2007 Heisman Trophy Discussion

[NFBuck]

Chad Henne = a shorter John Navarre. If anybody on that roster should get Heisman hype going in, it's that crybaby RB. Doesn't matter either way, without their D from this year, they'll be back to their same old tricks and be out of everybody's minds by October.

 

[Steve19]

Well, I suppose that Jimmy Clausen would have difficulty repeating and getting his second Heisman this year, so let me think.

TSUN could have its best year in a long time, possibly saving Voyd his job. The offense is going to be their strong suit and I agree with statements earlier in the thread about Henne throwing pitch and catch with Manningham a lot. He is a candidate but I think a crap performance against Ohio State (I am not prepared to say who wins that game yet) will cost him the trophy.

Among the running backs, I think Beanie is going to get a lot of carries this year, especially early in the year, if he proves he can hold onto the rock. We mustn't forget that an overwhelming Buckeye team performance hid some very critical fumbles that young man made last year. In a normal offensive year, those might have cost us some games.

That said, I think he will hold onto the ball and I think he has a good chance to shine. But I do not think a player from Ohio State will be considered two years in a row despite the USC performance with Leinart and "Show Me the Money" Bush.

So, I like McFadden and Hill as early favorites. Both will get lots of press.

However, I think this year is going to be one in which the winner emerges only toward the end of the season. Too many potential winners and too close to call.

 

[Mike80]

RBs on the list:

McFadden, Arkansas
Slaton, WVU
Hart, scUM
Rice, Rutgers
Johnson, Boise St.
Hill, Wisconsin
Davis, Clemson
Choice, Ga Tech
Stewart, Oregon
Ore, Va Tech

Is this guy serious that he thinks all these RBs have a better shot at winning the Heisman than does Beanie? Please.

Since I can't place Stewart and Ore, I'll eliminate those 2 and go with the other 8 on your list.

Honestly, I'd have a hard time, at this point, putting Beanie up at even Hill's level. Ohio State is just losing too much offensively to objectively put him up there.

Now Tashard Choice will have a brand new QB without a true weapon on the outside and you never know which Clemson team will show up from game to game, but everyone else above that line is a solid candidate from a seemingly solid team.

Just my .02....

 

[Mike80]

TSUN could have its best year in a long time, possibly saving Voyd his job. The offense is going to be their strong suit and I agree with statements earlier in the thread about Henne throwing pitch and catch with Manningham a lot. He is a candidate but I think a crap performance against Ohio State (I am not prepared to say who wins that game yet) will cost him the trophy.

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It's a bit off topic, but I think Voyd is screwed if he comes up short of a National Title, at least, from their fan's perspective.

If you listened to JT The Brick tonight, you would know what I'm talking about.

If the Meatchicken fan who got on there and ranted about him is anywhere near the norm, this could be a very interesting year

 

[Zurp]

\

It's a bit off topic, but I think Voyd is screwed if he comes up short of a National Title, at least, from their fan's perspective.

If you listened to JT The Brick tonight, you would know what I'm talking about.

If the Meatchicken fan who got on there and ranted about him is anywhere near the norm, this could be a very interesting year

People who call in to talk shows are rarely the norm. Plus, it seems to me that Michigan is as conservative toward Lloyd Carr as Ohio State was toward Cooper. With what seemed to be a majority of the fans wanting Cooper's neck, the university stuck with him for 13 years. I get the feeling that Carr gets the same support from University of Michigan.

Not winning either of their last two games really hurt him, though. If he loses to Ohio State in 2007, in Ann Arbor, with that team they're supposed to get back, he'd have to count on a BCS win, or something, to save his job, in my opinion.

 

[BB73]

Dennis Dodd's early top-10.

sportsline

Early Heisman Rankings

1. Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas
2. Ray Rice, RB, Rutgers
3. John David Booty, QB, USC
4. Steve Slaton, RB, West Virginnia
5. Ian Johnson, RB, Boise State
6. Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville
7. Colt Brennan, QB, Hawaii
8. Colt McCoy, QB, Texas
9. Michael Hart, RB, Michigan
10. Tim Tebow, QB, Florida

 

[t_BuckeyeScott]

How he incudes Slaton and manages to include Tebow and not Pat White is somewhat puzzling.

