Pac-12 Top 25 for 2013: No. 2

Ted Miller, ESPN Senior WriterJan 31, 2014, 03:00 PM
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- Covered college football since 1997
- Graduate of the University of Richmond
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Our countdown of the Pac-12’s Top 25 players from the 2013 season continues.

You can review our 2013 preseason Top 25 here.

No. 2: Ka'Deem Carey, RB, Arizona

2013 numbers: Carey rushed for 1,885 yards and scored 19 touchdowns. He also caught 26 passes for 173 yards and a score.

Preseason ranking: No. 6

Making the case for Carey: Carey, simply, was the nation's best running back, no matter how badly the Doak Walker Award voters blew it. Boston College's Andre Williams? A fine back, but Carey completely outclassed Williams when they went head-to-head in the AdvoCare V100 BOWL, rushing for 169 yards (6.3 yards per carry) and two TDs in a blowout win compared to 75 yards (2.9 ypc) from Williams. Not a single person in the entire universe walked away from that game still believing Williams, the Doak winner, was better. Carey, a two-time first-team consensus All-American and the Pac-12's 2013 Offensive Player of the Year, ranked second in the nation with 157.1 yards per game. He completed his career by topping 100 yards in 16 consecutive games, a Pac-12 record and a streak that hasn't been accomplished by any other back in a decade. He is Arizona’s career rushing leader (4,232 yards) and ranks seventh in Pac-12 history. He owns or shares 26 Arizona single-game, season and career records. For the past two seasons, everyone knew he was coming. They just couldn't stop him.

The countdown:

No. 3: Anthony Barr, LB, UCLA

No. 4: Brandin Cooks, WR, Oregon State

No. 5: Bishop Sankey, RB, Washington

No. 6: Trent Murphy, LB, Stanford

No. 7: Will Sutton, DT, Arizona State

No. 8: Brett Hundley, QB, UCLA

No. 9: David Yankey, OL, Stanford

No. 10: Leonard Williams, DE, USC

No. 11: Marion Grice, RB, Arizona State

No. 12: Xavier Su'a-Filo, OL, UCLA

No. 13: Tyler Gaffney, RB, Stanford