For the second year, Texas Longhorn quarterback Colt McCoy has been named a finalist for the Heisman Trophy. Other finalists include:
- Tim Tebow, QB, Florida Gators
- Mark Ingram, RB, Alabama Crimson Tide
- Toby Gerhart, RB, Stanford Cardinal
- Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska Cornhuskers
Even after McCoy’s less than Heisman-worthy performance Saturday night, I like his odds of winning. Many of the votes were probably cast prior to the Big 12 Championship against Nebraska, when his stellar game against Texas A&M was still front of mind.
In addition, there’s nothing in the Heisman Trophy’s bylaws that say that it can’t be a career award, in which case Colt is clearly the most worthy.
If you wanted to look at just this year, the biggest impact player was Ndamukong Suh. I haven’t seen a defensive player like him in a very long time. I suspect his rise came too late to actually win, but his likely number one draft pick status will be a nice consolation prize.
Ingram and Gerhart were very good at times, but I think the odds of their winning it are small. Ingram disappeared against Auburn, right as many voters were probably making their mind up. And while Gerhart has been solid pretty much all season, he just hasn’t had enough exposure.
And then there’s Tebow. There are many people who want him to win a second Heisman, but there’s a large contingent of anti-Tebow voters out there (due to his over-exposure; not due to any fault of his own). I expect he’ll get a lot of first place votes, but not win.
Here’s what I’d like to see:
- Colt McCoy
- Ndamukong Suh
- Toby Gerhart
Here’s what we probably will see:
- Colt McCoy
- Mark Ingram
- Tim Tebow
I really think McCoy walks away with the Heisman Trophy, but if he doesn’t, I’d like to see it go to Suh. He certainly earned it Saturday night.