Heisman Busters: Week 4

Named after the now common phrase BCS Buster, lets take a look at Week 4 performances that might prove to be Heisman Busters.

Note: I have decided that I will use the ESPN Heisman watch as the radar for players, and strive to bring you guys that are not on the list but should be. Once they have made ESPN’s list I will take them off my reports and let the “real” media keep you informed.

Recap:
In Week One I listed Mark Sanchez, Max Hall, and Jahvid Best as the players to watch for.
Sanchez was an easy pick as it was only a matter of time before USC picked up some momentum and the main behind the helm was acknowledge, and he was.

Max Hall was my sleeper pick, but I have been hyping his chance at the bronze stiff arm as well as BYU’s BCS Busting hopes. Finally, ESPN has recognized him and he is legitimately in the running . To quote myself from Week One’s article “Hall has a chance to be this years Colt Brennan. That is to say that a Non-BCS QB could break into the hunt if they can finish out their season undefeated.” Those dreams are still alive.

Jahvid Best: I talked about Best and his upstart Cal squad who was looking to break into the Top 25. They did, Best spent a week on ESPN’s Heisman watch and then both dropped out after week three. No surprises here, he is off the Buster’s list as well.

Week Two saw a number of players on watch, but none of them are in the running besides Penn State’s Evan Royster.



Royster’s Stats
Week 4: 9 Car 73 YDs 1 TD 1 Rec 12 YD
Season: 47 Car 379 YDs 7 TD
Why and Why Not?: With the continuing disappoint of The Ohio State University, Penn State continues to beat teams big. Their schedule hasn’t been anything to write home about, but I believe they may be the best team in the Big 10. Royster is splitting carries with freshman back Stephfon Green, but still continues to put up numbers averaging around 8 YDs per carry. Penn State’s first real test will be this Saturday when they host Illinois, which will be interesting to see how Royster performs against their toughest competition thus far.


Week 4:
There are a couple of surprising players that haven’t made the national spotlight early in this 2008 season, and I think we all need to be aware of what they are doing on the field.

RB Donald Brown: UConn
Week 4: 34 Car 150 Yds 2 TD
Season: 113 Car 716 Yds 10 TD
Why and Why Not?: The Huskies are 4-0 and are playing in a Big East conference that appears to be South Florida’s to lose. Brown is averaging 179 yards a game, and really making a statement both for himself and his team. Unfortunately, UConn has a tough schedule from here on out. They will face Louisville, North Carolina, Rutgers, Syracuse , and South Florida all of which are on the road. If he can still post these numbers down the stretch against these teams on the road, there should be Heisman talks.

RB Javon Ringer: Michigan State
Week 4: 39 Car 201 YDs 2 TD
Season: 143 Car 699 YDs 11 TD
Why and Why Not?: The Spartans are better than everyone thinks, and they proved it against Notre Dame. Granted that shouldn’t be the crowning achievement on your resume, but beating the Irish 23-7 does make a statement. Michigan State is sitting at 3-1 with their only loss coming from their road opener against Cal (38-31). Their remaining schedule isn’t as bad as it could be, hosting Ohio State and Wisconsin, while going on the road to match up against Penn State and Michigan. Ringer has proven that he is the heart of this team. If they keep playing above expectations they will take a lot of teams by surprise and open some doors for themselves.

QB David Johnson: Tulsa
Week 4: 24/39 469 YDs 3 TD 2 Int
Season: 69/96 1219 YDs 15 TD 2 Int 225.93 Rating
Why and Why Not?: Conference USA. It really is that simple. We already have one QB from a Non-BCS conference that has solidified his spot in the running, and there really isn’t room for two.

Special Recognition:
CB Glover Quinn: New Mexico
Quinn had both interceptions against Johnson, giving him three on the season. He is also the biggest reason why the Lobos were able to beat Arizona in Week 3. I had not seen a Corner control a game the way he did in a long time. Quinn made key plays when they needed them, and proved that games are not always just a matter of statistics. I was disappointed we lost that game, but I have to give it up to the man he is a great athlete.





More after the jump...

Week 1 College Football Awards

Everyone loves the award season at the end of the year, but you never hear any mention of any awards outside of The Heisman as the season progresses, or at least not until the finalists are released. I thought, well why not issue Week by Week winners of all the Awards. Plenty of sites award Helmet Stickers and POW nominations but I'm going the extra step. Each week I will issue not watchlists or finalists but the winners of the Week by Week Awards for all 18 Major D-1 Awards.

Heisman Memorial Trophy:
Colt McCoy, QB - Texas
24/29 - 222 yards - 3 TDs/0 INTs - 181.2 QB Rating - 12 Rushes - 103 yards - 1 TD

Maxwell Award:
Pat White, QB - West Virginia
25/33 - 208 yards - 5 TDs/1 INT - 172.65 QB Rating - 9 Rushes - 63 yards

Walter Camp Award:
Colt McCoy, QB - Texas
24/29 - 222 yards - 3 TDs/0 INTs - 181.2 QB Rating - 12 Rushes - 103 yards - 1 TD

Dick Butkus Award:
Obi Ezeh, LB - Michigan
8 Solo Tackles - 15 Total Tackles - 1.5 Tackles for Loss - 1 INT

