SB Nation - Colt McCoy

If College Football Had a Playoff: #15 East Carolina Pirates @ #2 Texas Longhorns

Jeremy Mauss — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 17:02:43 -0000

More photos » by Harry Cabluck - AP

Before we get to game four the previous matchup of #13 LSU against #4 TCU was a back in forth matchup with LSU leading by as many as 60 votes early this morning, but then the TCU fans came out and won by 150 votes. This matchup has the most votes with just under 800.

For the previous results go check out the section "If College Football had a playoff."

This should be as simple as the Troy vs. Alabama matchup with Texas mopping the floor with the Pirates. Had Houston won C-USA then they would at least make this game interesting.

Who knows maybe East Carolina could get a good pass rush on Colt McCoy and make this game interesting for a half. I would expect Colt McCoy to have a field day over ECU.

Now for the somewhat scientific view by using What if Sports to simulate this fine matchup. As expected What if Sports predicts a 43-14 blowout in favor of Texas. Texas was able to run and throw all over ECU with a balanced attack with 304 passing yards and 273 rushing yards.

Stop by to vote and comment on this matchup. Light hearted trash talk is highly encouraged.

Texas Stats

Passing

		Passing									Rushing					Sacks
	G	Rating	Comp	Att	Pct	Yds	Y/G	Y/A	TD	INT	Rush	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD	Sack	YdsL
Garrett Gilbert	8	60.0	15	26	57.7	124	15.5	4.8	0	0	6	11	1.4	1.8	1	-	-
Colt McCoy	13	103.0	330	468	70.5	3512	270.2	7.5	27	12	128	348	26.8	2.7	3	-	-

Rushing

		Rushing					Receiving
	G	Rush	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD	Rec	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD
John Chiles	11	7	29	2.6	4.1	0	34	319	29	9.4	3
Antwan Cobb	2	1	3	1.5	3	0	0	0	0	0	0
Garrett Gilbert	8	6	11	1.4	1.8	1	0	0	0	0	0
Marquise Goodwin	11	2	8	.700	4	0	25	209	19	8.4	1
Sherrod Harris	1	1	4	4	4	0	0	0	0	0	0
Jeremy Hills	2	9	86	43	9.6	0	0	0	0	0	0
Cody Johnson	13	84	333	25.6	4	12	7	42	3.2	6	0
Colt McCoy	13	128	348	26.8	2.7	3	0	0	0	0	0
Vondrell McGee	9	56	300	33.3	5.4	2	8	37	4.1	4.6	0
D.J. Monroe	9	20	110	12.2	5.5	0	0	0	0	0	0
Tre' Newton	11	102	513	46.6	5	6	12	106	9.6	8.8	0
Jordan Shipley	13	1	0	0	0	0	106	1363	104.8	12.9	11
Foswhitt Whittaker	10	52	207	20.7	4	4	13	51	5.1	3.9	0

Receiving

		Receiving
	G	Rec	Yds	Y/G	AVG	TD
Dan Buckner	12	44	445	37.1	10.1	4
John Chiles	11	34	319	29	9.4	3
Marquise Goodwin	11	25	209	19	8.4	1
DeSean Hales	1	1	2	2	2	0
Cody Johnson	13	7	42	3.2	6	0
James Kirkendoll	12	48	461	38.4	9.6	6
Vondrell McGee	9	8	37	4.1	4.6	0
Tre' Newton	11	12	106	9.6	8.8	0
Philip Payne	1	1	7	7	7	0
Jordan Shipley	13	106	1363	104.8	12.9	11
Foswhitt Whittaker	10	13	51	5.1	3.9	0
Malcolm Williams	12	38	546	45.5	14.4	2

Kicking

		Field Goals								PAT
	G	0-19	20-29	30-39	40-49	50+	FGM	FGA	PCT	XPM	XPA	PCT	pts
Hunter Lawrence	13	-	-	-	-	-	22	25	90.0%	62	63	100.0%	128

