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QB Troy Smith (2006 Heisman Trophy Winner)

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Canton

Smith: Buckeyes hungry for more
Friday, December 1, 2006
By Todd Porter REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER


COLUMBUS With nearly two weeks of a seven-week layoff in the books, Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith recharged his batteries. After a weekend of turkey and fixings, the Buckeyes return to practice today.
But they aren?t returning without hunger, their Heisman Trophy candidate said. The main course lies ahead.
After another win against Michigan and a spot in the Jan. 8 Tostitos BCS National Championship game secured, might Ohio State get a bit full of itself?
?Fat and happy? I never thought about being fat and happy, but my Thanksgiving was good,? said Smith, delivering a Jim Tressel-like punchline. ? ... We?re not finished, not by a long shot. Everybody?s thirst and hunger was not just to get through the regular season. It?s to have a chance to win a national championship.
?Everybody?s focus that plays on this team is to finish the season. When you finish the season, you have a bowl game at the end.?
OSU will have a light practice today and Saturday. The team banquet is Sunday. By that time, the Buckeyes will know whom they will play Jan. 8 in the title game in Glendale, Ariz. If No. 2 Southern California beats UCLA, it will be the Trojans.
Asked if he will get teammates together to watch the game, Smith said, ?I?m glad you brought that up. I might use that so we can get together and enjoy time with the guys before the season ends.?
Saturday won?t be the first time Smith has seen USC. Smith, who finished the regular season with 2,530 yards passing and is fifth in the country in passing efficiency, said the coaching staff has broken down some film and he?s seen ?things on certain teams.?
After this weekend, Smith?s life will get more hectic. There will be a media blitz leading up the Heisman Trophy presentation in New York on Dec. 9.
Considered the front-runner, Smith would become the sixth OSU player to win the Heisman and first pure quarterback from OSU to do so.
?It?s a tremendous honor, and a tremendous reflection of the team I played on and the coaches I played for,? Smith said. ?If I get a chance to hoist that trophy and to have it come back to The Ohio State University, it?ll be great talk for the guys around here just to make this a better place.?
A second national title in five years may do more. But Smith would have to reverse a trend among Heisman winners.
Four of the last five Heisman winners who played for a national title lost that game. It dates back to 2000 when Chris Weinke won the Heisman and Florida State lost the national championship game. Only USC?s Matt Leinart won both the Heisman and national title.
Southern Cal players have won three of the last four Heisman Trophies.
?I don?t buy into superstitions or previous things that happened to guys who aren?t in my situation,? Smith said. ?I can?t talk about the success of the Heisman winner yet. ... There?s always a good chance I might not receive the things that gets so much publicity.
?I know we are getting ready to play on the biggest stage, and I know we will be ready.?
In big games, Smith is unbeatable. He?s 3-0 against Michigan. The Buckeyes beat No. 2 Texas, won at Iowa this season and took apart Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl last year with Smith under center.
What is it about big games?
?I guess great preparation like we do game-in and game-out,? Smith said. ?We prepare the same way. I get down on my knees pray and thank the good Lord for blessing me with these talents. My team steps up and I happen to be along right there with them.?
Reach Repository sports writer Todd Porter at (330) 580-8340 or e-mail: [email protected]

Troy Smith By the Numbers
n 30 TD passes, 5 interceptions this season; 46-9 ratio over last two seasons.
n 1,035 rushing yards with 12 TDs last two years.
n Responsible for 15.5 points per game this year.
n Won 19 straight games as a starter.
n 21-1 as starter last two years.
n Has completed 63 percent (416 of 656) of his passes in his career for 5,685 yards, 54 TDs and 12 interceptions. n Is four TD passes shy of passing Bobby Hoying?s OSU career TD pass record of 57.
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Dispatch

Unfinished business
Smith, Buckeyes not resting on glory of 12-0 regular season
Friday, December 01, 2006
Tim May
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
20061201-Pc-E13-0600.jpg
</IMG> Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith returns to the practice field today in preparation for the national championship game Jan. 8.