Outland Trophy:
Jake Ebner, DT - Houston
2 Solo Tackles - 2 Total Tackles - 1 Sack - 1 Tackle for Loss - 2 Forced Fumbles

Chuck Bednarik Award:
Stryker Sulak, DL - Missouri
6 Solo Tackles - 8 Total Tackles - 5 Tackles for Loss - 3 Sacks - 1 Forced Fumble - 1 PAT Block

Davey O'Brien Award:
Colt McCoy, QB - Texas
24/29 - 222 yards - 3 TDs/0 INTs - 181.2 QB Rating - 12 Rushes - 103 yards - 1 TD

Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award:
Pat White, QB - West Virginia
25/33 - 208 yards - 5 TDs/1 INT - 172.65 QB Rating - 9 Rushes - 63 yards

Doak Walker Award:
Shun White, RB - Navy
19 Rushes - 348 yards - 3 TDs - 18.32 Yds/Carry

Fred Biletnikoff Award:
Will Judson, WR - Illinois
5 Receptions - 177 yards - 2 TDs - 35.4 Yds/Catch

Jim Thorpe Award:
Otis Wiley, S - Michigan State
2 INT - 1 Pass Defended - 4 Solo Tackles - 6 Total Tackles - 1 TD

John Mackey Award:
Dennis Pitta, TE - BYU
11 Receptions - 213 yards - 19.36 Yds/Catch

Lou Groza Award:
Louie Skida, PK - Utah
4/4 FG - 2/2 : 40-49 yds - 1/1 : 50+ yards

Bronko Nagurski Award:
Stryker Sulak, DL - Missouri
6 Solo Tackles - 8 Total Tackles - 5 Tackles for Loss - 3 Sacks - 1 Forced Fumble - 1 PAT Block

Ray Guy Award:
T.J. Conley - Idaho
7 Punts - 340 yards - 48.57 Yds/Punt - 2 Tackles

Vince Lombardi Award:
Eben Britton, T - Arizona
0 Sacks Allowed - 0 Tackles for Loss Allowed - 0 Penalties - 265 Rushing Yards - 5 Rushing TDs

Ted Hendricks Award:
Stryker Sulak, DL - Missouri
6 Solo Tackles - 8 Total Tackles - 5 Tackles for Loss - 3 Sacks - 1 Forced Fumble - 1 PAT Block

Rimington Trophy:
Ricky Moore, C - Navy

More after the jump...

Bronze Stiff Arm Candidates: Week 1

As with my Top 25 I'm also going to keep you updated on my list of BSA (Heisman) Candidates as the season goes on. The basis for these 23 candidates are from my Heisman Hopefulls column back in January (Refer to Part 1 and Part 2 for further breakdown and information on each player). Originally there were 25 but we've already dropped two going into the season and will likely drop more as the season goes on. Remember a good portion of these stats are inflated due to inferior opponents, also many of these numbers aren't as high as others because some coaches (Mike Stoops - Arizona, Bob Stoops - Oklahoma) were smart enough to take their starters out once the game was in hand, thus stats not inflated as others. So here they are, in alphabetical order your Top 23 Bronze Stiff Arm Watchlist members:

Todd Boeckman, QB - Ohio State
14/19 - 187 yards - 2 TDs/0 INTs - 191.09 QB Rating

Sam Bradford, QB - Oklahoma
17/22 - 183 yards - 2 TDs/0 INTs - 177.14 QB Rating

Jimmy Clausen, QB - Notre Dame
-OFF-

Michael Crabtree, WR - Texas Tech
9 Rec. - 47 yards - 1 TD

Chase Daniel, QB - Missouri
26/45 - 323 yards - 3 TDs/1 INT - 135.63 QB Rating - 9 Rush - 46 yards

Noel Devine, RB - West Virginia
9 Rush - 47 yards - 6 Rec. - 37 yards

Graham Harrell, QB - Texas Tech
43/58 - 536 yards - 2 TDs/1 INT - 159.69 QB Rating

P.J. Hill, RB - Wisconsin
26 Rush - 210 yards - 2 TDs

Ian Johnson, RB - Boise State
14 Rush - 87 yards - 1 TD

Kellen Lewis, QB - Indiana
17/27 - 144 yards - 2 TDs/1 INT - 124.8 QB Rating - 9 Rush - 185 yards - 2 TDs

Jeremy Maclin, WR - Missouri
4 Rec. - 31 yards - 3 K Ret. - 145 yards - 1 TD - 4 P Ret. - 56 yards

Ryan Mallet, QB - Michigan
NO LONGER AT MICHIGAN, AT ARKANSAS SITTING OUT 2008, NO LONGER 2008 BSA CANDIDATE

Colt McCoy, QB - Texas
24/29 - 222 yards - 3 TDs/0 INTs - 181.2 QB Rating - 12 Rush - 103 yards - 1 TD

LeSean "Shady" McCoy, RB - Pittsburgh
23 Rush - 71 yards - 1 TD - 5 Rec. - 45 yards

Joe McKnight, RB - Southern California
6 Rush - 60 yards - 4 Rec. - 24 yards - 1 TD

Knowshon Moreno, RB - Georgia
8 Rush - 59 yards - 3 TDs - 2 Rec. - 53 yards

Ryan Perrilloux, QB - Lousiana State
NO LONGER AT LSU, AT D-1 FCS JACKSONVILLE STATE, NO LONGER IN BSA CONTENTION

