Sun Devils' defensive end Suggs may sack major defensive awards

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Arizona State was not Terrell Suggs' first choice, or even his second. He was ready to sign with Florida State, or maybe Tennessee.

"I didn't really think I was going to come here, but then my mom talked me into it," he said. "I don't regret any minute of it."

The same cannot be said of Pac-10 quarterbacks who have had to deal with Suggs' ferocious pass rush for three seasons.

This year, the junior defensive end set an NCAA record with 20 sacks, and he still has Friday's game at Arizona and a bowl game to add to the total. In three years, he has 40 sacks, one shy of the school record set by Shante Carver in four seasons, from 1990 through 1993.

Suggs is a finalist for every major national award a player at his position can earn -- the Bronco Nagurski Trophy for outstanding defensive player, the Lombardi Award for the top linebacker or lineman, and the Ted Hendricks Award for outstanding defensive end.

"Terrell deserves everything he's getting," coach Dirk Koetter said. "He's one of the best players in college football. He should be recognized as such."

Barely 20, with a broad smile and an outgoing personality, Suggs is humble about the attention.

"I saw at the beginning of the season that I was a candidate for these awards," he said. "But then you look down the list and you've got Jerome McDougle, Cory Redding, E.J. Henderson and Tommie Harris. I'm like, 'I can't look forward to these awards."'

If he's named the best defensive player in college football, he will deflect the credit.

"It would just mean that a lot of things can happen when you humble yourself and put your team first," Suggs said. "That's what I did this year. I really didn't play for myself anymore. I played for my team as a unit, and all that stuff kind of happened."

Unlike other Nagurski finalists, Suggs is not part of a powerhouse defense. The Sun Devils are ninth in the Pac-10 in scoring defense and sixth in total defense, yet Suggs has excelled. He has eight more sacks than any other player in the Pac-10, leads the conference in tackles for loss with 26 1/2 and is tied for the Pac-10 lead with five forced fumbles.

Seven NFL scouts were on hand Oct. 26 when Suggs had 4 1/2 sacks in the Sun Devils' 27-16 victory over Washington. In that game, he tied the NCAA record of 17 1/2 sacks in a season set by Dwight Freeney of Syracuse.

Freeney's record is misleading because the NCAA didn't make sacks an official statistic until 2000.

The "unofficial" national record is 24 1/2 by Zeke Gadson of Pittsburgh in 1987.