Fat and happy is no way to go into a national championship game, and quarterback Troy Smith pledged that is not the way Ohio State will show up Jan. 8 in Glendale, Ariz. That?s even though the Buckeyes clinched their spot almost two weeks ago and are in the midst of a 51-day layoff. And that?s even though several players are up for national awards, including Smith, the front-runner for the Heisman Trophy. "We?re not finished, not by a long shot," Smith said yesterday. "Everybody?s thirst and hunger was not just to get through the regular season. It was to have a chance at a national championship. "And we do have that chance. This is the beginning of the end, but it doesn?t seem that way to everybody. Everybody?s focus that plays on this team is to finish the season."
Along with getting back to practice today for the first time since a 42-39 win over Michigan on Nov. 18, the Buckeyes will spend Saturday like everyone else pondering the big question: Who are they going to play?
It will be Southern California if the Trojans can beat cross-town rival UCLA. If not, it could be Florida, which takes on Arkansas for the Southeastern Conference championship Saturday, or Michigan again, depending on how the polls and the computer ratings of the Bowl Championship Series decipher the events.
Smith just knows it?s must-see TV on Saturday.
"If you are a college football player, I?m sure that you find time to plug into whatever TV you can to find whatever game is on and just watch football," he said of his plans Saturday. "I am a fan of college football, so I watch it every time I get the chance."
But then, a week later, college football fans will tune to see whether he sweeps to the Heisman. With that in mind, he was reminded that four of the past five Heisman winners who went on to play in the national championship game lost ? Florida State?s Chris Weinke in 2000, Nebraska?s Eric Crouch in 2001, Oklahoma?s Jason White in 2003 and Southern California?s Reggie Bush last year. USC?s Matt Leinart won it and the title in 2004. USC?s Carson Palmer, the 2002 winner, did not play in the championship game.
"I don?t buy into superstitions. I don?t buy into previous things that happened to guys who aren?t me who aren?t in my situation," Smith said. "I can?t really talk about the success of a Heisman winner, because I am not a Heisman winner yet. I am up for the award, I am up for a couple of things, but there is always a good chance I might not receive the things that you get so much publicity about.
"I can only speak for myself and how strongly I feel about my team, and I know we are getting ready to play on the biggest stage. And I know we will be ready."
[email protected]
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Telegraph-Forum


Smith: 'It's always been about team
By Jon Spencer
T-F staff

COLUMBUS -- Watching the Heisman Trophy ceremony has never been must-see TV in Troy Smith's household. It won't be this year, either, for one simple reason: His family will be on hand for Times Square festivities Dec. 9, when the Ohio State quarterback accepts the hallowed, stiff-arming award.
Seeing my mother's face ... I've never been to New York. I'm sure we'll both enjoy it tremendously," Smith said Thursday in probably his final interview before being honored as college football's best player. "The last one I watched was when (Texas running back) Ricky Williams won (in 1998). I remember him talking and thinking, 'I wonder what's going on in his head?' "

Reporters participating in Thursday's teleconference wondered the same thing about Smith, but he wasn't very forthcoming. In fact, he said he hasn't begun to think about an acceptance speech.
"I don't believe in writing something down and then reciting it," Smith said. "I might stumble over a line. If I get a chance to speak, (my speech) will be one of gratitude and appreciation for my teammates and for being (at the ceremony). It's going to be head-over-heels excitement just being there."
Afraid of jinxing himself, Smith wouldn't acknowledge the Heisman is his. Apparently he is the only one who hasn't heard a landslide victory for No. 10 is imminent.
None of his discussions with former Ohio State greats Eddie George, the last Buckeyes Heisman winner in 1995, or Archie Griffin, the only two-time recipient, have focused on the trip to New York City.
"When I talk to them, it's nowhere near the lines of the Heisman," Smith said. "It's about team, team, team and winning the game. It's always been about team. Everything else will take care of itself."
Honors have started rolling in for Smith. He was named the Big Ten MVP on offense and a first-team member of the Walter Camp All-American team. He led the conference in touchdown passes (a school-record 30) and in passing efficiency by completing 67 percent of his passes for 2,507 yards. Three of his five interceptions were deflections.
"He's definitely a great player," Michigan quarterback Chad Henne said after Smith guided the No. 1 Buckeyes to a 42-39 victory over the No. 2 Wolverines two weeks ago. "He proved that when pressure is on him, he can get out of the pocket and make plays. If he's leading the (Heisman) polls, I'm sure he's going to get it because he's a heckuva player."
Smith's overall stats aren't as good as those of his closest challenger, Notre Dame's Brady Quinn, or even in the same galaxy as the PlayStation numbers of Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan (4,589 yards, 51 TDs). But no one has played bigger on the biggest stages.
The senior co-captain, who will lead his 12-0 team into the BCS title game Jan. 8 in Glendale, Ariz., is 3-0 against Michigan. He also engineered impressive wins at
then-No. 2 Texas this season and over Notre Dame in the last Fiesta Bowl. The three 300-yard passing games in his career have come at the expense of the Wolverines (twice) and Irish. His 29 completions in this year's shootout with Michigan were a school record in the series.
"This game was not unlike all the other Michigan games, where he just comes to play with that fire, that intensity, that unstoppable nature, and he refuses to lose at anything, this game in particular," wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez said afterward. "This was kind of a microcosm of his whole career here."
Asked why he's been his best when the stakes are the highest, Smith said, "I guess it's just great preparation. Before every game I get on my knees and pray and thank the Lord for blessing me with these talents. It's a routine for me. The team steps up, so I have to be right there with them.
"I don't take the field trying to prove anything to anyone. I play within our scheme and try to prove to my teammates that I'm worthy of being on the field with them."
His 24-2 record as a starter is all the proof he needs. Ohio State's 19-game winning streak with the elusive, electrifying Smith at the controls should sway Heisman voters as well.
"I think (the Heisman) is a tremendous honor and a tremendous reflection of the team I'm on, the coaches I play for and the school I represent," Smith said. "To come back here and hoist that trophy would be great ... and make this a better place."
[email protected] 419-521-7239
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Troy and Kirk doing some badinage at the end about which team they would choose if they went head to head in NCAA 2007. Before which you had Troy doing a very good job fielding questions from Chris Fowler about the journey from last player given schollie to leading the charge for this years Heisman race. Asked if he had ever imagined this happening Troy was emphatic - certainly in his imagination. Plus, Troy fielded the normal question about next step after 1/8/2007 -the NFL, taking the route that it is playmakers that count, not size alone.