Mark Sanchez, QB - Southern California
26/35 - 338 yards - 3 TDs/1 INT - 177.98 QB Rating

Matthew Stafford, QB - Georgia
13/21 - 275 yards - 2 TDs/0 INTs - 203.33 QB Rating

Tim Tebow, QB - Florida
9/14 - 137 yards - 1 TD/0 INTs - 170.06 QB Rating - 9 Rush - 37 yards

Mike Thomas, WR - Arizona
5 Rec. - 28 yards - 1 TD

Willie Tuitama, QB - Arizona
17/21 - 179 yards - 3 TDs/0 INTs - 199.7 QB Rating

Chris "Beanie" Wells, RB - Ohio State
13 Rush - 111 yards - 1 TD - 3 Rec. - 10 yards

Pat White, QB - West Virginia
25/33 - 208 yards - 5 TDs/1 INT - 172.64 QB Rating - 9 Rush - 63 yards

Isiah "Juice" Williams, QB - Illinois
26/42 - 451 yards - 5 TDs/2 INTs - 181.87 QB Rating

As the weeks go on I will begin eliminating players from this list when I think they are no longer in contention to strike the Reverse Desmond with the Hesiman Trophy at the New York Athletic Club.

More after the jump...

2008 - 2009 Heiman Candidates Part 2

If you haven't red the top half here is the first 13 of my preseason 2008-2009 Heisman Candidates. But I'll quickly recap for you. The list is alphabetical at the moment.

Todd Boeckman, QB - Ohio State
Sam Bradford, QB - Oklahoma
Jimmy Clausen, QB - Notre Dame
Michael Crabtree, WR - Texas Tech
Chase Daniel, QB - Missouri
Noel Devine, RB - West Virginia
Graham Harrell, QB - Texas Tech
P.J. Hill, RB - Wisconsin
Ian Johnson, RB - Boise State
Kellen Lewis, QB - Indiana
Jeremy Maclin, WR - Missouri
Ryan Mallet, QB - Michigan
Colt McCoy, QB - Texas

LeSean McCoy, RB - Pitt
Why: Carried the load as a True Freshman last year, Dual Threat capabilities
2007: 276 Att, 1328 yds, 4.8 avg, 14 TD
Why Not: Plays at Pitt, Will get the same attention as Rutgers Ray Rice, not enough

Joe McKnight, RB - Southern California
Why: Flashes during his brief appearances. Featured in 2nd half of Rose Bowl 125 yds on 10 carries, will be featured in 2008, Reggie Bush Capabilities, RB at USC
2007: 94 Att, 540 yds, 5.7 avg, 3 TD
Why Not: Sophomore, Sophomore Slump? Increased workload?

Knowshon Moreno, RB - Georgia
Why: 6 - 100+ rushing games last season as True Freshman
2007: 248 Att, 1334 yds, 14 TD 0 Fumbles
Why Not: Sophomore, Sophomore Slump? People know he's a threat now

Ryan Perrilloux, QB - Louisiana State
Why: Played well splitting time with Matt Flynn, Esp. in the SEC Champ. game
2007: 51/75 for 695 yds, 8 TD 2 INT
Why Not: The pressure will be on, defending champs, Early Doucet gone

QB - Southern California
Why: QB at Southern California
2007: (Sanchez) - 69/114, 695 yds, 7 TD, 5 INT/ (Mustain) 2007 - DNP (Transfer) 2006: 69/132 894 yds 10 TD 9 INT
Why Not: 5 to 7 ratio for Sanchez, can he be a leader? Mustain could be rusty, Big play state of mind high TD #s and High INT #s

Matthew Stafford, QB - Georgia
Why: Starting QB on College Football's top team in '08, improved big between 2006 and 2007
2007: 194/348, 2523 yds, 19 TD , 10 INT
Why Not: Pressure, Pocket Passer, doesn't create with his feet, Leading WR is gone.

Tim Tebow, QB - Florida
Why: Definition of Dual Threat, The White Mike Vick, minus the dogfighting with actual passing accuracy, Only one who can vote for himself
2007: The only number that matters, 1. Amount of Heisman's won last season.
Why Not: Matt Leinart Factor. Being deserving does not guarantee a 2nd Heisman. Voters aren't big fans of dual winners

Mike Thomas, WR - Arizona
Why: Arizona will be entering into year 2 of the pass happy spread. Thomas will be #1 target, Gronkowski as another target and improved running game will help open up the passing game.
2007: 83 Rec, 1038 yds, 11 TD
Why Not: Teams know he's Willie's favorite target, Gronkowski will improve and steal some of his catches, plays at Arizona

Willie Tuitama, QB - Arizona
Why: Year 2 of the pass happy spread, Injury free most of last season, 2006 LSU game in the past, has Thomas and improved Gronkowski
2007: 327/524 3683 yds, 28 TD, 12 INT
Why Not: Injury and Mistake prone, plays at Arizona

Chris Wells, RB - Ohio State
Why: Impressed us last year carrying the load, Ohio State return most of line-up could be a top tier team
2007: 247 Att, 1609 yds, 15 TD, 0 Fumbles in 2 years
Why Not: Ohio State's offense doesn't draw the attention to Columbus, if Boeckman can't get it done, it's on Beanie.

