heisman watch

[smazza]

Trophy case

Smith may pull off award haul that Young couldn't

Posted: Monday October 9, 2006 2:10AM; Updated: Monday October 9, 2006 11:46AM

 

Troy Smith, who ran for 611 yards last year, has run for 78 in 2006, 54 of which came in Saturday's 35-7 win over Bowling Green.

Matthew Emmons/US PRESSWIRE

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Many have called Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith "this year's Vince Young" because of Smith's and Young's ability to both run and throw the ball. But lost among Young's many crazy-legged highlights from the Rose Bowl is that the Texas quarterback last year, for the most part, kept his wheels in the garage until absolutely necessary (Ohio State, Oklahoma State, USC) and beat foes more with his arm and improved knowledge of the offense. This year Smith seems to be doing the same thing. The Buckeyes senior, who averaged 55 rushing yards a game last year, has barely left the pocket in '06, rushing for only 12 yards a contest. The strategy probably cost Young the Heisman but won him a national championship. If Smith runs more, he may very well win both.

Beginning next week, the Watchman will rank the contenders from 1 to 10. So, for one last time, here are the candidates in alphabetical order.

Erik Ainge, Tennessee, QB, Jr.

Last week: 25 of 38 passing, 268 yards, 2 TDs; 4 rushes, minus-6 yards, 1 TD in a 51-33 victory at No. 10 Georgia

Season: 118 of 171 passing, 1,657 yards, 14 TDs; 5 INTs

Heisman-o-meter: First on the list, then off, now Ainge is back on again after a shockingly easy offensive performance against what had been the nation's No. 1 scoring defense. Granted, his offensive line gave him ample time all night to find his open receivers, but Ainge still had to find them, and he did. Let's see if he can play consistently and stay on the list for a while.

Up next: Oct. 21 vs. Alabama

Mike Hart, Michigan, RB, Jr.

Last week: 22 rushes, 122 yards in a 31-13 victory against Michigan State

Season: 157 rushes, 794 yards, 5 TDs

Heisman-o-meter: He was almost a one-man show on the opening drive, rushing six times for 33 yards before a holding penalty nullified his touchdown run. Then Hart, normally a skilled blocker, missed an assignment and almost got quarterback Chad Henne killed. He's a very good player but still sitting mid-pack among these 10.

Up next: Saturday at Penn State

Calvin Johnson, Georgia Tech, WR, Jr.

Last week: 10 receptions, 133 yards, 1 TD in a 27-23 victory against Maryland

Season: 35 receptions, 559 yards, 8 TDs

Heisman-o-meter: After I excluded Johnson from the list last week, Richard from Atlanta asked if he could have some of what I was smoking. The answer, ****, is no. (And I wasn't partying Ricky Williams-style anyway.) The Watchman will, however, admit that omitting Johnson was an error, considering that his production is finally starting to keep up with his mind-blowing ability.

Up next: Saturday at No. 12 Clemson

Chris Leak, Florida, QB, Sr.

Last week: 17 of 26 passing, 155 yards, 1 INT in a 23-10 victory against No. 9 LSU

Season: 101 of 156 passing, 1,395 yards, 14 TDs, 5 INTs

Heisman-o-meter: Leak gave another steady performance, this time against what had been a nasty LSU defense. The two-quarterback system definitely has impacted his production of late, though, and while he still gets credit for leading the No. 2 team in the country to some hard-fought wins, he has lost ground to many on this list.

Up next: Saturday at No. 11 Auburn

[smazza]

Nate Longshore, Cal, QB, Soph.

 

Nate Longshore has thrown for 1,325 yards and 17 touchdowns since the Golden Bears' season-opening loss against Tennessee.

Scott A. Miller/US PRESSWIRE

 

 

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Last week: 14 of 26 passing, 189 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT; 1 rush, 1 yard, 1 TD in a 45-24 victory against No. 11 Oregon

Season: 102 of 157 passing, 1,410 yards, 17 TDs, 5 INTs

Heisman-o-meter: Since Cal's implosion in the opener at Tennessee, Longshore has played as well as any quarterback in the country, throwing for 17 touchdowns against four interceptions in the last five games. And considering that the Vols contest was Longshore's first full game since 2003, the Watchman is willing to grade that effort leniently.

