2025 provided more heartache than triumph for Arizona sports fans, but an epic football game, standout individual campaigns, a WNBA Finals run and promising start to basketball season offered hope and excitement.
Trey McBride and Alyssa Thomas broke records while Geraldo Perdomo ascended to stardom. The Mercury rallied to the WNBA Finals while the Phoenix Suns have outplayed preseason projections so far this season. Arizona basketball is No. 1 in the country, while Arizona State women’s basketball is undefeated entering 2026.
This past year started with an incredible game between Arizona State and Texas in the Peach Bowl on New Year’s Day. Kenny Dillingham’s Sun Devils, with Cam Skattebo leading the way, overcame a 24-8 deficit to force overtime before losing in double OT. Despite the heartbreaking finish, ASU proved it belonged on the grand stage.
To commemorate 2025, we are resurrecting The Zonies, which in 2015 highlighted the most impressive figures and feats in Arizona sports, written by Vince Marotta and voted on by fans.
A decade later, we asked the listeners of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM on social media and readers of ArizonaSports.com on our daily polls to vote for the best of Arizona sports this past calendar year. We used the results from the fans and our own Arizona Sports hosts and reporters to determine the winners.
Here’s to hoping for more wins in 2026:
Editor’s note: There are only four poll slots on X, so any names mentioned in the comments and likes on those comments counted in the voting. Additionally, we received nearly 7,000 fan votes for this exercise, so thank you to all who participated.
Arizona Athlete of the Year: Cardinals TE Trey McBride
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Results: McBride (47% fan vote, 40% Arizona Sports vote)
Runner-up: Diamondbacks SS Geraldo Perdomo (43% fan vote, 33% Arizona Sports vote)
Others receiving votes: Mercury F Alyssa Thomas, ASU RB Cam Skattebo, Diamondbacks OF Corbin Carroll, Arizona QB Noah Fifita
This was a bad, bad year for the Cardinals, but McBride continued to prove himself as the premier tight end in the National Football League.
McBride broke the NFL record for single-season receptions by a tight end with his 117th catch on Sunday. From Weeks 6-14, he averaged 10.5 catches, 88.5 receiving yards and a touchdown per game.
Entering the final weekend of the regular season, McBride is tied for the NFL lead with 119 receptions and ranks second in touchdown catches with 11.
Perdomo made his case with a breakout season for the Diamondbacks, finishing fourth in the NL MVP race. More on that later.
Thomas broke the WNBA record for triple-doubles and led the Mercury to the WNBA Finals in her first season in Phoenix. She finished third in the MVP voting.
Carroll delivered the first 30-home run, 30-stolen base season in Diamondbacks history, while Fifita made first team All-Big 12 for the resurgent Wildcats.
Arizona Coach of the Year: ASU’s Kenny Dillingham
(Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images)
Results: Dillingham (38% fan vote, 30% Arizona Sports vote)
Runner-up: Suns’ Jordan Ott (27% fan vote, 40% Arizona Sports vote)
Others receiving votes: Mercury’s Nate Tibbetts, Arizona’s Brent Brennan, Arizona’s Tommy Lloyd
Dillingham had to prove that ASU was not simply a Cinderella story in 2024 but a sustainable contender. And he had to do so without the wrecking ball who was Skattebo.
Despite a rocky start and loads of impactful injuries to the likes of quarterback Sam Leavitt, safety Xavion Alford, offensive lineman Ben Coleman and wide receiver Jordyn Tyson, the Sun Devils competed for the Big 12 title, finishing the regular season 8-4.
They defeated conference-champion Texas Tech in the process, the Red Raiders’ only defeat entering the CFP.
Dillingham agreed to an amended contract with ASU despite interest from Michigan, keeping him in Tempe and setting up more funding for his staff.
Ott’s Suns are off to quite a start with a 19-14 record through 33 games despite several injuries. Jalen Green has only played in two games after coming over in the Kevin Durant trade, but Dillon Brooks and Collin Gillespie have been revelations. Phoenix started the year 1-4, too, and has won nearly two-thirds of its games since then.