As always, Troy gave lots of credit to the team around him.

Overall a good interview.
 
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NaS a Troy Look Alike

The New York rapper Nas about to drop Hip Hop is Dead (go buy it December 19th) has an uncanny similarity to Troy anyone else agree ?

It just so happens that Nas is my favorite artist and Troy is my favorite football player.
nas.JPG
<<< Nas
 
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CPD

Heisman runaway

Ohio State senior quarterback Troy Smith is the clear choice for a landslide win

Sunday, December 03, 2006

Doug Lesmerises
Plain Dealer Reporter

Columbus -- In six days, Troy Smith is going to be named the winner of the 72nd Heisman Trophy.
Ohio State's senior quarterback won't receive every one of the 924 first-place votes from the 870 media members, 53 former Heisman winners and one ballot cast on behalf of a cumulative online fan vote. But every indication, including unanimous support in two separate 10-voter straw polls, is he might get almost all of them in what should be one of the bigger landslides in Heisman history.
"I'm just wondering if he will be a unanimous winner and if he's finished with the final draft of his acceptance speech," said Heisman voter Kirk Bohls of the American-Statesman in Austin, Texas.
The Cleveland native's individual campaign unfolded like a perfect touchdown play, from Ohio State holding on to the No. 1 ranking all season with a 12-0 record, to Smith staying healthy, to co-preseason favorites Brady Quinn of Notre Dame (bad early game against Michigan) and Oklahoma running back Adrian Peterson (broken collarbone) knocking themselves out of the running.
"The big boys were taken out early, and Smith didn't do anything to hurt himself," said Chris Huston, who runs the Web site heismanpundit.com. "Half the battle is not to screw up."
Smith's 2,507 passing yards will be the fewest for a Heisman-winning quarterback since Vinny Testaverde in 1986, though Smith was tied for fifth in the nation in touchdown passes and was fourth in passer rating going into this final weekend of the regular season. His raw stats may lead a few voters to other candidates.
But the only misstep sure to cost Smith at least two votes happened two years ago. The Glenville High grad accepted $500 from a booster and was subsequently suspended for the 2004 Alamo Bowl and the first game of his junior season in 2005. John Hoover of the Tulsa, Okla., World and at least one other voter have said they will not vote for Smith for that reason. Hoover, who originally posted his thinking in an online blog that drew the ire of hoards of Buckeyes fans, made the analogy that convicted felons cannot be elected president.
"It doesn't matter if he turned his life around and became the world's greatest citizen, the rule stands, no ex-cons in the White House," Hoover said. "It's the highest office in our government, just like the Heisman is the highest individual [college football] award."
Though Hoover said he voted Smith to the first team on his All-America ballot, "I guess I just hold the Heisman Trophy in a different regard. . . . I believe it should also represent some high moral standards."
Tim Henning, the spokesman for the Heisman Trophy Trust, said there are no rules governing the Heisman voting beyond a two-sentence direction that ends with "the recipient must be in compliance with the laws defining an NCAA student-athlete."
"Voters have flexibility, which is one of the things that makes our award interesting," Henning said. "If a voter wanted to vote for a benchwarmer on a Division III team, they could."
Smith is currently in compliance with NCAA rules, though Henning did say that, to the Trust's knowledge, no past Heisman winner has an NCAA violation on his r?sum?. Heisman campaigns have been derailed in the past by off-the-field transgressions. The most recent example was the arrest and two-game suspension of Florida State receiver Peter Warrick in 1999, who went from the favorite to a sixth-place finisher not even invited to the ceremony to watch Wisconsin's Ron Dayne win the Heisman.
"I have no doubt that without the incident, [Warrick] would have finished third," said Bob Thomas, who covers Florida State for the Florida Times-Union. "I would contend that Smith's transgressions are so far in the past now that they will have no bearing on the balloting at all."
A survey of eight more Heisman voters, besides Hoover, found that to be a popular opinion. Some voters did not even remember Smith's suspension.
"There's no doubt in my mind he's the top player in the country this season," said Michael Pointer of the Indianapolis Star. "If there had been a continual pattern of trouble, I might feel differently voting for him. But his performance this year speaks for itself."
Said Herb Gould of the Chicago Sun-Times, "If there was a razor-thin race involving Smith and someone else, maybe it would have an influence. He's so obvious a choice: The best player on the best team."
"Troy Smith has won the Heisman on the field this season," said Joseph Duarte of the Houston Chronicle. "He paid his dues for his poor choice."
Revisiting the suspension in an interview last week, Smith said, "That's a part of my life."
But he doesn't believe it to be a relevant part of his Heisman credentials. "I think everybody is entitled to their own opinions," Smith said. "Whether it's for a prestigious trophy or whether it's just you as a person, there's going to be people that are for you, and there's going to be people who are not for you. What can you do about that?
"In essence, you see how shallow some people are if they continue to harp on that. Me, as a man, I could never say I'm going to do this to you because you did this in the past. What's in the past is in the past. You live and you learn, now let's more forward, because it's about moving forward."
Thursday, Smith will move on to Orlando, Fla., for the "College Football Awards Show," then Friday, it's on to New York. Saturday night, he'll move into Heisman history.
To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: [email protected], 216-999-4479
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CPD