East Carolina Stats

Passing

		Passing									Rushing					Sacks
	G	Rating	Comp	Att	Pct	Yds	Y/G	Y/A	TD	INT	Rush	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD	Sack	YdsL
Josh Jordan	3	70.0	5	7	71.4	61	20.3	8.7	0	0	4	6	2	1.5	0	-	-
Rob Kass	3	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	-	-
Patrick Pinkney	13	60.0	242	407	59.5	2738	210.6	6.7	14	10	41	101	7.8	2.5	3	-	-

Rushing

		Rushing					Receiving
	G	Rush	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD	Rec	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD
Darnell Ballard	2	2	4	2	2	1	2	18	9	9	0
Justin Brockmeyer	2	2	23	11.5	11.5	0	0	0	0	0	0
Darryl Freeney	10	2	2	.200	1	0	42	622	62.2	14.8	3
Dwayne Harris	13	31	149	11.5	4.8	5	79	914	70.3	11.6	6
Brandon Jackson	8	84	316	39.5	3.8	3	6	75	9.4	12.5	0
Josh Jordan	3	4	6	2	1.5	0	0	0	0	0	0
Dominique Lindsay	11	206	1029	93.5	5	5	18	138	12.5	7.7	1
Patrick Pinkney	13	41	101	7.8	2.5	3	0	0	0	0	0
J.R. Rogers	1	5	6	6	1.2	0	0	0	0	0	0
Justin Ruffin	2	15	95	47.5	6.3	1	0	0	0	0	0
Giavanni Ruffin	10	56	169	16.9	3	4	5	26	2.6	5.2	0
Norman Whitley	2	3	2	1	.700	0	1	9	4.5	9	0
Jonathan Williams	5	14	38	7.6	2.7	0	3	7	1.4	2.3	0

Receiving

		Receiving
	G	Rec	Yds	Y/G	AVG	TD
Darnell Ballard	2	2	18	9	9	0
Andrew Bodenheimer	3	4	72	24	18	0
Jamar Bryant	7	21	200	28.6	9.5	2
Darryl Freeney	10	42	622	62.2	14.8	3
Dwayne Harris	13	79	914	70.3	11.6	6
Brandon Jackson	8	6	75	9.4	12.5	0
Jacobi Jenkins	2	2	12	6	6	0
Dominique Lindsay	11	18	138	12.5	7.7	1
Korey Reynolds	1	1	12	12	12	0
Giavanni Ruffin	10	5	26	2.6	5.2	0
Alex Taylor	11	35	367	33.4	10.5	0
Norman Whitley	2	1	9	4.5	9	0
Jonathan Williams	5	3	7	1.4	2.3	0
Reyn Willis	6	6	107	17.8	17.8	1
Joe Womack	6	12	141	23.5	11.8	0

Kicking

		Field Goals								PAT
	G	0-19	20-29	30-39	40-49	50+	FGM	FGA	PCT	XPM	XPA	PCT	pts
Ben Ryan	3	-	-	-	-	-	0	2	0	4	4	100.0%	4
Ben Hartman	12	-	-	-	-	-	19	25	80.0%	32	32	100.0%	89

Poll

Who wins?

Texas Longhorns

37 votes

East Carolina Pirates

11 votes

48 votes | Poll has closed

We're All Americans, But We're Not All All-Americans

Oops Pow Surprise — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 20:51:28 -0000

by Charlie Neibergall - AP

Iowa's Pat Angerer (43) celebrates with teammates Allen Reisner and Dace Richardson, right, after Iowa blocked a Northern Iowa field goal on the final play. Iowa won 17-16. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

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As is usually the case after a 10-win season, the accolades are beginning to pour in for the Iowa Hawkeye football team. Everyone and their mom has an all-conference or All-American team, but the two that actually matter--Walter Camp and the AP--are now out. And for the 33th year in a row, the unanimous selection for player of the year is Frank Stallone*.

