As the college football season draws to a close, the inevitable Heisman Trophy watch grows more intense with each week. Much like the teams this season, no clear front-runner has emerged to claim the coveted award.
The list has been narrowed down as the year has progressed. Names like Rex Grossman of Florida and Onterrio Smith of Oregon no longer are touted as they were prior to the season.
Quarterback Byron Leftwich started with a bang for Marshall, averaging more than 400 yards passing in his first five games. In those games, he totaled 15 touchdowns to just five interceptions.
However, in the past five games Leftwich’s numbers have fallen off, and he missed a game with a leg injury. He averaged just 315.2 yards passing per game in that span with seven touchdowns and three interceptions.
His overall numbers are impressive — 3,615 yards and 22 touchdowns — but with the powder-puff, mid-major schedule of the Thundering Herd, Leftwich will fall in the ballots.
Then, there’s Miami’s dynamic duo of running back Willis McGahee and quarterback Ken Dorsey. The two have paced the Hurricane offense in the team’s quest for a second consecutive undefeated season and national title.
Dorsey has struggled at times this year, but all the while has been a leader for his team. He has totaled 2,773 yards and 24 touchdowns, but he’s not even the best player on the team.
McGahee has been a model of consistency all season with a total of 1,481 yards and a 6.6 yard-per-carry average. Add in his 22 touchdowns and he seems to be a front-runner for the award. The problem is he’s a sophomore and the bigwig voters don’t seem to appreciate the underclassmen, ala Rex Grossman in 2001.
The prominence of both may hurt their chances of winning the award as voters are forced to pick between the senior team leader in Dorsey and the phenomenal sophomore running back in McGahee.
Then there’s Iowa quarterback Brad Banks who has led the surprising Hawkeyes to an 11-1 record. Banks has thrown for 2,369 yards, completing 60.1 percent of his passes with 25 touchdowns and only four interceptions.
He’s as efficient as they come, but his numbers aren’t gaudy enough to wow the voters. Take into account the Hawkeyes’ relatively weak schedule where only a wins at Michigan and Penn State could be considered challenging and Banks is thrown out of the running.
Of course how could I forget Mr. Larry Johnson of Penn State? The guy’s a walking record book. He’s rushed for 257 yards against Northwestern, 279 yards against both Illinois and Michigan State and a whopping 327 yards against ol’ Gerry D’s Indiana team.
With 2,015 yards and 20 touchdowns, what could stop him from winning the Heisman? I have an idea, it’s his 68, 78 and 66 yards rushing in Penn State’s losses to Iowa, Michigan and Ohio State.
By this point, I’m sure you’re asking yourself, who actually DESERVES to win the Heisman? Well, I’ll tell you. It’s USC’s Carson Palmer.
He’s got the numbers — 3,639 yards and 32 touchdowns. He’s got the big wins — Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Notre Dame. He’s also shown up in the big games — 381 yards and two touchdowns in an overtime loss to Washington State, 448 yards and five touchdowns against Oregon and 425 yards and four touchdowns in the 44-13 thumping of the Irish this past weekend.
What more could you ask from your 2002 Heisman Trophy winner?