Capping the five Heisman finalists
The Heisman Trophy voters have narrowed their choices down to five players this week and sportsbooks have updated their odds. Here?s a look at the finalists and their odds heading into Saturday?s Heisman Trophy presentation.
Mark Ingram RB (Alabama Crimson Tide): -350
Nothing says Heisman like leading your team to the promised land. The Crimson Tide?s running back is hoping to follow in the footsteps of past winners Jason White, Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, Troy Smith and Sam Bradford, who picked up the hardware after leading their programs to the BCS title game.
Ingram is hot off a 113-yard, three-touchdown performance against the Florida defense in the SEC championship, despite being slowed by a hip pointer. That performance alone may have clinched the Heisman for the sophomore stud.
Colt McCoy QB (Texas Longhorns): +125
McCoy probably deserved this award more last season. But, after getting snubbed in 2008, the Heisman voters could see to it that the Longhorns quarterback gets his due. McCoy ranked 14th in the country in passing per game (270.8) and has Texas contending for the national title on Jan. 7.
The biggest nod in McCoy?s favor is that the voters love quarterbacks. The last three winners were all under center and in this decade, only one Heisman recipient has played a position other than QB. His only competition at the position is Florida?s TimTebow, who already has a Heisman and is coming off a loss in the SEC championship. Unfortunately for Tebow, voters are all about ?What have you done for me lately??
Toby Gerhart RB (Stanford Cardinal): +300
If you finish second in the land in rushing and play in a BCS league, you deserve some credit. Gerhart burst onto the national scene with huge games against Oregon, USC and Notre Dame, closing out his college career with a 205-yard, three-touchdown show in a win over the Irish.
The knock against Gerhart is that he plays for an 8-4 team in the Pac-10. Well, that and the fact that he's a white running back. The Cardinal covered some serious ground this year with wins over the conference?s top teams, but a trip to El Paso to face a shell of the Sooners team in the Sun Bowl won?t be enough to convince voters. Maybe Stanford can get ?lucky? with their budding freshman QB in the next few seasons.
Ndamukong Suh DT (Nebraska Cornhuskers): +500
If Heisman voters could choose with their hearts instead of their heads, the Cornhuskers' dominating defensive tackle would be this year?s Heisman and the first defensive player to win the award since Charles Woodson at Michigan in 1997. The senior was second in the Big 12 in tackles for a loss and totaled 12 sacks on the year.
Suh was named the Bronco Nagurski Trophy winner earlier this week as college football?s top defensive player. Besides the Heisman, he?s also in the running for a slew of other awards and is projected to be the second-overall draft choice in many mock NFL 2010 drafts.
Tim Tebow QB (Florida Gators): +1500
Tebow?s stock plummeted after this weekend?s loss to Alabama. The senior quarterback was priced at +350 to win the Heisman in the middle of November and become just the second player to win the award twice. Archie Griffin can sleep soundly at night knowing his record is safe and sound for another year.
Tebow didn?t shoot himself in the foot. He was solid in the conference title game, passing for 247 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He also added 63 yards on the ground. But in the end, Bama was just too much for Superman.
The Heisman Trophy voters have narrowed their choices down to five players this week and sportsbooks have updated their odds. Here?s a look at the finalists and their odds heading into Saturday?s Heisman Trophy presentation.
Mark Ingram RB (Alabama Crimson Tide): -350
Nothing says Heisman like leading your team to the promised land. The Crimson Tide?s running back is hoping to follow in the footsteps of past winners Jason White, Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, Troy Smith and Sam Bradford, who picked up the hardware after leading their programs to the BCS title game.
Ingram is hot off a 113-yard, three-touchdown performance against the Florida defense in the SEC championship, despite being slowed by a hip pointer. That performance alone may have clinched the Heisman for the sophomore stud.
Colt McCoy QB (Texas Longhorns): +125
McCoy probably deserved this award more last season. But, after getting snubbed in 2008, the Heisman voters could see to it that the Longhorns quarterback gets his due. McCoy ranked 14th in the country in passing per game (270.8) and has Texas contending for the national title on Jan. 7.
The biggest nod in McCoy?s favor is that the voters love quarterbacks. The last three winners were all under center and in this decade, only one Heisman recipient has played a position other than QB. His only competition at the position is Florida?s TimTebow, who already has a Heisman and is coming off a loss in the SEC championship. Unfortunately for Tebow, voters are all about ?What have you done for me lately??
Toby Gerhart RB (Stanford Cardinal): +300
If you finish second in the land in rushing and play in a BCS league, you deserve some credit. Gerhart burst onto the national scene with huge games against Oregon, USC and Notre Dame, closing out his college career with a 205-yard, three-touchdown show in a win over the Irish.
The knock against Gerhart is that he plays for an 8-4 team in the Pac-10. Well, that and the fact that he's a white running back. The Cardinal covered some serious ground this year with wins over the conference?s top teams, but a trip to El Paso to face a shell of the Sooners team in the Sun Bowl won?t be enough to convince voters. Maybe Stanford can get ?lucky? with their budding freshman QB in the next few seasons.
Ndamukong Suh DT (Nebraska Cornhuskers): +500
If Heisman voters could choose with their hearts instead of their heads, the Cornhuskers' dominating defensive tackle would be this year?s Heisman and the first defensive player to win the award since Charles Woodson at Michigan in 1997. The senior was second in the Big 12 in tackles for a loss and totaled 12 sacks on the year.
Suh was named the Bronco Nagurski Trophy winner earlier this week as college football?s top defensive player. Besides the Heisman, he?s also in the running for a slew of other awards and is projected to be the second-overall draft choice in many mock NFL 2010 drafts.
Tim Tebow QB (Florida Gators): +1500
Tebow?s stock plummeted after this weekend?s loss to Alabama. The senior quarterback was priced at +350 to win the Heisman in the middle of November and become just the second player to win the award twice. Archie Griffin can sleep soundly at night knowing his record is safe and sound for another year.
Tebow didn?t shoot himself in the foot. He was solid in the conference title game, passing for 247 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He also added 63 yards on the ground. But in the end, Bama was just too much for Superman.