Pat White, QB - West Virginia
Why: Has improved each year, has Devine in the running game, Spread offense, good TD:INT ratio
2007: 144/216, 1724 yds, 14 TD 4 INT
Why Not: Lot's of questions, new coach, added pressure

Juice Williams, QB - Illinois
Why: Can make a play when it counts, especially with his feet
2007: 153/267, 1743 yds, 13 TD, 12 INT, 7 Rushing TD
Why Not: 12 INT, lost Mendenhall, Sophomore Eddie McGee will be putting added pressure on Juice
More after the jump...

2008 - 2009 Heisman Candidates

With the list of those entering the NFL Draft in a few months finalized we can now sit back and look at the possible/probable Heisman Candidates for the 2008-2009 season. For a Background here is my first foray into the field of likely Bronze Stiff Arm Finalists on their quest to strike the Reverse Desmond. (In case you wonder why I call it the "Reverse Desmond, it has to do with the fact that Howard sticks he Left arm out and Left leg forward, while the Bronze Stiff Arm is the Right arm out and Right leg forward. It's the details people. Anyway due to my expansive knowledge of College Football as well as Heisman Voting Procedures I can tell you all why my Top 25 could be the next, and why they most likely won't. Since it helps me get through the day (and since I go home in 15 minutes) I'm going to break this up similarly to how I broke up the NFL Draft columns. Without further adieu my Top 25 2008 Heisman Hopefulls (In Alphabetical order)

Todd Boeckman, QB - Ohio State
Why: Led Ohio State to the BCS Championship
2007: 191/299 2379 yds, 25 TD 14 INT.
Why Not: Needs Brian Hartline to really step up and be a serious down-field threat.

Sam Bradford, QB - Oklahoma
Why: Oklahoma 11-2 in games he finished as True Freshman
2007: 237/341 3121 yds, 36 TD 8 INT
Why Not: Missed Time, injuries, Sophomore

Jimmy Clausen, QB - Notre Dame
Why: Plays for Notre Dame (Tim Brown Factor)
2007: 67/104 636 yds 6 TD 1 INT (In last 3 games)
Why Not: Those games were against Air Force, Duke, Stanford. Didn't start 6 of the team's games, Sophomore

Michael Crabtree, WR - Texas Tech
Why: Insane Numbers
2007: Seriously, insane Numbers, 134 Rec.1962 yds, 22 TD, Clutch
Why Not: He's a WR, He's a Sophomore, He plays for Texas Tech.

Chase Daniel, QB - Missouri
Why: Led Mizzou to a #1 ranking last season, Still has Jeremy Maclin
2007: 384/563 4306 yds, 33 TD 11 INT
Why Not: Losing Tony Temple, Team's leading receiver

Noel Devine, RB - West Virginia
Why: BearDown Fan Favorite, According to the last post, Performed well backing up Steve Slaton.
2007: 73 Att, 627 yds, 8.5 avg, 6 TD as a back-up
Why Not: Late in the game carries, yards, defeated teams, we'll see what he can do as #1

Graham Harrell, QB - Texas Tech
Why: Insane Numbers throwing to Crabtree, passing offense, has all the tools.
2007: 512/713 5705 yds, 48 TD 14 INT
Why Not: Texas TECH, spread offense, inflated numbers, Colt Brennan Factor

P.J. Hill, RB - Wisconsin
Why: North/South Runner, last year was a DOWN year for him
2007: 233 Att, 1212 yds, 5.2 avg, 14 TD, 0 Fumbles
Why Not: Wisconsin won't garner enough attention for him, Soph slump could be more.

Ian Johnson, RB - Boise State
Why: PR Factor, people know who he is
2007: 207 Att, 1041 yds, 5.0 avg, 16 TD, 0 Fumbles
Why Not: Boise State, WAC, Numbers down, a lot, last year, Whipped (proposed to his GF post GW Fiesta Bowl TD

Kellen Lewis, QB - Indiana
Why: Numbers have been increasing steadily, Indiana is improving
2007: 265/442, 3043 yds, 28 TD, 10 INT
Why Not: Indiana, Lost James Hardy, Still Indiana

Jeremy Maclin, WR - Missouri
Why: Solid Freshman Numbers, Should be # 1 Target for Daniel
2007: 80 rec, 1055 yds, 9 TD, Plus 4 Rushing TDs and 375 yds on 375 Att.
Why Not: WR, Sophomore Slump?, being the #1 receiver

Ryan Mallet, QB - Michigan
Why: Performed well as a True Freshman thrust into the spotlight on a Michigan team constantly in the spotlight (repetition intentional)
2007: 61/141, 892 yds, 7 TD, 5 INT
Why Not: Rich Rodriguez spread? Terrell Pryor? 5 INT to only 7 TD

UPDATE: Refer to the bottom of part 2 where 4Real points out that I'm an idiot. Rather than try to cover it up, I admit my mistake and cross it off without altering it in any other way, narrowing the field to 24. As I have said before, I am an idiot, please do not forget this.

Colt McCoy, QB - Texas
Why: Texas QB, his name is Colt McCoy for heaven's sake.
2007: 276/424 3,303 yds, 22 TD, 18 INT
Why Not: 18 INT, Hasn't impressed a lot.

