Best Arizona State Football Teams This Century: 2014

The Arizona State Sun Devils are less than three months away from beginning a season that will come with incredibly high expectations after making the College Football Playoff a season prior.

The 2024 version of the Sun Devils are likely the best to take the field in Sun Devil Stadium since the turn of the 21st century, but taking a look at the teams before that paved the way for a Big 12 title squad should be of importance as well.

The 2014 Arizona State team was likely the best prior to the team of last season.

Todd Graham was coming fresh off of a 10-win season that saw his team come within a Pac-12 title game victory of making the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1996.

The 2014 team was ranked 19th in the preseason AP poll after starting quarterback Taylor Kelly, starting running back D.J. Foster, and star wide receiver Jaelen Strong all decided to return for another season along with a talented defense despite losing All-American DT Will Sutton.

The team dominated the first three games of the season, but lost Kelly in a September 13 victory over Colorado due to a foot fracture.

The next game was an unfortunate 62-27 blowout loss to UCLA with Mike Bercovivi stepping in for Kelly.

Then one of the most iconic plays in the history of Sun Devil football happened - the incredible victory over USC revived the season.

The victory served as a springboard into a stretch in which the talented Sun Devil squad won five consecutive contests - four against ranked opponents.

The peak of the season was when Graham's squad defeated Notre Dame by a score of 55-31 that greatly increased the chances to reach the four-team playoff.

That dream was crushed the very next week when Oregon State stunned the sixth-ranked Sun Devils. The team also narrowly dropped the yearly rivalrly game against Arizona - which cost them a spot in a major bowl game.

Still, the 2014 season was ultimately a very exhilarating one to witness - some of the most iconic moments and victories in the history of the program occurred in year three of the Graham era.

Read more about the current Sun Devil season - including on Sam Leavitt's NFL draft hype here, and if Texas Tech is a true threat to Arizona State in 2025 here.

Please let us know your thoughts on this historic Arizona State team when you like our Facebook page when you click right here.