Brennan’s Wildcats improved dramatically from four wins in 2024 to nine this year, including a Territorial Cup win in Tempe. They will play SMU in the Holiday Bowl on Friday.
Kevin Zimmerman, Arizona Sports web editor and co-host of Empire of the Suns podcast:
Hot take: Kenny Dillingham’s coaching job this year was better than last, when ASU made the CFP. Weathering the loss of Cam Skattebo, he got THREE WHOLE WINS out of a Jeff Sims-quarterbacked football team and met the lofty expectations despite that. His original starting quarterback, Sam Leavitt, by most metrics was not even a top-10 quarterback in his own conference this season.
Arizona Sports Rookie/Freshman of the Year: Arizona F Koa Peat
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Results: Peat (36.5% fan vote, 80% Arizona Sports vote)
Runner-up: Suns F Ryan Dunn (30% fan vote, 10% Arizona Sports Vote)
Others receiving votes: Cardinals CB Will Johnson, Diamondbacks LHP Andrew Saalfrank, Suns C Oso Ighodaro, Wildcats G Brayden Burries
A top-10 recruit in the country out of Perry High School in Chandler, Peat opted to remain in-state and compete for the Wildcats.
He quickly proved why there had been so much hype, scoring 30 points in his debut against defending-champion Florida. Peat scored in double figures in 11 of his first 13 games as the Wildcats enter the new calendar year 13-0 and ranked first in the country by the Associated Press.
Dunn started 32 of 45 games played after the year turned to 2025, proving himself as a stout perimeter defender at this level.
Johnson started nine of 11 games in his rookie year out of Michigan (with one game to play), missing time due to injuries but showing the upside of someone who felt he should have been a first-round pick. Saalfrank — yes, he was rookie eligible in 2025 — returned from his yearlong gambling suspension and threw 29 innings with a 1.24 ERA.
Tyler Drake, Arizona Sports Cardinals reporter and co-host of the Cardinals Corner podcast:
Had Will Johnson stayed a little healthier, he would have gotten my vote.
Arizona Sports Newcomer of the Year: Suns F Dillon Brooks
(Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
Results: Brooks (60% fan vote, 40% Arizona Sports vote)
Runner-up: Mercury F Alyssa Thomas (11% fan vote, 50% Arizona Sports vote)
Others receiving votes: Cardinals LB Josh Sweat, Mercury F Satou Sabally, Cardinals DL Calais Campbell, Sun Devils G Moe Odum
Brooks has been arguably the biggest on-court reason why the Suns are in the position they find themselves entering 2026. He has not only brought an edge to a team that lacked toughness a season ago, but he is running with the opportunity to score for a team missing Green’s production with 21.5 points per game.
Brooks missed six games earlier this season, and the Suns are 15-9 since he returned to the lineup (with a couple tight losses he had something to do with based on late-game antics). Still, the Suns needed an identity shift, and Ott and Brooks especially have helped steer them in a new direction.
Thomas won the vote among Arizona Sports participants, and her case is clear. The Mercury acquired her in a blockbuster deal, shifting their identity from the Diana Taurasi and Brittney Griner core to a new Big Three with Thomas, Kahleah Copper and Satou Sabally. Thomas was top-five in the WNBA in assists, rebounds and steals, an all-around gamer.
Sweat filled a role the Cardinals desperately needed off the edge, recording 11 sacks and 12 tackles for loss after signing as a free agent. Campbell also provided value up front, as he did not miss a game in his 18th NFL season and recorded 6.5 sacks.
Arizona Breakout Player of the Year: Diamondbacks SS Geraldo Perdomo
(AP Photo/Aaron Gash)
Results: Perdomo (49% fan vote, 40% Arizona Sports vote)
Runner-up: Suns G Collin Gillespie (35% fan vote, 40% Arizona Sports vote)
Others receiving votes: Cardinals WR Michael Wilson, Sun Devils RB Raleek Brown
Perdomo had been a valuable player for the Diamondbacks before, but he rose to another level in 2025 with 20 home runs, 100 RBIs and 7.1 WAR that nearly topped the National League.