Up next: Saturday at Washington State

Adrian Peterson, Oklahoma, RB, Jr.

Last week: 25 rushes, 109 yards, 1 TD in a 28-10 loss against No. 7 Texas (in Dallas)

Season: 142 rushes, 752 yards, 8 TDs

Heisman-o-meter: No one runs tougher than this workhorse, who pounded a stout Longhorns run defense for every inch available. One factor, though, could cost Peterson votes to Ohio State's Smith: Smith was able to lead his team to a victory over Texas while Peterson was not.

Up next: Saturday vs. Iowa State

Brady Quinn, Notre Dame, QB, Sr.

Last week: 27 of 37 passing, 232 yards, 3 TDs in a 31-10 victory against Stanford

Season: 148 of 233 passing, 1,634 yards, 16 TDs, 4 INTs

Heisman-o-meter: This was a typical Quinn-like effort: Attack different parts of the field, get multiple receivers involved (seven, in the case Saturday) and methodically move the ball downfield. The Watchman raised this question last year at this time and is wondering again: Has coach Charlie Weis made Quinn or does Quinn make Weis? I lean to the former.

Up next: Oct. 21 vs. UCLA

Steve Slaton, West Virginia, RB, Soph.

Last week: 26 rushes, 185 yards, 1 TD in a 42-14 victory against Mississippi State

Season: 112 rushes, 768 yards, 7 TDs

Heisman-o-meter: Numbers don't tell the whole story here. This game was much closer than the score indicates, and Slaton's performance was much better than his numbers show, considering the Bulldogs' run defense had allowed only one 100-yard rusher all season. The Watchman has been a Slaton backer since the Sugar Bowl, but I'm wondering if he will fight the same lack-of-competition bias that Garrett Wolfe is battling.

Up next: Saturday vs. Syracuse

Troy Smith, Ohio State, QB, Sr.

Last week: 17 of 20 passing, 191 yards, 3 TDs; 7 rushes, 54 yards in a 35-7 victory against Bowling Green

Season: 101 of 148 passing, 1,261 yards, 15 TDs, 2 INTs

Heisman-o-meter: Smith threw only three incompletions and had his best running day this year, including a 34-yard scramble on third-and-26 that began with a low shotgun snap and ended with a slalomly tour of the 'Shoe. He's been a sniper passing the ball; if he returns the running dimension to his game, watch out.

Up next: Saturday at Michigan State

Garrett Wolfe, Northern Illinois, RB, Sr.

Last week: 29 rushes, 162 yards, 2 TDs in a 28-25 victory at Miami (Ohio)

Season: 156 rushes, 1,343 yards, 13 TDs; 13 receptions, 162 yards, 1 TD

Heisman-o-meter: A 162-yard rushing night is never disappointing, but the Watchman was amped at the possibility of seeing Wolfe flirt with 300. Oh well. The Wolfe bandwagon has definitely picked up followers, and he must continue rolling or risk losing the considerable buzz factor he's built.

Up next: Saturday at Western Michigan

[sdgukhsdgl]

pretty generous to include Longshore in that list when he got benched during the UT game

[smazza]

see his numbers?

[sdgukhsdgl]

Nate Longshore  11/20 1int    85yds   2 sacks  

against a real team

[Velcro]

Longhsore won't be in any heisman running...

even in this watered down talent season...  

There are no Reggie Bush's out there (paid or not), but the heisman will probably end up going to someone on the best team in the country... right now, Troy Smith definitely has the leg up.  If there are no undefeated teams, I bet Quinn wins it.

[sdgukhsdgl]

Quinn hasn't been that good, hell Ainge has better stats than Quinn

[Velcro]

Tennessee would have to win the Nat'l championship for Ainge to win it... Quinn has a leg up because he is for ND... in a perfect world, there would be no ND bias...  

[JoeB]

Quinn's numbers are pretty good actually.  He's on pace for roughly 40 TDs.  Even his worst game (Michigan), he threw for around 250 and 3 scores.  He did alot more against a mediocre Penn State team than frontrunner Troy Smith.  Ainge will fall off the radar in the next few weeks.

[sdgukhsdgl]

of course the media is all over ND's &^%$ , I am just saying for all the hype QUinn gets, Ainge has better stats for now

Quinn will end up with better number because ND's remaining schedule is terrible, except for the final game at USC