Well That's it for now, I'll give you more brief overviews of the next 12 guys sometime Friday. Here are the next 12 (remember alphabetical order)

LeSean McCoy, RB - Pitt
Joe McKnight, RB - USC
Knowshon Moreno, RB - Georgia
Ryan Perrilloux, QB - Lousiana State
QB - University of Southern California (Whichever one starts between Sanchez and Mustain)
Matthew Stafford, QB - Georgia
Tim Tebow, QB - Florida
Mike Thomas, WR - Arizona
Willie Tuitama, QB - Arizona
Chris "Beanie" Wells, RB - Ohio State
Pat White, QB - West Virginia
Juice Williams, QB - Illinois

Check out Part 2 here
More after the jump...

College Football: Post Season Awards Don't Always Add Up

What is the perfect ending to a college football season dominated by upsets? How about crowning the first underclassmen in the Heisman’s storied history. Tim Tebow becomes the first sophomore to ever have his named etched on the bronze stiff arm, but does the mythical image created by the media really live up to what the trophy has historically represented?

The issue becomes whether or not the media has influenced the award to the point where it no longer holds the same prestige. The media has undoubtedly placed the Heisman in a league of its own in terms of prestige, but how do the other top honors predict its winner?

Breakdown of Top Honors in College Football:

Tier 1:
The Heisman Memorial Trophy: Awarded to Nation’s Most Outstanding Player (Dates back to 1935)
Voting: United States is split into six regions each of which contains 145 media votes. Each previous winner also has votes as well as one going to the public. Every ballot works on a point system assigning 3 points for first, 2 for second, 1 for third.

Tier 2:
Maxwell Award: Awarded to College Football’s Player of the Year (Dates back to 1937)
Voting; All members of the Maxwell Football Club have the right to place their vote for this and many other awards. What does that mean? For $35 a year or $750 for life you too can vote.

Walter Camp Award: Awarded to College Football’s Player of the Year (Dates back to 1967)
Voting: Done by what appears to be an exclusive group of 20 members that oversee the foundation and thus become eligible to vote. A small $25,000 dollar annual fee is all you’ll need for this privilege.

Tier 3:
Doak Walker Award: Awarded to Nation’s Top Running Back (Dates back to 1990)
Voting: Run by SMU. Ten semifinalist are voted on by the the SMU Athletic Forum Board of Directors who send that list to a National Selection Committee for the Award the cast votes for three finalists and then again for a winner. This panel is made up for Media and former All Americans and All Pro players. You can see the list here

Davey O’Brien Award: Awarded to Nation’s Best Quarterback (Dates back to 1981)
Voting: A selection of Media personalities and past winners. New this year is the addition of the fan vote which takes the public’s top three picks into the semi finals and adds 5% to their total votes during the voting for finalists and the winner.
Selection Committee List

Now that we’ve run down the awards lets take at some history of the winners and how the other four awards influence who wins the Heisman.

Three Resumes to Keep in Mind:
Tebow is the first underclassmen to ever win the Heisman. He played on a team that went 9-4 and landed 16th in USA Today Poll, 13th in the AP poll, and 12th in the BCS standings. He currently has two more years of eligibility left and has made numerous comments about graduating being the most important thing to him and his family… inferring he won’t leave early.

Tebow also won the Maxwell and O’Brien Awards.

Archie Griffin is the only player to ever win the Heisman twice (1974 & 75). 1974 saw them as co-champions of the Big Ten while in 1975 they won outright. Both years they lost in the Rose Bowl ending with records of 10-2 and 11-1 respectively.

Grffin won the Walter Camp both years and the Maxwell in 75.

Darren McFadden became only the second player in Heisman history to be named runner up twice without winning the award. Glenn Davis took second honors in 1944 and 45 before winning it in 46, however, with McFadden declaring for the draft that stat is solidified. He also becomes the second player to ever win the Doak Walker Award Twice ( 2006 and 07). Ricky Williams did it (1997 and 98) before adding the Heisman to his resume later on in 1998.

McFadden’s total: Walter Camp 07, Doak Walker 06 and 07, no Heisman.

What does this mean?
Starting at 1990 from the conception of the Doak Walker Award the Breakdown looks like this:

1990-2007 (18 Seasons)
13 players winning the Walter Camp Award won the Heisman

7 players had won the Doak and the Walter Camp. Five of those players went on to win the Heisman ( McFadden becomes the 2nd player not to)
• Larry Johnson was the first without winning the Heisman even though he brought home the Walter Camp, Doak Walker, and the Maxwell.

9 Players have won both the Maxwell and the O’Brien: Five went on to win the Heisman. Jason White won both in 04’ but won his Heisman in 03’ with just an O’Brien.

Like I had written in a previous article,the Heisman is inconsistent. At one point or another the talent portrayed by these athletes was rewarded. Slighting McFadden in this years Heisman race was worse than what Larry Johnson endured in 2002 in which he didn’t even finish second in the Heisman race. This is during the same year that he took home the other three most prestigious awards (Brad Banks takes the O’Brien and Runner Up position to Carson Palmer for the Heisman). It comes down to the issue that first the media won’t let him win it because he is a sophomore, the next you tell me that it was because his team wasn’t good enough. Arkansas finished with an 8-5 record, 3rd in SEC West with a conference record of 4-4 and lost in the Cotton Bowl to Missouri who finished fourth in the AP Poll. Instead you are going to give it to a sophomore whose team went 9-4 and sat third in SEC East with a 5-3 record. To top it off Florida with Tebow behind the helm lost in the Capital One Bowl to a Michigan team who was 18th in the final AP vote.