More importantly, the AP named three Hawkeyes to their All-American teams. While nobody made it onto the first team, thanks to Ricky Stanzi's ankle injury--come on, you know if he stays healthy and Iowa goes 11-1 and finishes at #5 or so, even the guys on defense get a little bit more of a bump--both Bryan Bulaga and Pat Angerer made it to the second team, while Tyler Sash made third-team AA as a sophomore. A fine moment for all three players (two of whom, as we insular and provincial types are quick to point out, are native Iowans).

Meanwhile, the Walter Camp Foundation agreed with the AP, naming Bulaga and Angerer to their second team as well and effectively establishing the two as the de facto MVPs of their respective sides of the ball. We have a little beef with each designation, but for wholly different reasons.

First, though Bulaga is by far the best pro prospect on the line as of right now and was utterly dominant in 2008, the reality is that even notwithstanding the 3-week absence as he recovered from thyroid issues, he struggled in 2009. Brandon Graham and O'Brien Schofield manhandled Bulaga. And while those are two very good defensive ends, so was Aaron Maybin, the 11th pick of the 2009 by the Buffalo Bills and Bryan Bulaga's personal prison bitch after Iowa-PSU 2008. There was a substantial dropoff in play by Bulaga in 2009, and voters just didn't notice it when it came time to hand out awards.

Meanwhile, Dace Richardson was actually very good in his return to the line, and he got a fair amount of media attention when mid-season awards were being handed out. Then his ankle was rolled up on against Michigan State, and he disappeared from both the depth chart and voters' attention. But why should he have been punished for an ankle injury while voters looked past Bulaga's absence of a similar length? It's all past reputation, and that's not really fair to guys who come from nowhere and work their butts off--especially in their senior year, where there's no chance for any payoff in the "rewarded in Year X for play in Year X-minus-1" system that's come to be when it comes to honoring offensive linemen.

What this comes down to is that if the AP were to select an Iowa lineman for All-American this season, we'd have preferred it be Dace--though we'll certainly "settle for" Bulaga instead. If both men are playing their last game for Iowa next month, as lots of speculation suggests, then they've both had stellar careers in the black and gold and we wish them well.

On defense, on the other hand, Pat Angerer didn't really establish himself as the most dominant player for that Iowa defense, but that's hardly through any fault of his own. After all, one usually does so by being simply better than his teammates, and the talent level on the Iowa defense this year was both so high and so consistent that it was hard to see Angerer as someone who was the best player on defense. After all, you could always come back with, "well why not Sash? Or Adrian Clayborn? Or Amari Spievey? Or A.J. Edds? Or, hell, Jeremiha Hunter?" We're not saying that Angerer was the 6th best player on the Iowa defense by any means--just that ranking the top 5 or 6 or so would be impossible, because the gaps would be so miniscule that personal preference could easily mean a 3- or 4-spot swing here or there and it wouldn't even be objectionable.

Angerer's accolades, then, come from two areas: 1) his name, which is everything you could ever hope for times infinity; 2) and his stats, which sort of sneak up on you for the same reasons mentioned in the previous paragraph. As mentioned before, he was 5th in the nation in tackles at 11.3 a game. That's pretty outstanding, especially since--as TRE noticed during the season--Angerer's real strength might have been in pass coverage, not run support.

Still, absent game-changing plays, it's somewhat difficult to notice the overall impact a player has on a game. And all of those game-changing plays seemed to happen to other players--most notably Sash and Clayborn, and to a lesser extent Spievey.

Thus we have a weird ambiguity about how we look at Angerer's standing as the most highly-lauded member of the 2009 Iowa defense. It's not that he didn't deserve it--far from it--but with a defense like Iowa's, you could basically pick a name out of a hat and feel relatively confident that you made a good choice. It was that kind of year. Effectively singling out Angerer for praise, then, seems unusual and almost a little unfair. Oh well. There are worse problems to have.

