a lateral and running it back for 50-yard touchdown.

Unfortunately, the lateral was eventually ruled an illegal forward pass but the Devils still had the ball on their own 42 yard line. And they made the most of that position when Jake Plummer showed why he was known as the snake with an 11-yard TD scramble that gave ASU a 17-14 lead with only 1:40 remaining.

Sadly, the rest is painful history. After the kickoff, QB Joe Germaine, a Mesa-native, promptly led the Buckeyes on a 65-yard, game-winning drive that concluded with a five-yard touchdown toss to WR David Boston with only 19 seconds remaining. And thus, the Devils were handed their first loss of the season, forcing them to settle for No. 4 in the AP rankings instead of a potential share of a national championship.

For that reason, Burnstein's "one shining moment" is often overlooked in the history of ASU football. But while that may have been the pinnacle of Burnstein's career, his entire season that proceeded that painful game was mighty memorable as well. In fact, Burnstein's block in the Rose Bowl was actually his fourth that season, which just happens to be an ASU record. Burnstein was also recognized as an honorable mention on the All-Pac-10 team that season even with standouts like Derrick Rodgers and Shawn Swayda stealing his thunder.

In the Pros: Not surprisingly, Burnstein wasn't drafted but he was picked up as a rookie free agent by the Houston Oilers. Before his career could get off the ground though, Burnstein walked away from the Oilers out of a refusal to let the veterans cut his shoulder length hair as part of their hazing process. No, I'm not making this up. Here's what Oilers head coach told the AP in 1997 about the infamous incident:

"I've been in many camps over the years, and I've had players leave for a lot of different reasons. But I never had a player leave because he didn't want to get his hair cut...I feel confident they weren't going to mess with him. I think it just came to the point where he was a little nervous about it, and obviously his hair was more important to him than his football career."

Somehow, Burnstein managed to get a second chance when the hometown Cardinals swiped him off the waivers. But before he could even get used to the prospect of once again playing in Sun Devil Stadium, the Cardinals waived him.

Although his professional career was nothing more than confirmation why his teammates nicknamed him "Fabio," his blocks will always be as legendary as his locks. For evidence, look no further than below:

(And many props to Jedi ASU for another great video).

The Honorable Mentions

DL Saute Sapolu (1984-1988): Sapolu matched Burnstein's tenure length at ASU and went on to play in the World League of American Football. Yeah, that was a thing.

And...that was about it. No. 94 is a depressingly barren number for Arizona State.

Who Wears 94 Now?

Redshirt junior kicker Parker Flynn. He hasn't done diddly squat for the Devils but you can follow him on Twitter right hurr.

Other Famous 94s

NFL OLB/DE Charles Haley (1991-1999): Haley accumulated over 100 sacks in his NFL career but he's best known for being the only player in NFL history to have been on five Super Bowl-winning teams (two with the 49ers, three with the Cowboys).

NFL DT Dana Stubblefield (1993-2003): Stubblefield earned both the Defensive Rookie of the Year (1993) and the Defensive Player of the Year awards (1997) while on the 49ers. Unfortunately, his name is also synonymous with the BALCO scandal.

NFL OLB/DE DeMarcus Ware (2005-present): Although he has five less rings, Ware is still one of the scariest players in NFL history and already has 111 sacks and 32 forced fumbles in his career. When he finally hangs his cleats up, he should be regarded as the best No. 94 ever.