I have never been one to gush over the Heisman Trophy. I have always thought it was a meaningless award. College football is about team, not personal awards. A running back that gets 1,000 yards or a quarterback that throws for 3,000 yards didn’t do it alone. Ask any lineman or receiver who made any of that possible.
And after Saturday’s latest so-called winner -- Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson -- was announced as the 2016 recipient, I was reminded yet again of why I have never jumped on the Heisman train.
It’s a purely disingenuous award that is steeped more in politics and pomp-and-circumstance trappings than in actually finding out who is the best college player in the land.
I don’t usually have a personal dog in the fight, but with local-kid-made-good Deshaun Watson once again in the running for the prestigious award, I felt I had enough vested interest to decide I would follow along.
For a second consecutive year I came away not just disappointed, but questioning why the Heisman has the clout that it carries. Would I have a different opinion had Deshaun actually won this time around?
To be fair, I’m not sure. Probably not. But, my faith in the process may have been restored somewhat.
Alabama’s Derrick Henry in 2015 I get. He led the nation in rushing on the best team in college football. But Deshaun still was a much more valuable player for his team than Henry.
Take Henry off that Alabama squad and they just plug in two more players in a talented and deep running back corp to divide his production. Take Deshaun off Clemson, who steps into his shoes? Noone of that caliber, you can be sure.
You see, for me, Deshaun is more than just some random college player I have never met. I’ve interviewed him numerous times and first got to know him, though briefly and from afar, when he was in the 5-to-8-year-old Gainesville Park and Rec Flag Football League and I was a coach of the Cowboys with my oldest son. He dominated the league even back then. You could tell he had the potential to be something special.
Seeing his rise through middle school and then on to Gainesville High was not surprising. His leading the Red Elephants to a state title was fun and exciting to watch, mainly because of the type of person he was -- humble, down-to-Earth, and always seemed to be just one of the guys.
He is always accommodating and never pouts or ducks the hard questions (unlike a certain 2010 Heisman winner -- you know who you are Cam Newton).
Watson on personality alone was more than deserving to win both of the past two years. He is what all young men should strive to become.
Jackson is a fine player. More than half a century in touchdowns for a season is nothing to ignore. But Jackson, and his team, were regressing over the final month of the season. Deshaun and the Tigers were catching fire.
Deshaun’s Tigers beat Jackson’s Cardinals in a head-to-head matchup and Deshaun was the difference in the game. Clemson won the Atlantic Coast Conference title. The Tigers are in the College Football Playoff for a second consecutive season. Deshaun torched the best defense in the country in last year's CFP championship game for over 400 yards.
What exactly has Jackson and the Cardinals won? They haven't won the ACC title in his time.They didn't win their ACC division.
I know I don’t get a vote, but exactly what is it that the Heisman voters consider to be the deciding factors?
Is it purely stat driven? If so, explain Alabama’s Mark Ingram. As a lifelong Bama fan, I have to admit that it was about time to make up for the many non-Heisman winners (Johnny Musso for one, my favorite all-time Bama player) who were snubbed for decades. But Ingram wasn’t the one. Henry perhaps.
Does character even play a role anymore? There are more than a few former winners on the list that leave you shaking your head.
The Heisman in days gone by seemed to be more about celebrating a body of work. Nowadays a flash-in-the-pan-only-one-good-year type of player (Johnny Manziel) can garner a Heisman Trophy. Six of the last 10 Heisman winners have been freshmen or sophomore. There were ZERO freshmen and sophomores over the first 72 winners.
The New York Athletic Club has made one of its biggest slight’s since it began the award in 1935 (Chicago halfback Jay Berwanger). Deshaun is the embodiment of what the Heisman Trophy professes to stand for. I think he will go down as one of the all-time great Heisman snubs in the award's history.
Jackson is the newest member of the Heisman House. But I will always think of Deshaun as an honorary member in my mind. They should give him a key to the backdoor.