McFadden Deserved the Heisman. Take nothing away from a stellar individual effort from Tebow but were we ready to put him in place to join Griffin as the only two time winner, or God Forbid let him stand a top as a three time winner solidifying the mythical stature the media has created for him.

4Real Out....
More after the jump...

2008 Heisman Watch

With only about 360 days until the 2008 Heisman Trophy is handed out it’s time to start answering some of the tough questions of next year and look back at the 2007 winner and losers:

Is Tim Tebow done with his Thank You speech yet?
How pissed is Darren McFadden last year he lost and everyone said, “It’s because you’re a sophomore” this year he lost…to a sophomore.
Who does Tim Tebow vote for next year?
Is it possible to win back – to – back trophies ever again? Leinart’s Senior numbers were better than his Junior numbers but he lost.
Will the trophy ever be given to anyone without the word “back” in their position ever again?
Should the trophy be re-awarded as the best “Back” in the game? Not since Desmond Howard in 1991 has anyone without “back” in their position won it. Cornerback Charles Woodson edged out Quarterback Peyton Manning in 1997 as the only Defensive player in the last 57 years. (4 out of the 92 total winners did not have the word “back” in their position).



Top Candidates for the 2008 Trophy (going into the offseason, draft announcements could change these results):



Tim Tebow, Florida – He has improved each year, surprised a lot of people through limited playing time his Freshman year to turn around and score 51 regular season touchdowns his Sophomore year. Impressive. He’ll have a good chance to go BCS Bowling next year with improved Gator talent, vets who were there in 2006, and a lot of players leaving for the draft on other teams.
KNOCK: In his first season as QB1 he led his team to 3 heart-breaking losses, does he have the stuff to lead the program successfully his Junior year? Also, since Archie Griffin voters are absolutely opposed to having a 2-time winner, don’t expect a lot of votes unless he scores 60+ TDs next season.



Darren McFadden, Arkansas – Deserved the trophy in 2006 and was in the running in 2007. Not bad for a guy who wasn’t even supposed to be a starter last year. The chances he stays are slim, but after an unimpressive season for the Hogs maybe he’ll stick around to try to help turn the program around.
KNOCK: 4 losses this season including a 17 carry 43 yard performance against Auburn. Also the high probability he will enter the NFL Draft.



Chase Daniel, Mizzou – Led Missouri to the number 1 ranking this past season. I’ll repeat, led Missouri to the #1 ranking this past season. He finished off this season with only 10 INTs to 33 TDs with an offense that was scouted by saying, “Come to Mizzou, we’re Division 1, I swear, you’ve probably seen us on the bottom of the Big XII for years”. If he stays he will improve.
KNOCK: The same reason he is at Mizzou instead of Texas or Oklahoma, size, he is not the typical quarterback size. He is under 6 foot which means occasionally heaving off his back foot under pressure which leads to turnovers. Also in his 2 biggest games (Oklahoma and Oklahoma) he had more INT’s than TDs . Those were the only two games this season where that happened.



Sam Bradford, Oklahoma – As a True Freshman under an immense amount of pressure at a Big XII powerhouse Bradford accumulated 34 TDs and only 7 INTs. He got knocked out early against Texas Tech, and Oklahoma lost by 7. He was limited against Colorado, and Oklahoma lost by 3. Oklahoma was well deserving of a shot at the National Championship over LSU and did not get the nod. Tim Tebow has opened the door for Sophomores to win the Bronze Stiff-Arm, and Bradford just might be the leading candidate.
KNOCK: He will be a Sophomore, and Tebow has not guaranteed that the age bias will go away. After a couple of injuries, will he make it through next season? Will he suffer a Sophomore Slump?



Michael Crabtree, Texas Tech – Absolutely ASTOUNDING numbers his freshman year. 125 receptions and 21 TDs for the true freshman (Tim Brown’s Heisman Winning season he had 39 Receptions for 3 TDs). The pass happy Red Raiders will only look to amass greater numbers next year, but will teams just triple cover him and allow him no catches. He is dangerous.
KNOCK: He plays at Texas Tech, and like Bradford will be a Sophomore. He can’t control how many looks he gets, there are two reasons few Wide Receivers win the Trophy. The Forward Pass wasn’t nearly that common early on and teams can guard WRs and game-plan them. If a defense takes away a QBs best target, it doesn’t matter there will be another one somewhere. The word “back” is nowhere in his position title.



Don’t be surprised to see at least 3 of the above players in New York for the ceremony next year. And surprisingly in the running for Heisman there may be 2 sophomores and a past winner as leading candidates. Something that is pretty rare in the game, but we’re looking at some serious talent next year. And don’t’ forget that there will be others vying for a chance to strike the Desmond next fall.