Full AP All-American teams are after the break.

First team
Offense
	   Quarterback -- Colt McCoy, senior, 6-foot-2, 210 pounds, Texas.
	   Running backs -- Toby Gerhart, senior, 6-1, 235, Stanford; Mark Ingram, sophomore, 5-10, 212, Alabama.
	   Tackles -- Russell Okung, senior, 6-5, 301, Oklahoma State; Trent Williams, senior, 6-5, 318, Oklahoma.
	   Guards -- Michael Johnson, senior, 6-6, 305, Alabama; Mike Iupati, senior, 6-6, 330, Idaho.
	   Center -- J.D. Walton, senior, 6-3, 305, Baylor.
	   Tight end -- Aaron Hernandez, junior, 6-2, 250, Florida.
	   Wide receivers -- Golden Tate, junior, 5-11, 195, Notre Dame; Jordan Shipley, senior, 6-0, 190, Texas.
	   All-purpose player -- C.J. Spiller, senior, 5-11, 195, Clemson.
	   Kicker -- Leigh Tiffin, senior, 6-2, 212, Alabama.
Defense
	   Ends -- Jerry Hughes, senior, 6-3, 257, TCU; Derrick Morgan, junior, 6-4, 272, Georgia Tech.
	   Tackles -- Ndamukong Suh, senior, 6-4, 300, Nebraska; Terrence Cody, senior, 6-5, 365, Alabama.
	   Linebackers -- Rolando McClain, junior, 6-4, 258, Alabama; Greg Jones, junior, 6-1, 228, Michigan State; Eric Norwood, senior, 6-1, 252, South Carolina.
	   Cornerbacks -- Joe Haden, junior, 5-11, 190, Florida; Javier Arenas, senior, 5-9, 198, Alabama.
	   Safeties -- Eric Berry, junior, 5-11, 203, Tennessee; Earl Thomas, sophomore, 5-10, 197, Texas.
	   Punter -- Drew Butler, sophomore, 6-2, 201, Georgia.
Second team
	   Quarterback -- Tim Tebow, senior, Florida.
	   Running backs -- Ryan Mathews, junior, Fresno State; Dion Lewis, freshman, Pittsburgh.
	   Tackles -- Bryan Bulaga, junior, Iowa; Chris Marinelli, senior, Stanford.
	   Guards -- Rodney Hudson, junior, Florida State; Mike Pouncey, junior, Florida.
	   Center -- Maurkice Pouncey, junior, Florida.
	   Tight end -- Dennis Pitta, senior, BYU.
	   Wide receivers -- Mardy Gilyard, senior, Cincinnati; Danario Alexander, senior, Missouri.
	   All-purpose player -- James Rodgers, junior, Oregon State.
	   Kicker -- Kai Forbath, junior, UCLA.
Defense
	   Ends -- Von Miller, junior, Texas A&M; Brandon Graham, senior, Michigan.
	   Tackles -- Gerald McCoy, junior, Oklahoma; Jared Odrick, senior, Penn State.
	   Linebackers -- Pat Angerer, senior, Iowa; Brandon Spikes, senior, Florida; Sean Weatherspoon, senior, Missouri.
	   Cornerbacks -- Perrish Cox, senior, Oklahoma State; Kyle Wilson, senior, Boise State.
	   Safeties -- Taylor Mays, senior, Southern California; Rahim Moore, sophomore, UCLA.
	   Punter -- Zoltan Mesko, senior, Michigan.
Third team
Offense
	   Quarterback -- Kellen Moore, sophomore, Boise State
	   Running backs -- LaMichael James, redshirt freshman, Oregon; Jacquizz Rodgers, sophomore, Oregon State.
	   Tackles -- Dennis Landolt, senior, Penn State; Ciron Black, senior, LSU.
	   Guards -- Brandon Carter, senior, Texas Tech; Jeff Byers, senior, Southern California.
	   Center -- Chris Hall, senior, Texas.
	   Tight end -- Dorin Dickerson, senior, Pittsburgh.
	   Wide receivers -- Freddie Barnes, senior, Bowling Green; Demaryius Thomas, junior, Georgia Tech.
	   All-purpose player -- Dexter McCluster, senior, Mississippi.
	   Kicker -- Hunter Lawrence, senior, Texas.
Defense
	   Ends -- Jeremy Beal, junior, Oklahoma; Brandon Sharpe, senior, Texas Tech.
	   Tackles -- Brian Price, junior, UCLA; Dan Williams, senior, Tennessee.
	   Linebackers -- Sergio Kindle, senior, Texas; Cody Grimm, senior, Virginia Tech; Navorro Bowman, junior, Penn State.
	   Cornerbacks -- Brandon Harris, sophomore, Miami; Alterraun Verner, senior, UCLA.
	   Safeties -- Tyler Sash, sophomore, Iowa; Mark Barron, sophomore, Alabama.
	   Punter -- Matt Reagan, senior, Memphis.

