Looking back at ASU's first season with head coach Kenny Dillingham

The first Arizona State football season under Kenny Dillingham is in the books. The Sun Devils finished 3-9 overall and 2-7 in their last season as part of the Pac-12.

After the regular season loss to rival Arizona, Dillingham talked about the first year and the process of building a culture. He said he was pleased with the effort of his players and how they bought into what he was preaching. The key now is to build on that and establish some depth in the program.

The Sun Devils could not overcome a myriad of injuries with 31 players missing time an 14 out for five games or more.

"If I take one thing away from this year, the most disappointing thing was the inability to practice in season. We didn't get any better. We got worse. It just pains me to say that out loud. From Week 6 or 7, got worse as the season progressed because we were so banged up we couldn't practice against each other," he said. "That's unfortunate because teams I've been part of take a lot of pride in practicing in season and getting better in season and we just didn't have enough bodies to do that and then field a team. Hopefully, we get back to work in the spring and we understand the physicality it takes and carry that over to the fall and then next fall."

Let's hand out some unofficial accolades to deserving athletes and moments from the season:

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Most Valuable Offensive Player: We have to go with junior RB Cameron Skattebo. The transfer from Sacramento State literally did it all. He was the team's leading rusher with 788 yards and nine touchdowns and caught 30 passes for 362 yards and another touchdown. If that weren't enough he had eight punts for a 42.45 average with a long of 53 yards. And of course, he was often lined up at quarterback in the Sun Devils' so-called "Wild-Skatt" packages. Dillingham admitted spreading his player thin took away from his overall effectiveness but he was needy in a lot of facets because of the injuries. We could go with WR Elijhah Badger here but the Sun Devils didn't get him the ball enough.

Most Valuable Defensive Player: Junior defensive lineman B.J. Green was a disruptive force on the defensive front with 11.5 tackles for a loss, six sacks, 11 quarterback hurries and a forced fumble. That came in his first season as a full-time defender, having been used primarily as a pass rush specialist the previous two seasons. A very close second to Deshaun Mallory

Most Surprising Newcomer: We'd like to pick a most valuable newcomer but there were so many it's hard to single out one. So we'll go with "surprising" and that person is safety Shamari Simmons, who transferred in from FCS Austin Peay. You expect a lot from those coming in from FBS schools but those from FCS schools usually come in with some added motivation to show they belong at the FBS level. Simmons finished with a team-high 73 tackles, one sack, one interception, six breakups, four quarterback hurries and two forced fumbles. He definitely showed he can play at this level.

Most Versatile Player: Is this even a question? We're going back to Skattebo. Hopefully next season the Sun Devils won't have the number of injury issues they had this year and Skattebo will be able to be an even more dangerous weapon on offense because he won't be stretched so thin.

Player most likely lost to transfer portal: Green. He was actually in the portal last fall but the ASU coaches talked him out and he returned. He is an even more valuable commodity this season now that he has transitioned to an every-down player with the versatility to play inside or on the end. The Sun Devils need to do everything in their power to keep him in Tempe.

Player(s) most likely to bolt for the draft: Badger and tight end Jalin Conyers were looked at as the best draft prospects. They're juniors so they could stay or go. Neither had the year they probably wanted to have to set themselves up for the draft so it will be interesting to see what decision each will make.

Best Play: There weren't a whole lot of explosive plays this season and those are the ones that typically stick out in your mind. But we're going to go with Skattebo's 25-yard touchdown pass to Elijhah Badger that gave the Sun Devils a 10-0 lead against UCLA at the Rose Bowl in a game ASU won 17-7. It was a perfectly thrown ball for anybody, let alone a running back.

Ironman Award: Junior center Leif Fautanu, a transfer from UNLV, played every snap and was the only offensive lineman starting every game at the same position. There were virtually no fumbled snaps or mishaps on his part and he was a consistent presence with a lot of changes around him on a weekly basis.

Gutsiest player(s): We have to go with two guys here, offensive lineman Joey Ramos and quarterback Trenton Bourguet. Ramos played every game and it's had to imagine where ASU would have been without him. He played the first five with a broken bone in his hand that required a bulky cast. Then he played against Washington despite a back injury. Those are just the injuries that we know of. Dillingham joked on more than one occasion that his lineman had to be held together with duct tape.

Bourguet was relied upon with Jaden Rashada and Drew Pyne out for the balance of the season. Bourguet seemed to go down very hard at least once per game but was always back in there. At the end of the Utah game, he was on crutches which raised some questions as to his availability moving forward. But he was a go for the next game. He never complained but it was likely he played through one or more ailments all season.

Most impactful injury: Left tackle Emmit Bohle sustained a season-ending broken leg in the second game against Oklahoma State. That was the first of many hits for the offensive line which had nine players miss time due to injuries. The Sun Devils used 10 different starting offensive line combinations, going with the same lineup just twice, in the back-to-back games against USC and Cal.

Most Improved player: Linebacker is a place where the Sun Devils were already thin. Then Will Shaffer quit the team which put a lot of pressure on junior Caleb McCullough who inherited a bigger role and he did an admirable job.

Best Interview: Defensive lineman Dashaun Mallory, a graduate transfer from Michigan State, was what media types like to call "interview gold." He is insightful, and articulate. There's a reason he's usually the guy the ASU media relations staff calls on for postgame availability in losses. Honorable mention here to Michael Matus and Jordan Clark.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: ASU football best players, prospects in 2023 season