UPDATE: Check out Part 1 and Part 2 for updated Heisman Candidates
Also receiving votes (from me): Todd Boeckman and Chris Beanie Wells from Ohio State, Pat White and Steve Slaton from WVU if they stay, Knowshon Moreno from Georgia, Graham Harrell from Texas Tech, Colt McCoy from Texas, and the longshot Senior Willie Tuitama from Arizona.
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It's Heisman Day

It's Saturday everyone and that means today is the day that we find out if Tim Tebow is the first ever underclassman to win the Heisman, or if Colt Brennan can pull it off after a semi-soft schedule. Maybe McFadden will pull it off after finishing second in voting last year despite the 4 losses for the "Hogs" this year and the 43 yard performance against Auburn or perhaps Chase Daniel whose numbers are incredible was a major catalyst in bringing Mizzou into the title picture but he couldn't get past Oklahoma (his numbers are comparable to Graham Harrell of Texas Tech, who could get by Oklahoma). Either way the whole season this has been debated, ad nauseum and tonight it will be decided. Will the winner display it at a local eatery, travel with it every weekend, sell it to pay off bills, all of which have been done before with this storied trophy for the best player in College Football. One thing to consider, is the Heisman really worth it. Let's look at some of the past winners post Heisman successes.

In the first 20 years many chose to pursue military service, continued education, and entering the job market over playing in one of the struggling leagues available. Of the first 20 winners there was only a total of 53 seasons of football played, and not all in the NFL. Leon Hart (8), Alan Ameche (6), Doak Walker (6) and Howard "Hopalong" Cassidy (9) account for 29 of those seasons. Ameche among the most notable of these professionals following his collegiate career playing in 4 Pro Bowls, Doak Walker the other, who appeared in 5 Pro Bowls and is also the first Heisman Winner in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The next 10 years led to more NFL appearances and success with 65 total seasons played between them with the most notable of that decade coming in the form of the second Heisman Winner to eventually make the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Paul Hornung. Hornung played in 9 NFL seasons with 2 Pro Bowl Appearances and 1 MVP. Also during this period Roger Staubach won the award and was the 3rd Heisman winner in the Hall. Staubach played in 4 Super Bowls, won 2, and the Super Bowl VI MVP as well as appearing in 6 Pro Bowls. After the successes of a few of the Heisman winners people started to expect more out of a Heisman winner once entering the NFL. Unfortunately during that period of time there was another first. Terry Baker (1962), considered by many to be the first real NFL bust of a Heisman winner.

In the next 10 years there was only 9 winners due to the legendary Archie Griffin, the only two time winner who had an average statistical NFL career in 7 seasons. Also during this period was Orenthal James Simpson, more commonly known as O.J. He won the Hesiman for his slicing (down the field) and slashing (of opposing defenders) at USC and not in Brentwood. He was the 4th Heisman Winner in the Hall (though technically He and Staubach tied to be the first and Hornung and Walker tied for third due to the timing of elections into the Hall). There was also Jim Plunkett during this period who was the Rookie of the Year and then after a few down seasons was the Comeback Player of the year during a 16 year career. And the last notable of this time being 1966 Winner QB Steve Spurrier before he was the Ol' Ball Coach. His NFL numbers a forgettable 40 TDs and 60 INTs in 10 seasons.

The folllowing decade was a little bit more promising leading to the professional careers of Tony Dorsett (Hall of Famer and 4 Pro Bowls in 12 seasons) and Earl Campbell (Hall of Famer, Rookie of the Year, and 3 time Player of the Year in 8 seasons). This decade also led to Charles White who played 9 seasons with 1 Pro Bowl but more importantly was 3 - 0 in his 3 appearances on America Gladiators. This decade gave us Marcus Allen (1x MVP, 6x Pro Bowler, and wrapped up a Hall of Fame Career after winning the 1993 comeback player of the year) and Herschel Walker. Walker is considered by many to be one of the best college football players of all time and also one of the biggest disappointments in Professional Football. After playing a few years in the stepchild USFL he had a lengthy but un-miraculous professional career. Even being made fun of annually in Minnesota for the trade the Vikings made that led to 9 picks for Dallas which in turn led to Emmit Smith and turned the team around with a solid nucleus of role players added through the drafts. There was Doug Flutie who played 21 seasons and had his own cereal, but only played 12 of his 21 seasons in the NFL, averaging less than 7.5 games per season during that period. Flutie was also the first person to be shorter than the trophy, a high distinction. Lastly was Bo Jackson who was probably the best college football player and could have been a great pro had he not put off football for baseball his first couple years and had a plastic hip his last year in the NFL. Of his high marks though are his unbeatable appearance in TECMO Super Bowl and the ProStars cartoon where He, Michael Jordon, and Wayne Gretzky solved Crimes.


The nest 20 years of winners were led off by Vinny Testaverde, Tim Brown and Barry Sanders (Hall of Fame) that made people once again think the Heisman could lead to a succeessful career the likes of Allen or Simpson. Unfortunately during this period the opposite was more common after the careers of Andre Ware (almost no NFL game play), Ty Detmer (definition of career back-up), Gino Torretta (5 teams in 4 years, careers stats 5/16 for 41 yds, 1 INT and 1 32 yd touchdown), Charlie Ward (NBA), Rashan Salaam (mention his name in Chicago I dare you), Danny Wuerffel, Ricky Marley errr Williams, Chris Weinke, Eric Crouch (the face of the future All-American Football League), and Jason White (retired before taking a snap).