*Did you know he was in Tombstone, a.k.a. the SINGLE GREATEST MOVIE IN HISTORY? And in a phenomenal scene, to boot.

Haden, Hernandez Are Your AP All-Americans

mlmintampa — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:25:47 -0000

The Associated Press All-American teams announced today included Joe Haden as first team cornerback and Aaron Hernandez as first team tight end. Maurkice Pouncey gets shafted and sent to second team at center. Also on the second team was Mike Pouncey at guard and Brandon Spikes at linebacker. Tim Tebow was named second team, behind Colt McCoy, upsetting the fanboys that worship at the altar of golden boy Jimmy Clausen and new Pac-10 poster boy Jake Locker. They must be really upset that Kellen Moore, another quarterback of a BCS team, was the third team quarterback. I guess winning games means something to the AP. Your unanimous selections were Mark Ingram, Toby Gerhart, Ndamukong Suh and Rolando McClain.

High strangeness abounds with Vinny Cerrato in town

Mocking Dan — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:01:15 -0000

More photos » by Susan Walsh - AP

Washington Redskins football owner Dan Snyder, left, talks to Redskins Executive Vice President of Football Operations Vinnie Cerrato in June. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

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The following is from last Thursday's Washington Post:

According to people within the Redskins organization, owner Daniel Snyder and Vinny Cerrato, the team's executive vice president of football operations, recently attended a University of Texas game to scout quarterback Colt McCoy. Cerrato traveled to conduct an in-person evaluation of Notre Dame quarterback Jimmy Clausen, a junior who declared for the draft this week.

It is widely known that Cerrato has been to Notre Dame on more than one occasion this season to check out Clausen. Cerrato, a former Notre Dame recruiting coordinator, even interviewed Clausen on his radio show last week.

That's right Redskins newcomer, the vice president of football operations of the team hosts his own radio show. Unreal. The highlights include the weather in South Bend, Clausen's finals and Cerrato asking Clausen to give him a Golden Tate scouting report.

Then there was this doozy:

"Now, evaluate yourself as a quarterback," he told Clausen. "What do you need to improve upon for the next level?"

Let me reiterate that the rumor is that Cerrato makes real personnel decisions for a real NFL team. Supposedly. Probably not.

Oh, and don't forget about Cerrato and Snyder checking out McCoy. How does McCoy respond with the NFL's dynamic duo in the house? By blowing his Heisman Trophy chances in a three-interception performance that almost cost Texas a national championship appearance.

Sure, most could blame McCoy's poor performance on Ndamukong Suh. But people know the truth here. McCoy became so frightened by the thought of becoming the latest Redskins quarterback to be scrutinized by management, he committed NFL Draft suicide. Smart move.

