All in all, I'd say it's been a pretty solid year for the Broncos—and who are you to disagree? You are no one to disagree, that's who! The 2014 season went fast, but will still take us right to the doorstep of 2015 ("the future" as Marty McFly has told us). Over the next week let's discuss some of the best and then argue about which player or moment deserves top spot. Consensus winners will receive a 2014 Nuggie Award for Excellence in the Field of Being Awesome.
Most improved Bronco
Kamalei Correa, DE
As a true freshman, Correa was largely outshone by fellow frosh Gabe Perez. He played in all 13 games but finished with just 12 tackles (1.5 for loss) and a single sack. This season, Correa turned things up to an eleven. Through 13 games this year, Kamalei notched 49 tackles, 10 sacks and 17 tackles-for-loss—good enough to land on the MWC first team and standing out as a premier player in the league. What a difference a year makes.
Grant Hedrick, QB
Usually the "most improved" distinction is a year-over-year sort of comparison, but Hedrick did enough in the latter 2/3rds of the 2014 season alone to warrant this honor. Yes, Hedrick improved his 2013 stat lines as well, but going from partial bench warmer in the Air Force loss to 2nd team All-MWC was a thing of beauty. Hedrick finished the regular season (and yeah, we're calling the MWC Championship the "regular season) with 30 total TDs and 13 INTs. The INT number is impressive given that 10 of those were racked up in just 3 games. Hedrick regained the trust of the fans and became a dangerous QB for opponents to contend with. I dare say that fewer people are even calling him "Hendricks" after the way he turned things around in 2014.
Thomas Sperbeck, WR
Sometimes you just need a chance and Sperbeck got that chance when all-revered team WR Matt Miller was lost for the season against (who else?) Air Force. Sperbeck had five receptions for 40 yards as a true frosh in 2013...but when Miller Time was put on hold in 2014, Sperbeck stepped up in a big way...finishing things off with 678 receiving yards and 3 TDs. He even threw the game-winning TD (to Grant Hedrick) in the Fresno State 1.0 matchup. Glad to say we've got this fella for 2 more years.