5 Unsexy Heisman Candidates for 2008

It’s hard to criticize the purpose and prestige of the Heisman Trophy without sounding disrespectful of John W. Heisman and the Downtown Athletic Club (DAC). I think the word I’m looking for is “disappointed”. With the obvious nepotism influence from all the media exposure today, the top candidates are assigned some degree of “the right stuff at the right time”. It just seems that all of the variables that go into picking the best college football player have been abandoned…it’s now the “which quarterback is kicking ass on the team with the best record” award. Boooring. As a fan of Big 12 teams, this shouldn’t pose a problem for me. But it does.

So where’s the objectivity? Who’s to say the candidate’s team record is even a variable? The DAC doesn’t…not really. Ok. A winning record helps…and should help as it is often a reflection of the candidates’ accomplishments. But use NFL Barry Sanders as an example. He’s arguably one the best running backs ever…top 3 or 5. But the Lions were horrible and yet no one ignored the fact that Barry was a great player on a mediocre team.

I digress…a little.

RECORD, SCHMECORD. If you go back to previous Heisman winner team records, there are a handful of players that won the prestigious award with more than 2 losses.

• Ricky Williams — Texas, 9-3 (1998)
• Ty Detmer — BYU, 10-3 (1990)
• Tim Brown — Notre Dame, 8-4 (1987)
• Bo Jackson — Auburn, 8-4 (1985)
• Marcus Allen — USC, 9-3 (1981)
• Paul Hornung — Notre Dame, 2-8 (1956)

PRO “ACCOMPLISHMENTS”. Don’t even get me started on this one. I’m not the only one who’s ever spouted the words “Heisman curse”. Only 8 Heisman winners are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. However, to the credit of previous Heisman campaigns there have been a bunch of finalists that have flourished at the next level. Just check out the finalists the year Herschel Walker won the Heisman (1982). I will admit that I’m placing too much focus on pro potential when the award is for the best college player. But it helps (a little) get the point across.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Jason White. Eric Crouch. Chris Weinke. Danny Wuerffel. Forget the ones that are still in “the league” struggling or have been subjected to bench warming duties. Ok, ok…back to the pro potential argument, but you get the point.

WHO ELSE IS THERE? The Heisman Class of 2005 may be the exception. The two best college players were arguably Reggie Bush and Vince Young. They were certainly two of the most exciting to watch.

Ok, Mr. Know-It-All. Who do you like for Heisman consideration this year?

[1] MICHAEL CRABTREE, WR — Texas Tech. Hate the Red [over]Raiders all you want. Michael Crabtree is already a top consideration…just the most underappreciated one. He’s got T.O.’s strength (head-to-head with physical corners, breaking tackles), Andre Johnson’s “go get it”, and a dabble of Lynn Swann’s grace. Forget that Texas Tech passes a bunch more than most teams; his numbers don’t overshadow his talent. Just watch him and you’ll agree. I’ll try not to hold this against him.

84 receptions, 1,072 yards, 18 TDs

[2] BRIAN JOHNSON, QB — Utah. If there’s a solid, pro-ready QB in college football, it’s Brian Johnson. He willed the Utes to win in big game situations. No matter what you think of TCU and BYU, they still provided big pressure situations for Johnson. And he came through. I realize it’s tough to compare his accomplishments to the three Big 12 QBs…and Tim Tebow. No doubt those guys have impressed with their big numbers and “will his team to win” performances. Brian Johnson has done the same with what he’s got. And I’d put my chips on the ability of Johnson at the next level.

2,636 yards, 24 TDs, 68.3% completion pct

[3] NATE DAVIS, QB — Ball State. If there’s another solid, pro-ready QB in college football, it’s Nate Davis. He has great awareness and field vision…a point guard on the football field. He’s got a powerful arm, but a weapon whose intensity he controls very well. He’s impressive with the long ball (even on the run), but more importantly he places the ball with precision in the short game. He’s like a Swiss Army knife. And as a bonus, the first NFL team to call Nate Davis up to their roster also get mobility. Not normally something I really care about, but I like the fact that he is a pass-first, pass-second QB. Surely some video geek doing nothing in his dorm can hook Nate up with a proper highlight video. His performance against Indiana is as good as it gets for now.

3,095 yards, 25 TDs, 67.3% completion pct

[4] PAT WHITE, QB — West Virginia. Pat White is the closest thing to the Heisman norm as dictated by recent winners. Pat White is a QB with a great set of abilities including great arm strength and accuracy. But he’s not afraid to tuck it up and run. In last week’s win over Louisville, White rushed for 200 yards breaking the QB rushing record of former Missouri QB Brad Smith (4,292). He’s obviously a product of the system Rich Rodriguez left behind. Don’t get me wrong…he has the tools to play QB at the next level. Unfortunately his predecessors have either experienced short-lived lives as QBs or have proven that a move to WR have been beneficial.

1,226 passing yards, 17 passing TDs, 65.4% completion pct, 786 rishing yards, 7 rushing TDs

[5] LESEAN “SHADY” McCOY, RB — Pitt. This guy is the real McCoy (that was too easy). Seriously, though, if you’ve never seen Lesean run the ball, you’re missing out. The best way to describe his running style is…um…imagine the light bike scene in Tron (about 1:08). That should do it. Lesean McCoy broke Tony Dorsett’s freshman rushing TD record (14) and rushed for over 110 yards per game. Going into tonight’s Backyard Brawl against West Virginia, he’s already chalked up 16 scores. He’s only a sophomore. So, if he doesn’t catch your attention this season, he will in the future.

1,125 yards, 18 TDs, 5.0 yards/carry

I know none of these guys will win. The current Heisman Trophy candidates are all great athletes and have been effective leaders for each of their respective teams. Without taking anything away from their accomplishments, I just believe that the purpose of the Heisman Trophy has been lost over the years as TV coverage favors the sexier teams in the bigger conferences. For those of us disenchanted college football fans, I really don’t care who wins the award anymore.

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Related posts:

1. New Heisman Candidates Emerge For 2009
2. That Just Happened: And The Heisman Goes To…A Dog?
3. 2009 NCAA Football — Don’t Overlook These Quarterbacks
4. 2009 NFL Combine — Playmakers Unite. QBs, RBs, WRs.
5. 2008 NFL Combine — QBs, WRs, and RBs, Oh My!