Blogger Heisman Results Announced

Gamecock Man — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 00:32:05 -0000

By now, you've surely heard that the Downtown Athletic Club awarded the Heisman trophy to Alabama tailback Mark Ingram, who narrowly beat out Stanford tailback Toby Gerhart for college football's most prestigious individual award. Well, the blogging community disagrees. As you'll remember, I participated in the blogger Heisman organized by The Blue Workhorse (TBW). TBW award goes to Gerhart instead of Ingram. In fact, Ingram finished third in TBW's tally, with Nebraska DT Ndamukong Suh finishing second. Gerhart beat Suh by only one vote, making his margin even slimmer than the margin between Ingram and Gerhart for the official trophy.

Although I voted for Ingram, Suh, and Gerhart in that order from first to third (I also voted for C. J. Spiller as an honorable mention), the results of TBW's tally aren't all that surprising to me. A good bit of popular support has arisen among bloggers and other informed spectators for Gerhart and Suh over the past week. If anything, I'm surprised that Suh didn't win the blogger trophy, as he has, reasonably so, been the focal point of criticism of the Heisman regarding its bias towards skill-position players. Indeed, the more one thinks about it, the one one falls into line with this line of thinking. Suh had an absolutely unbelievable year for a defensive tackle. If ever a defensive player deserved the award, it was Suh. Unfortunately, I doubt you'll ever see a defensive tackle bring home the trophy in New York; a defensive back like Charles Woodsen that does something else like return kicks or runs the Wildcat can win it by combining stellar defensive play with some other statistical measure, but a big guy like Suh that doesn't have many opportunities to score TDs is just at too huge a disadvantage to sway a crowd of voters that believe jaw-dropping stats equal Heisman. It's really a minor miracle that Suh made it to New York this year in the first place; maybe we should take that, along with the fact that neither Tim Tebow nor Colt McCoy won the award, as evidence that the often embattled award is moving in a good, more credible direction.

A few other notables about TBW's outcomes:

Like myself, the bloggers believed Clemson's C. J. Spiller was more deserving than Tebow or McCoy. The fact that the disappointing Tebow and McCoy got to go to New York in Spiller's stead shows that things might not have really changed all that much this year, at least in the sense that although most voters didn't vote for Tebow or McCoy to win the award, many did leave them on their ballots, seemingly out of inertia.
Tebow finished with no first-place votes. It's really pretty shocking how far Tebow's stature has fallen over the course of this season. Basically no one outside of Gainesville, FL and Bristol, CT still believe in the power of the Almighty Tebow. He's still a great player, but the aura is gone.
I'm really fairly surprised that Gerhart did so much better than Ingram in the blogger's minds. When you compare the stats and the defenses the two played against, I see little reason to believe that Gerhart had a better year. What am I missing?
George Rogers is still the only player from a college in South Carolina to win the Heisman. Suck it, Clemson. (Unfortunately for them, Auburn fans have lost the right to make these kinds of jokes about their rival.)

Final Thoughts About Ndamukong Suh's Heisman Chances

Jon Johnston — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 23:24:01 -0000

More photos » by John Raoux - AP

Say what you want about any of them, but that's a damned fine group of young men. Wait? Where's CJ Spiller? And who's that guy second to left?

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Earlier I was taking the youngest over to a friend's place so they can play outside in the snow, when he asked "Dad, do you think Ndamukong Suh will win the Heisman?".

Agh. Answering a 10-year old kid is a lot different than what I'd tell some smack-talking friends. You have to be honest (or a pretty good liar and I'm not a good liar) when you're answering a kid that age, otherwise they know.

What I said is "He could win it, but I doubt it. It's really hard to win the Heisman Trophy if you're a defensive guy. It's a huge accomplishment that Suh has even been invited to be there. It would be a big wonderful surprise if he wins, but you really can't be disappointed if he doesn't. "

Well.... I was only partially lying. I don't think I'll be disappointed if he doesn't win it, but I will be disappointed if Alabama's Mark Ingram finishes ahead of him. I don't have anything against Ingram, but if I had to vote, here's how I would have voted them:

1. Ndamukong Suh

2. Colt McCoy

3. Toby Gerhart

4. Mark Ingram

5. CJ Spiller

I won't be upset if McCoy wins it because back when I was trying to work out how Nebraska would beat Texas in the Big 12 title game, there was one obvious answer - take Colt McCoy out of the game. People can bag on McCoy all they want for not putting up great numbers, but the fact is, McCoy is the guy that makes the Texas offense go. Take him out and they'd still win the South, but would have not won the Big 12 and they certainly wouldn't be going to the national title game.

