The Heisman Trophy has to be the single most celebrated award in sports. Is there another award that even comes close? NFL MVP? AL or NL MVP? NBA MVP? Not so much. All important and celebrated awards, but when Larry Bird signs his autograph, I'll bet he doesn't include "84-86 MVP." As former PR Manager at the College Football Hall of Fame, I can tell you for certain that every Heisman winner from Paul Hornung to Desmond Howard signs their name with "Heisman" following the year they won. Maybe it's because the award has been given out since 1935. Maybe it's the unmistakable look of the award, made out of cast iron bronze, weighing 25 pounds and modeled after a player striking an especially powerful pose. Whatever the reason, even non-sports fans know what the Heisman Trophy is. This year's recipient will have their name forever linked to the bronze statue on December 12 and here is a breakdown of my ballot (if I had a vote) and who I think will actually win the Heisman.
Voting for the Heisman is pretty simple. You select players for first, second and third place on you ballot and they receive 3 points for a first place vote, 2 for a second and 1 for a third. A total of 926 voters cast their Heisman ballot this year, 55 former Heisman winners, 870 sportswriters and 1 fan vote. The Heisman Trophy is supposed to be awarded to the most outstanding player in college football. Not the best player on the number 1 team in the country, not the the senior quarterback with the best overall career, not the virgin quarterback who reads bible verses to prisoners on death row, just THE MOST OUTSTANDING PLAYER IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL. Period. Too many sportswriters confuse the Heisman with the NFL MVP Award - or worse, the Nobel Peace Prize. It is neither. This idiocy has led to Gino Torretta winning over Marshall Faulk and Jason White being named over Larry Fitzgerald. Those selections were travesties at the time and look even worse in hindsight. With all that in mind, let's take a look at what my ballot would have looked like:
1.) Toby Gerhart (Senior), Running Back, Stanford
Key Statistics: 311 carries for 1,736 yards and 26 touchdowns; 10 receptions for 149 yards; 1/1 passing for 18 yards and a touchdown
Simply put, Gerhart was the most outstanding player in college football this year. He was also the most consistent and at his best against top competition. Gerhart ran for over 110 yards in 10 of 12 games and topped 200 yards 3 times. And Stanford did not play a cupcake schedule, as 6 of their 12 opponents finished with a .500 record or better. Against top competition Oregon, USC, California and Notre Dame to close out the season, Gerhard averaged 186 yards rushing and 3.3 touchdowns. He led all of Division I-A football (FBS) in rushing yards and touchdowns. But enough with the overwhelming statistics. The Great White Hope was a pleasure to watch all season. Against Notre Dame, Gerhart straight wore out the Irish defenders, crashing into linebackers with the impact of a car collision and flattening defensive backs with hits that literally made you get up out of your seat. The guy is just a beast and I can't wait to watch him on Sundays. Think Mike Alstott with 4.50 speed and cutback ability. Better yet, get over the pigment and he reminds me of Brandon Jacobs at his best. That's Toby Gerhart - the most outstanding player in college football.
2.) Ndamukong Suh (Senior) Defensive Tackle, Nebraska
Key Statistics: 82 tackles, 12 sacks, 10 passes broken up, 1 interception, 1 forced fumble
Suh is the best NFL prospect in college football and narrowly trailed Gerhart for the most outstanding player in college football by the slightest of margins. He was at his best in the Big 12 Championship Game against Texas, sacking bible-belt hero Colt McCoy 4 1/2 times and almost single-handedly leading Nebraska to a shocking upset. His performance that game left me in awe. I grew up watching the Eagles and looking at Suh take Texas' gigantic lineman and literally shove them into the quarterback made instantly me think about one player - Reggie White. Not since The Minister of Defense have I ever witnessed a defensive lineman rag-doll 300 pound men play after play. His 82 total stops at defensive tackle are ridiculous. As a comparison, Oklahoma's Gerald McCoy, who will be a top 5 pick in the upcoming NFL Draft, has 31 tackles on the season. And he legitimately had a great year. Suh is just THAT good. I would have placed him first, but prior to the Texas game, he had 7.5 sacks, 1 interception and 1 forced fumble in 12 games. Great production from a lineman, just not quite enough game-changing plays to overtake Gerhart. Barely.
3.) C.J.Spiller (Senior) Running Back, Clemson
Key Statistics: 201 carries for 1,145 yards and 11 touchdowns, 33 receptions for 445 yards and 4 touchdowns, 8 punt returns for 210 yards and 1 touchdown, 21 kickoff returns for 708 yards and 4 touchdowns, 2/1 passing for 17 yards and a touchdown
Clemson's do-everything back was the most spectacular player in college football, just not quite the best. Spiller was the only player this season to score a touchdown via rush, reception, punt return, kickoff return and pass. In 9 out of 13 games, Spiller either rushed for 100 yards, had 100 yards receiving or scored a touchdown on a kick return. He was electric, capable of running 90 yards in a flash on any given play. The only knock against him is consistency. This is what his total yards-from-scrimmage numbers looked like from game to game: 12, 156, 79, 191, 79, 112, 185, 27, 232, 145, 97, 37, 238. As you can see, it was quite the roller-coaster ride. Spectacular at his peak, Spiller had a few underwhelming games, which is why I rank him third.
Now that I've given my 2-cents, here's the real question - who will actually win this year's Heisman Trophy? I'm not entirely sure. Thanks to a little research on the interwebs, 144 of 926 ballots have been posted by sportswriters around the country. That's 15.55% of all the Heisman ballots, and while that percentage will likely indicate a presidential winner most of the time, this year's Heisman Trophy is still up for grabs. Here are the leading vote-getters in this sample size (3 points for 1st place vote, 2 points for second, 1 point for third):
1.) Mark Ingram, Running Back, Alabama (214 points)
2.) Ndamukong Suh, Defensive Tackle, Nebraska (203 points)
3.) Toby Gerhart, Running Back, Stanford (199 points)
4.) Colt McCoy, Quarterback, Texas (136 points)
5.) Tim Tebow, Quarterback, Florida (43 points)
It's pretty obvious that it's a three-man race between Ingram, Suh and Gerhart. Thank goodness a senior quarterback with no NFL prospects on a Top 5 team won't be handed the Heisman even though there are a dozen better options. And although I think Gerhart had the best season, I'd love to see Suh win the Heisman. He would be the first ever defensive-only player to capture the award (remember, Charles Woodson ran back kicks and was the number 3 wide receiver for Michigan in 1997). Unfortunately, it looks like Ingram will win. Although he's had a great year and is a great player, he's just not the most outstanding player in college football. Heck, he's not even the best running back on his own team. Alabama true freshman Trent Richardson is a future top-10 pick and will likely take away quite a few carries from Ingram next season. Similar to Auburn when they had both Cadillac Williams and Ronnie Brown, both Ingram and Richardson are potential first round picks, but Richardson will end up being drafted higher and will have the better NFL career. Who knows, maybe Gerhart or Suh will overcome Ingram's small lead and the most outstanding player in college football will capture sports' most coveted award. History indicates they won't.
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