 

[buckeyeboy]

How he incudes Slaton and manages to include Tebow and not Pat White is somewhat puzzling.

I think Slaton's a legit top 5 candidate. I'm not sure why you think Pat White belongs in the top 10--he's not a good enough passer to win it, so he must put up fantastic running numbers to win, which he won't do b/c of Slaton.

I agree that Tebow has no business being in the top 10. Halfway through the season people will be realizing that he's not the star QB everyone thinks he is right now. In fact, I'd imagine that about 5 games into the season Meyer will be starting one of the other QBs, with Tebow playing a similar role as he did this past season.

 

[23Skidoo]

Dennis Dodd's early top-10.

sportsline

Early Heisman Rankings

1. Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas
2. Ray Rice, RB, Rutgers
3. John David Booty, QB, USC
4. Steve Slaton, RB, West Virginnia
5. Ian Johnson, RB, Boise State
6. Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville
7. Colt Brennan, QB, Hawaii
8. Colt McCoy, QB, Texas
9. Michael Hart, RB, Michigan
10. Tim Tebow, QB, Florida

Minus the guy at 10, I really like this list. Being that he's the last guy though, I'll take it. Looks like Beanie will just have to be a sleeper.

 

[ShakerBuck]

I could be wrong, but I think P.J. Hill (who's on the list) is a sophomore. And I know that McCoy of UT and Tebow of UF are.

True.

I'll assume you don't have an issue with PJ Hill being ahead of Beanie though (coming off their respective freshman performances)

 

[buckeyeboy]

I'll assume you don't have an issue with PJ Hill being ahead of Beanie though (coming off their respective freshman performances)

Actually, I do take issue with Hill being ahead of Beanie, and I'll tell you why. Just looking at last year's numbers is an incredibly simplistic, short-sighted means to predict which player has a better chance of winning the Heisman in '07.

First, Hill had numbers that dwarfed Beanie's b/c Hill was the feature back at Wisconsin, whereas Beanie clearly was not at tOSU. Hill had 1,569 yards, whereas Beanie only had 576. But that is only half the story, as Hill had 311 carries, whereas Beanie only had 104. Hill therefore had over 200 more carries than Beanie. And Beanie's average of 5.5 yards/carry was much better than Hill's average of 5.0 yards/carry.

Second, I think yards will be a lot harder to come by this year for Hill, as defenses will be able to key on him more with Wisky's QB having graduated. Combine that with the fact that Hill doesn't have great footspeed, and I see a lot of games for him next fall similar to his performance in the bowl game, in which he struggled greatly.

In short, not only would I not be surprised if Beanie has a better year than Hill this fall, but I'm expecting him to. Accordingly, I take issue with Hill being listed ahead of Beanie in '07 Heisman projections.

 

[t_BuckeyeScott]

Pat White got Hiesman Buzz last year. I imagine he'll be even better this year and even more likely than Tebow.

 

[ant80]

People who call in to talk shows are rarely the norm. Plus, it seems to me that Michigan is as conservative toward Lloyd Carr as Ohio State was toward Cooper. With what seemed to be a majority of the fans wanting Cooper's neck, the university stuck with him for 13 years. I get the feeling that Carr gets the same support from University of Michigan.

Not winning either of their last two games really hurt him, though. If he loses to Ohio State in 2007, in Ann Arbor, with that team they're supposed to get back, he'd have to count on a BCS win, or something, to save his job, in my opinion.

At least Carr had Cooper to count on...

 

[BB73]

Eric Ainge may have been a fringe candidate, despite Tennessee losing their top receivers, but he'll be slowed by missing the rest of the Vols' spring practice because of his injured knee (torn meniscus).

 

[BB73]

Rivals early take on the Heisman race.

1-5 are McFadden, Slaton, Booty, Hart, Brennan.

Also mentioned: Brian Brohm, P.J. Hill, DeSean Jackson, Matt Ryan (BC QB is their real darkhorse), and Ray Rice

rivals