Pac 12 Football: 1 Player Each Pac-12 Team Will Miss the Most in 2012-13

More than any other sport, football is defined by a collective team effort on the field. Each and every player must work with one another in order to ensure their respective teams are able to execute the designed plays.

This does not mean, however, there are some players who mean much more on a team than the other players. On every team, there seems to be at least one player who stands out among the rest and takes his team to a completely different level.

Whether on the offensive or defensive side of the ball, these players excel at their positions and help their team day in and day out to become better than expectations could have anticipated. 

The Pac-12 is no exception to this occurrence.

Outstanding players like Andrew Luck of Stanford, Matt Barkley of USC,and Chris Polk of Washington all excel at their positions and help to give their team a chance to win in just about every game they play. 

With the NFL draft looming and many upperclassmen departing from every Pac-12 team, it is once again time to analyze which players that have had a big impact on their teams will have the most significant departure.

Arizona Wildcats: Nick Foles

Since taking over starting duties for Arizona State in 2009, Nick Foles has been nothing but impressive.

Despite a disappointing 2011 campaign for the Arizona Wildcats as a team, Foles had the best numbers of his career in his senior season. 

In 2011, Foles threw for 4,334 yards with a completion percentage of 69.1 percent that amounted to 28 touchdown through the air—all of which are career highs.

Throughout his career at Arizona, Foles has consistently been one of the top passers in the college football and completes just around 67 percent of his passes while also generally having a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 2:1.

Foles is known for his strong arm and ability to keep himself composed no matter how bleak a game may look. He has consistently put the game on his shoulders and brought the Wildcats back into games as well as leading them to key victories throughout his career.

Replacing both the level of talent and the type of numbers Foles put up at Arizona will be one of the harder challenges for the Wildcats in 2012, and his services will truly be missed.

Arizona State Sun Devils: Garth Gerhart

One of the most under-appreciated positions in football is that of the center, and Garth Gerhart deserves to be recognized as one of the best players for the Arizona State Sun Devils in the past few years. 

Gerhart, who earned second-team All-Pac-12 honors this season, started a total of 38 games through his Sun Devil career and was a large part of the success the Sun Devils had early on the 2011 season.

While their season did not go as anticipated, Gerhart performed admirably once again at the center position and will be a tough player to replace for the Sun Devils heading into a 2012 season where they will need to re-tool as they try to rise once again to Pac-12 prominence. 

California Golden Bears: Mychal Kendricks

Mychal Kendricks, a linebacker for the California Golden Bears, has been one of the Pac-12's most prominent defensive players the past two seasons.

After earning second-team All-Pac-10 honors in 2010, Kendricks had an unbelievable 2011 season that saw him earn Defensive Player of the Year in the Pac-12 as well as garnering numerous All-American selections.

Mychal has been an explosive and intimidating presence for California, and is one of the biggest playmakers when he steps on the field. Finishing up his senior year at California with a game against Texas in the Holiday Bowl, Kendricks will be one of the top linebackers in the 2012 NFL Draft and will be an asset to whichever team drafts him. 

He is California's active leader in tackles, tackles for loss, sacks and fumble recoveries. Replacing a player like Kendricks is never easy, and California will surely miss his efforts as he moves on to the NFL in 2012. 

Colorado Buffaloes: Ryan Miller

Ryan Millers career at guard for the Colorado Buffaloes has been nothing but illustrious. Making his first appearance in 2008, Miller was a five-year letter-winner for the Buffaloes and will go down as one of the greatest players in the history of the school.

He started 47 games in his career, setting a Colorado record after passing the old mark of 45 games started set by Jordon Dizon. 

Over his entire Colorado Buffalo career, Miller has allowed only five sacks and was only called for a penalty 10 times.

The 2011 season saw Miller earn a second-team All-American selection and he is viewed as one of the top prospects at his position for the NFL draft.

Oregon Ducks: Eddie Pleasant

I know that this pick may surprise you because of the likely departure of LaMichael James, but I believe the Ducks will miss the services of Eddie Pleasant more than James due to several factors.

While James' departure will signal the end of an era for the Ducks and they will surely miss one of the figureheads of the Oregon football program of the past few years, the Ducks still have the tools to replace James. As tough as that task may sound, players have been waiting in James' shadow to showcase just how good they are. Kenjon Barner is one of the most underrated backs in the nation and has stepped in for James and filled in his shoes admirably when he has been unable to play, compiling more than 100 yards in each of these appearances.

Harder to replace for the Ducks will be safety/rover Eddie Pleasant. After having somewhat of a quiet 2010 campaign, largely due to injuries, Pleasant became one of the most intimidating and hard-hitting defensive presences in the Pac-12 in 2011. 

Although the Ducks are not known for defense, Pleasant is one of the better cover safeties in the Pac-12 and will be tougher for the young Ducks to replace on the defensive side of the ball as he has meant so much to the university in the past few years. 