Same thing with Toby Gerhart. Gerhart made the Stanford Cardinal go. The guy finished first nationally in rushing yardage with 1,736 yards, first with attempts at 311, and first in rushing touchdowns with 26. He was amazing to watch as he ran over people, and especially enjoyable as he ran over Notre Dame.

Ingram? Take him off the Crimson Tide, and they're still a great team. What bugs me most about Ingram is that his worst game came against Auburn, the Tide's biggest rival. How do you call yourself a Heisman winner when it's the biggest game of the year and you don't rise up against your opponent? (Tide fans might say Auburn isn't the biggest game of the year, instead pointing to the SEC title game or the upcoming national title game. My response would be to ask how much Saban has stolen their soul.) The most damning point against Ingram comes from the Heisman Pundit, who points out that Ingram's 119 per game rushing average would be the fewest by a Heisman-winning running back in the modern era of two-platoon football.

CJ Spiller fills in the last place out of five because he's a phenomenal player, fast as a bullet, and it gives me a chance to remind everyone that a Ndamukong Suh-lead defense held him to 17 yards rushing and six yards receiving in last year's Gator Bowl (although Spiller did have 159 yards in returns).

Let's face the fact that the Heisman Trophy is the most overrated, hyped trophy in sports.... until your guy might win it. Then you're right there, hoping he's the guy the nation wants to reward. With Suh that's especially true, as a win here would be a recognition of just how far the Blackshirts have come in the last two years.

Heisman Trophy - Quick Prediction

Beergut — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 20:45:51 -0000

My prediction for the Heisman Trophy award which will be presented tonight on ESPN at 7 p.m. Texas time:

Toby Gerhart, RB, Stanford
Mark Ingram, RB, Alabama
Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska
Colt McCoy, QB, texas
Tim Tebow, QB, Florida

In the end, I think Gerhart's consistency will win out over everything else, and the West Coast media will push Gerhart to the Trophy. Mark Ingram's position on an undefeated team who will play for the national championship makes him formidable, but his poor performance against Auburn hurt him. Suh should win the Trophy, as I have made abundantly clear, but I think the voters won't choose a defenisve player who came ot their attention too late in the season, despite the fact that he is the best college football player in the nation this year. McCoy's performance against Nebraska in the Big 12 Championship did as much to hurt him as his performance against A&M helped him. Since the Nebraska game is the last one voters remember, I think it is safe to say McCoy won't win the Trophy. As for Tebow, he's had a pedestrian year by the standards he has set for any QB, and his forgettable performance against Alabama sealed his position in last place. When you're remembered more for your tears while losing than you are for your performance on the field, you aren't going to win the Heisman Trophy.

Poll: The Heisman Trophy and the Most Outstanding Player in College Football

dvieira — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 14:00:21 -0000

More photos » by John Raoux - AP

9 days ago: Heisman Trophy finalists from left, Stanford running back Toby Gerhart, Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, Alabama running back Mark Ingram, Texas quarterback Colt McCoy and Nebraska defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh gather for a photo at the Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards in Lake Buena Vista , Fla., Thursday, Dec. 10, 2009. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

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Going into the season, most pundits thought that Colt McCoy, Sam Bradford or Tim Tebow would run away with the Heisman Trophy this year. McCoy and Tebow will be making the trip to New York but they have a few unexpected names joining them. Many awards represent the "best" player in a particular category but the Heisman Trophy is different. College Football's most publicized award seeks to reward the "most outstanding player in collegiate football". It may not the be the best quarterback or the player who has the most potential at the next level. Given those conditions, we give you today's poll.