He also played 161 of 162 games despite battling a bone bruise in his hand, still managing to keep up his plate discipline strengths while adding power.
Gillespie was a close second as someone who played fewer than a quarter’s worth of minutes for the Suns entering February before a late-season surge and full-on breakout in 2025-26. It turns out, No. 12 is pretty good, putting up 14.0 points per game this season as an early contender for Sixth Man of the Year.
Wilson, meanwhile, is 93 yards away from reaching 1,000 on the season despite having no games with even 45 yards receiving through Week 7. With Marvin Harrison Jr. dealing with appendicitis and a heel injury during the second half, Wilson produced some monster games with 185, 142 and 118 yards gained through the air, respectively.
Mitch Vareldzis, Arizona Sports at Night co-host:
Michael Wilson is the one of the bunch that broke out the most to me. Not to say the other candidates did not, but we had glimpses of the potential of the others. Wilson exploded offensively in a big way and showed that he can be a primary target for many Cardinals seasons to come.
Arizona Game of the Year: Peach Bowl
(Photo by Butch Dill/Getty Images)
Results: Peach Bowl (48% fan vote, 60% Arizona Sports vote)
Runner-up: ASU upsets Texas Tech (22% fan vote, 20% Arizona Sports vote)
Others receiving votes: Perdomo walks off Dodgers, Gillespie hits game-winner vs. Timberwolves, Cardinals defeat Cowboys on Monday Night Football, ASU hits walk-off field goal vs. TCU, Diamondbacks rally to walk-off win over Padres
No game captivated Valley sports fans quite like the Peach Bowl.
ASU, a program with low preseason expectations that stunned college football by winning the Big 12, went into halftime down 17-3. Instead of bowing down to a blue blood in Texas, the Sun Devils rallied with Skattebo bowling through the Longhorns’ defense.
He bounced off defender after defender, and despite vomiting on the sideline, Skattebo racked up 143 rushing yards, 99 receiving yards, two rushing touchdowns and a touchdown pass.
Skattebo gained 62 yards on a reception in the fourth quarter and was taken down by his facemask. He mean-mugged the crowd with his shoulder pad popping out, a moment that encapsulated the grit of his performance and ASU tenure.
Sun Devil fans will never forget the targeting non-call and Texas’ fourth-and-13 conversion in overtime, as ASU was so close to advancing in the CFP.
Texas won 39-31, but ASU proved itself under Dillingham as a program to watch. Skattebo became a household name for football fans.
Cam Skattebo 3 TD, 284 Total YDS (143 RUYDS, 99 REYDS, 42 PYDS) 2024 Peach Bowl CFP vs. Texas t.co/2L5G3UoAqM pic.twitter.com/u2q7TsJBOX
— Football Performances (@NFLPerformances) October 3, 2025
Mitch Vareldzis, Arizona Sports at Night co-host:
As much as it pains me to think about this game, it was still an amazing performance by the underdog of college football. Cam Skattebo’s puke-and-rally helping to carry the Sun Devils to even be playing for a chance to win. The Sun Devils also proved that they could hang tough with the big baddies of college football and gave credibility to a new-look Big 12. The fourth down blitz still haunts me but it was by far the best game of the year.
Tyler Drake, Arizona Sports Cardinals reporter and co-host of the Cardinals Corner podcast:
Walking off the Dodgers is always going to be a top pick, especially when frog blood is involved!
BONUS — Arizona Team of the Year: Phoenix Mercury
Results: Mercury (42% fan vote)
Runner-up: Arizona basketball (27%)
Others receiving votes: Arizona football, Phoenix Suns
On Feb. 2, the Mercury announced their previously-reported blockbuster trade that brought Thomas and Sabally to Phoenix in a four-team deal.
The duo made the All-Star team, and Phoenix went 27-17 to earn the fourth seed in the playoff field. The Mercury defeated the New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx — the WNBA Finals participants in 2024 — en route to a date with the Las Vegas Aces for the title.
The Aces swept the series, but the Mercury exceeded expectations with their first Finals run since 2021.
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