The Arizona Cardinals have been home to some of the best players in college football history.
The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman ranked the top 25 players of the past 25 years of college football, and three former Cardinals made the list.
At No. 24, former Cardinals defensive back Tyrann Mathieu made the cut.
“The 5-8, 183-pound New Orleans native was one of the most dynamic defensive players we’ve ever seen. He actually started only 14 games in his career with LSU from 2010-11, but he caused relentless havoc and was a playmaker on both defense and special teams. He came from everywhere, starting 10 games at cornerback, three at nickel and one at free safety. When some teams prepared for LSU, they saw him as a strong-side linebacker because of how he was often deployed,” Feldman wrote.
“In 2011, Mathieu finished fifth in the Heisman voting as the centerpiece of a defense that gave up 11.3 points per game in leading LSU to the BCS title game. His career with the Tigers ended earlier than expected when he was dismissed from the team before the 2012 season due to a violation of team rules. He’s gone on to become a three-time All-Pro in the NFL.”
Mathieu was an All-Pro with the Cardinals in 2013, where he was a teammate of Larry Fitzgerald, who played for Arizona for his entire career from 2004-20. He landed at No. 11 on the list.
“The Panthers were hardly known for prolific passing attacks in the early 2000s. Fitzgerald’s QB at Pitt, Rod Rutherford, never threw a pass in the NFL. In the year before and the year after Fitzgerald’s two seasons, Pitt wideouts caught a combined 32 touchdown passes — two fewer than the 6-3, 220-pounder from Minnesota had in his record-setting two seasons in college,” Feldman wrote.
“In 2003, Fitzgerald often faced double and triple coverage but became the first sophomore to win the Walter Camp Award for national player of the year. He finished second in the Heisman vote to Oklahoma quarterback Jason White.”
The final Cardinals entry on the list came one spot ahead of Fitzgerald at No. 10. Terrell Suggs returned to Arizona, where he moved to in the eighth grade, for one final season with the Cardinals. He was cut after 13 games with the team.
“The 2000 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, Suggs was a menace, bursting onto the scene with 16 TFLs and 10 sacks. And that was just a taste of what he had in store for opponents. In 2001, he had 18 TFLs and four forced fumbles,” Feldman wrote.
“As a junior, the 6-2, 265-pound edge rusher tore apart opposing offenses, setting an NCAA record with 24 sacks to go along with 31.5 TFLs and six forced fumbles, sparking ASU to its first winning season in six years. Suggs had 4.5 sacks and 6.5 TFLs in one game against Washington.”
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