After Pleasant leaves, there will be quite a bit of uncertainty for the Ducks at this position and his senior and leadership presence on the defensive side of the ball will surely be missed. 

Oregon State Beavers: James Rodgers

James Rodgers, when healthy, was one of the biggest playmakers in the Pac-10/12. 

Unfortunately for this Oregon State wide receiver, the past two seasons have been spent largely on the sidelines due to injury. After receiving a medical redshirt in the 2010 season, Rodgers burst back onto the scene in 2011 before once again having the injury bug bite him.

While his presence has not really been felt physically the past two seasons, his leadership ability and what he has meant to the Beaver program is unmeasurable. James, along with his brother, Jacquizz, brought the Beavers back to Pac-10 nobility in 2008 and 2009, two seasons where the Beavers were just one win away from making an appearance in the Rose Bowl.

When he did play, James Rodgers did nothing but impress. Despite his small stature, he was a key target for whatever quarterback delivered him the ball and had the ability to create explosive plays just about every time that he touched the ball.

His departure will signal the end of what was a great era for the Beavers and his presence both on and off the field will be extremely tough to replace.

Stanford Cardinal: Andrew Luck

Is there really any other option for this pick?

Andrew Luck, who will most likely become the No. 1 pick in the 2012 NFL draft, has been the face of the Pac-10/12 for the past few seasons and has meant more to the Stanford program than just about anybody else in the past decade.

Forgoing the 2011 draft to finish his degree in architecture, Luck had another impressive 2011-12 season, finishing second in Heisman voting for the second consecutive season and once again led the Cardinal, who only lost to a good Oregon team, to a BCS bowl game where he will say his final farewell to Stanford and the college football arena.

UCLA Bruins: Derrick Coleman

Largely overshadowed by fellow running back Johnathan Franklin, Derrick Coleman has been a viable option for the Bruins at running back throughout his career at UCLA.

First appearing in 2008, Coleman has been reliable when Franklin has been out of commission and amassed his best season in 2011, compiling more than 700 yards on the ground as he shared carrying duties with Franklin.

Though the Bruins have had a rather disappointing 2011 season, Coleman was a bright spot for UCLA and his services will be missed as they transition into a new generation of Bruin football. 

USC Trojans: Matt Barkley (Speculative)

Though many are still unsure about what Matt Barkley will do in terms of declaring for the NFL draft or not, early signs are that he will enter the 2012 NFL Draft and depart from a Trojan team that has been off and on for the past few seasons, largely due to sanctions brought against the university because of benefits received by prior football players.

Despite all of the uncertainty and anger that has surrounded the USC football program as of late, Barkley never let this take hold of him and shined as a signal-caller for the Trojans and more than deserves to be a top pick come the NFL Draft.

Barkley is one of those players who just has a knack for the game. He demonstrates a calm and collected attitude in any situation and does not let pressure get to him. As a signal-caller for the Trojans, Barkley has done everything and more to bring USC back to national prominence, and both his leadership and poise will be missed if he does indeed declare for the draft. 

Utah Utes: Star Lotulelei

Entering a new conference is always a difficult task, and Star Lotulelei demonstrated just how good he was in the 2011 season after receiving the award for the top defensive lineman as voted by other linemen in the Pac-12 conference. 

Lotulelei, a senior who has done nothing but impress for the Utah Utes, won the Morris Trophy, which is given to the best offensive and defensive linemen in the Pac-12 each year. 

As a Ute, Lotulelei has consistently been a disruptor in the backfield and helped lead Utah's defense to becoming an intimidating force to go against and has been one of the top linemen for the Utes in recent history.

Washington Huskies: Jermaine Kearse

Despite being part of what has been a down era for the Huskies (they did go 0-12 in 2008, Kearse's first season with the Dawgs), Jermaine Kearse never let any of this get to his head.

He helped to turn one of the worst programs in FBS into a rising power with both his reliability in catching the football and big-play ability as he stretched defenses to take some of the attention away from the Washington rushing attack.

Though he did not have as good of numbers in 2011 that he did in 2010, Kearse still finished second on the team in receiving, just a yard short of his senior partner Devin Aguilar. 

Kearse has been one of the dangerous weapons on the Huskies in the past few years and his senior leadership will be missed in 2012, especially with such a young roster for the Huskies. 

Washington State Cougars: Jared Karstetter

Jared Karstetter is probably the brightest spot for a Washington State senior class that did not accomplish too much during their careers as Cougars. 

Karstetter had his best season statistically in 2011 even with standout receiver Marquis Lee lining up as a receiver as well. 

Karstetter was an extremely reliable receiver for the Cougars and stepped up a level every season he was part of the university. 

Not only was Karstetter a gifted athlete on the field, but he has received numerous scholarships and awards off the field for performing well academically.