In total 8 Heisman Winners have entered the NFL Hall of Fame, 20 have been to multiple Pro Bowls/AFL/CFL All-Star games, 5 have won 5 MVP, 1 CFL MVP and 1 USFL MVP, 3 Comeback Players of the Year, and one three time American Gladiator winner. What the will future hold for today's young men remains to be seen but with America Gladiators coming back on TV I can only hope someone challenges Charles White's 3-0 record.
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Random thoughts...

...while juggling packets and sales calls at work.

I'd rather take a bullet than listen to John Tesh.

I hate hold music. It's like the originator of the Ring Back but instead of some obnoxious song heard constantly on every radio station (I'm talking to you Plain White Ts) it's "relaxing" slow jazz or easy listening or something equally as annoying that reminds you of being in a dentists chair. But recently I have been making calls in Texas, and when they put you on hold it's country music, I wish I could ask them to put me back on hold after the call. Which is actually what happens at the beginning of an episode of ABC's new show Carpoolers. Which brings me to my next point.

Who cares who won the Bachelor, here's what you should be watching.

Carpoolers, it's cheesy, you can see the jokes coming, there are very typical sitcom characters (The playboy, the newlywed, the whipped guy, and the mediator who has comedic problems in his own life). 5-6 years ago I wouldn't have given this show a second look, but then again shows like Sports Night and Ed were still on TV and they were far superior. In this day and age of scripted "unscripted" reality TV like The Hills, it's nice to have a half hour to laugh for a change, and you will get a couple of good chuckles per episode. For those of you who need that reality fix, watch E!'s The Soup the recent off-spring of their Talk Soup a great show hosted by Aisha Tyler or John Henson or Greg Kinnear and occasionally by Jerry Springer. Joel McHale is pretty damned funny, "Let's Take Some E!" is a great portion of the show, and you get to watch only the funny parts of all of crap reality TV without sitting through the drawn out handing out of the rose/necklace/syphilis ceremonies. And Speaking of Joel McHale he appeared on the show Pushing Daisies last week which is a good show. It's definitely a little...strange, and a quirky premise, but Chi McBride does a great job being the lead Comic in a fun new show. My only complaint is the Stranger Than Fiction-esque narration "14 years, 3 months, 2 days, and 17 minutes later..." The narration or narrator is not the bad part, I think it's the overly detailed sections. Anyways, give that one a shot. Friday Night Lights has slipped a little this season but if you STILL haven't seen that one go rent/buy season 1 and catch up on season 2, great characters, well written and acted, addictive as sin. ABC's Desperate Housewives for men is another one worth giving a shot, a Big Shot. Big Shots is exactly that, 4 CEOs/captains of industry rich beyond their wildest dreams but have problems with relationships (all 4 have different problems, a couple very unique ones). Chris Titus from the tv show Titus leads the comedic aspect of the cast and Michael Vartan, Dylan McDermott, Joshua Malina fill out the guys who poke fun at themselves and deal with problems. Lastly, is NBC's new Chuck again quirky, funny, great sarcastic moments from TV vet Adam Baldwin (not related to the other Baldwins) and new comer Zachary Levi does a great job as the bumbling semi-spy/nerd herder Chuck Bartowski.

Dixon for Theisman

After tearing his ACL, for reals this time, Dixon, like Theisman (pronounced Theezmin, not Thyzmin like everyone thinks) will not be winning this years Heisman trophy, most likely. Which is a shame because the Heisman is supposed to go to the best player on one of the best teams and is College Footballs version of the MVP. Well if you lose the guy after a Heisman worthy season, and your team loses to an un-ranked team and falters without him, I would say he was the most valuable. Which then proves that he deserves it more than anyone else. But like the BCS, Heisman voting is what have you done for me lately (look at Ohio State being 7th after losing their first game but teams with 1 or 2 losses in front of them in the rankings and having no shot at the title game). Yet another reason we need a playoff system in college football but which will never happen because of the university/NCAA greed of the big bowls.

Heisman Trophy: Now life sized

With that said this year's Heisman will be decided by one performance this weekend wither Missouri's or Kansas'. Whichever team wins will be directly impacted by Chase Daniels (tiptoes away from 6'0") and Todd Ressing (5'11" when he spikes his hair). Two of the top teams and since most people outside of Louisiana can't name LSU's offensive leaders, or even anyone other than Jacob Hester, the #1 team is out of the running. Which leaves us at whichever team is #2 at the end of this weekend and their best player. This will mean that either Daniels or Reesing who few people outside of their respective schools/hometowns knew in Auguest will win the Heisman Memorial Trophy. I guess it's a fitting end for this year's football season.

Futbol GOOOOOOOOOL

I see that some of our readers have been coming in from Brazil among other places in South America so I thought a Soccer column might be in order. Unfortunately I know next to nothing about soccer and what I do know, is pretty much jokes about the sport and the hooligans who watch it. So I'll end this with a quote from one of the greatest shows of all time, Sports Night "We'll bring you the thrill of victory, the agony of defeat, and because we've got soccer highlights, the sheer pointlessness of a zero-zero tie. "

This is starting to get long so I'll save the rest for a later date, and end with another quote from Sports Night as was edited by Micah Zahler. "If you've had half as much fun reading this as I did writing it, well then I had twice as much fun writing it as you did reading it." See you tomorrow Sports fans.

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