Heisman Contenders
This is in no particular order.
Matt Leinart, QB, Southern Cal- For the second year in a row the Heisman winner will be returning to his team (QB Jason White of Oklahoma last season) and it's rather difficult to imagine Leinart, at the very least, not making it to New York. Leinart has a plethora of weapons at his disposal including another top contender, tailback hybrid Reggie Bush, and slew of other talented skill position players including tailback LenDale White and wide receivers Dwayne Jarrett and Steve Smith. The only obstacle standing between Leinart joining Ohio State's Archie Griffin as the only two time Heisman winner is his own teammate, the aforementioned Reggie Bush.
Adrian Peterson, RB, Oklahoma- Peterson had an absolutely sensational frehsman season rushing for 1800+ yards and scoring 15 touchdowns as he made it to the Heisman presentation in New York and led Oklahoma made a second consecutive appearance in the BCS national championship game. With QB Jason White and WR Mark Clayton both departed, Peterson should carry the brunt of Oklahoma's offensive production in 2005. Peterson has scary potential as Sooners head coach actually eased him into college ball in 2004. It's not unrealistic to think that he could top 2,000 yards and produce 20+ touchdowns.
Vince Young, QB, Texas- Ever since his game-changing performance against Michigan in the Rose Bowl last season, Young has been hyped as the next Michael Vick. It has also helped that his Longhorns are billed as a national title contender heading in 2005. With Cedric Benson gone, Young will need to use his arm and legs to make plays and move the Texas offense. Young is an elusive runner and should put up good stats but to truly be a Heisman contender, he must improve his passing. Young has a 12-11 touchdowns to interceptions ratio last season, not exactly Heisman-caliber. Provided that his passing stats improve, Young may be right up there with Bush and Leinart as the top Heisman canidates.
Reggie Bush, "RB", Southern Cal- Reggie Bush may very well be the most talented player in the country. Bush can simply do it all, hence my loose use of the title running back. Bush is capable of running the ball, catching the ball and returning kicks. He has a chance to make gamebreaking plays whenever the ball is in his hands and he puts up big numbers. Just as with his teammate Leinart, it is hard to imagine Bush not being one of the final five in New York on Heisman night.
DeAngelo Williams, RB, Memphis- Williams is one of the best pure tailbacks in the nation this season. After rushing for nearly 1500 yards as a sophomore in 2003, Williams rebounded with a nearly 2000 yard season and doubled his touchdown production from 10 in 2003 to 22 in 2004. Williams is likely destined to be one of the top players in the 2006 NFL Draft and the only thing that may hold him back as a Heisman candidate is playing in Conference USA on an average Memphis team.
Others:
Chris Leak, QB, Florida
Omar Jacobs, QB, Bowling Green
Reggie McNeal, QB, Texas A&M
Derek Hagan, WR, Arizona State
Ted Ginn Jr., WR, Ohio State
My Sleeper- Sam Keller, QB, Arizona State
Matt Leinart, QB, Southern Cal- For the second year in a row the Heisman winner will be returning to his team (QB Jason White of Oklahoma last season) and it's rather difficult to imagine Leinart, at the very least, not making it to New York. Leinart has a plethora of weapons at his disposal including another top contender, tailback hybrid Reggie Bush, and slew of other talented skill position players including tailback LenDale White and wide receivers Dwayne Jarrett and Steve Smith. The only obstacle standing between Leinart joining Ohio State's Archie Griffin as the only two time Heisman winner is his own teammate, the aforementioned Reggie Bush.
Adrian Peterson, RB, Oklahoma- Peterson had an absolutely sensational frehsman season rushing for 1800+ yards and scoring 15 touchdowns as he made it to the Heisman presentation in New York and led Oklahoma made a second consecutive appearance in the BCS national championship game. With QB Jason White and WR Mark Clayton both departed, Peterson should carry the brunt of Oklahoma's offensive production in 2005. Peterson has scary potential as Sooners head coach actually eased him into college ball in 2004. It's not unrealistic to think that he could top 2,000 yards and produce 20+ touchdowns.
Vince Young, QB, Texas- Ever since his game-changing performance against Michigan in the Rose Bowl last season, Young has been hyped as the next Michael Vick. It has also helped that his Longhorns are billed as a national title contender heading in 2005. With Cedric Benson gone, Young will need to use his arm and legs to make plays and move the Texas offense. Young is an elusive runner and should put up good stats but to truly be a Heisman contender, he must improve his passing. Young has a 12-11 touchdowns to interceptions ratio last season, not exactly Heisman-caliber. Provided that his passing stats improve, Young may be right up there with Bush and Leinart as the top Heisman canidates.
Reggie Bush, "RB", Southern Cal- Reggie Bush may very well be the most talented player in the country. Bush can simply do it all, hence my loose use of the title running back. Bush is capable of running the ball, catching the ball and returning kicks. He has a chance to make gamebreaking plays whenever the ball is in his hands and he puts up big numbers. Just as with his teammate Leinart, it is hard to imagine Bush not being one of the final five in New York on Heisman night.
DeAngelo Williams, RB, Memphis- Williams is one of the best pure tailbacks in the nation this season. After rushing for nearly 1500 yards as a sophomore in 2003, Williams rebounded with a nearly 2000 yard season and doubled his touchdown production from 10 in 2003 to 22 in 2004. Williams is likely destined to be one of the top players in the 2006 NFL Draft and the only thing that may hold him back as a Heisman candidate is playing in Conference USA on an average Memphis team.
Others:
Chris Leak, QB, Florida
Omar Jacobs, QB, Bowling Green
Reggie McNeal, QB, Texas A&M
Derek Hagan, WR, Arizona State
Ted Ginn Jr., WR, Ohio State
My Sleeper- Sam Keller, QB, Arizona State
posted by The Nittany Blog at 4:47 PM
2 Comments:
Don't forget that OU is also losing 3 OLinemen (2 were All-Americans and the other was All-Big XII.
Excellent, that was really well explained and helpful
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