Poll

Who is the Most Outstanding Player in College Football for 2009?

Toby Gerhart

151 votes

Tim Tebow

4 votes

Mark Ingram

15 votes

Colt McCoy

10 votes

Ndamukong Suh

132 votes

Other (explain in comments)

11 votes

323 votes | Poll has closed

Friday Cartoons Talk Colt McCoy, Big 12 Championship And Heisman Moments

ccmachine — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 01:30:14 -0000

Undeserving Winners Of National Awards Announced

Beergut — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 22:06:08 -0000

The winners of the Maxwell, O'Brien, Walter Camp, Outland, Lombardi, Nagurski, Butkus, Thorpe, and just about every other individual college award were announced yesterday at the ESPN Awards Show. Ndamukong Suh, the incomparable defensive tackle from Nebraska, won the Outland Trophy as the nation's best interior lineman, the Chuck Bednarik Award as the nation's best defensive player, the Lombardi Award as the nation's top lineman, and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy as the nation's top defensive player. Suh winning all of these awards was somewhat predictable, because they were well-deserved.

What was somewhat surprising was that texas QB Colt McCoy won the Davey O'Brien Award as the nation's top QB. McCoy isn't even the best quarterback in his own conference, forget the nation. I'm very surprised the O'Brien didn't go to Case Keenum of Houston. Keenum has led the nation's top offense all season long, passing for 5,449 yards and 43 TDs against only 9 interceptions. Compare this to McCoy, who had 3,512 yards passing and 27 TD passes with 12 interceptions, to go along with 3 fumbles, and the decision to give the award to McCoy is a head-scratcher. McCoy averaged over a turnover per game, but we're supposed to believe this is the nation's best quarterback? McCoy also won the Maxwell Award for the nation's best all-around player. The Maxwell really should have gone to C.J. Spiller of Clemson, the multi-talented RB who is equally dangerous as a runner, receiver, and returner. Spiller rushed for 1,145 yards and 11 TDs while averaging 5.7 yards per carry, had 33 receptions for 445 yards and 4 TDs, AND finished fourth nationally in kickoff returns, averaging 33.7 yards per return while taking 4 of them all the way back for touchdowns. Those stats are a little more impressive than a QB with whom there is a better than 50% chance he'll turn the ball over than pass for a TD.

McCoy also won the Walter Camp Football Foundation's player of the year award, but that was somewhat expected because he won the same award last year.

The Biletnikoff Award for the nation's best wide receiver went to Notre Dame's Golden Tate; that award should have gone to texas' Jordan Shipley. Tate had 93 receptions for 1,496 yards and 15 TD receptions. Shipley has 106 receptions for 1,363 yards and 11 TDs, and still has one more game to play. Shipley built his stats against the Big 12 Conference, not against a padded schedule with the likes of Navy, Nevada, and Washington State. Tate is a phenomenal receiver, but no moreso than Shipley. Given the opponents Shipley faced, and the game-by-game production, the best wide receiver in the nation this year is Shipley.

The Jim Thorpe Award for the nation's best defensive back went to Tennessee safety Eric Berry. While I think a good argument could be made for texas safety Earl Thomas, who finished tied for second in the nation in intercepions, with 8 on the season, Berry was dominant playmaker on a top twenty defense for Tennessee. Berry also garnered more national attention early on because of his stellar play against Florida and Heisman-hopeful Tim Tebow early in the season, while Thomas was coming off a season on one of the worst pass defenses in the nation in 2008, so that probably played into consideration for the award.

Overall, with the exception of the defensive awards which went to Suh and Berry, a lot of these national awards went to the wrong person. It seems some of these committee's make up their minds early on who the winner is going to be during the season, and don't let other candidates or other information sway their opinion, and that is a shame.