Bill Livingston
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[FONT=arial,sans-serif]On the field, OSU's Smith has no peers [/FONT]


[FONT=arial,sans-serif]Sunday, December 03, 2006 [/FONT]

[FONT=arial,sans-serif]Bill Livingston[/FONT]
[FONT=arial,sans-serif]Plain Dealer Columnist [/FONT]

[FONT=arial,sans-serif]Contrary to the advertising, the Heisman Trophy doesn't neces sarily go to the most outstanding player in college football. [/FONT]
[FONT=arial,sans-serif]Only one primarily defensive player (Michigan's Charles Woodson) has won it. No freshmen or sophomores have won (although Georgia freshman Herschel Walker certainly should have in 1980). Superb players on so-so teams (Larry Fitzgerald, Pitt, 2003) lost to so-so players on superb teams (Jason White, Oklahoma, 2003). [/FONT]
[FONT=arial,sans-serif]Off-the-field character was not an issue when Johnny Rodgers of Nebraska won in 1972, although he drove the getaway car in a robbery of a gas station during his Cornhusker career.[/FONT]
So it is really more like "The Best Upperclassman on Offense on a Really Good Division I-A Team, and Off-the-Field High Jinks Don't Count."
Troy Smith was the winner on my ballot. On Saturday, the Glenville High School and Ohio State graduate will accept the bronze statuette after a probable landslide victory.
But there are two Troys, the sometimes troubled Troy away from the game and the nearly error-free Troy on the field. I voted for the second one.
As for Smith's 2-year-old suspension for taking $500 from an OSU booster, a mistake that gives some voters pause, he made restitution and served his two-game penalty.
But he also made racially charged allegations to Sports Illustrated this summer about a high school basketball incident in which he knocked out a Toledo St. John's player with a blindside elbow. It was not an issue because Smith lost his head when he was a teenager. It was an issue because what he said to S.I. as a fifth-year senior was disputed by St. John's coaches and players, one of whom almost sued him. Few reporters bothered to check with them.
Between the lines, Smith was unmatched this year in college football. Outside them, he played the race card when the incident otherwise would have faded away.
On the field, he has a sound, fundamental base. On his scrambling touchdown pass against Penn State, he was sure to set his feet before he threw.
As for his size, by walking alongside him, a trick learned from NBA scouts, I say he is 6 feet tall. It is not his listed 6-1, but not the rumored 5-10, either. Drew Brees has done well in the NFL at his size.
Success was supposed to be easy with Smith's supporting cast. OSU has depth at running back, offensive line, and, especially, wide receiver. "I just pass the ball to them," Smith said. But he made it all work.
OSU could run spread formations with four or five wideouts because Smith would usually make the right read or elude an unblocked rusher.
He severely curtailed his impulse to run when the first receiver wasn't open, learning to make his "progressions," to read the defense, to trust other people. It is one of the hardest things a great athlete has to do. Michael Vick, six years a pro, still hasn't mastered it.
He simply was one of the best college quarterbacks I ever saw. He was great in the biggest games -Texas, Notre Dame, Michigan three times. Although OSU quarterbacks have no tradition of NFL success, he has a great future.
Provided he makes his progressions off the field, too. Provided he doesn't ruin it.
To reach Bill Livingston:
[email protected], 216-999-4672
Previous columns online:
cleveland.com/columns
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