The Heisman finalists have been announced: Lamar Jackson of Lousiville, Deshaun Watson of Clemson, Dede Westbrook and Baker Mayfield of Oklahoma, and Jabrill Peppers of Michigan. All five of these players are extremely deserving. Instead of doing a final Heisman watch, we've decided to do a mock ballot. The Sports Examiner doesn't have an actual vote, but this is how we would vote. Let's get started.
Honorable Mentions:
J.T. Barrett, Ohio State- Barrett had an up-and-down season, but at the end of the day he led his team into the playoffs. Had he won the Big 10, there is a good chance that he would have been invited to New York.
Jake Browning, Washington- Browning had a hell of a season up until his run-in with USC. Not only did Washington pick up their only loss of the season, but Browning threw two picks and ran for -36 rushing yards.
Dede Westbrook, Oklahoma- Westbrook was easily the best wide receiver in college football this year, especially thanks to the brilliant play of QB Baker Mayfield. Whether or not he deserves to be a Heisman finalist is debatable, but he definitely deserves some love.
Jalen Hurts, Alabama- I had a really tough time with this one, but I have to leave Hurts off. Yes, he is the quarterback of the best team in the nation, but that doesn't automatically give him a finalist spot. He had too many weak performances to make the ballot.
Zach Terrell, Western Michigan- Terrell and Hurts are the only QBs to start for undefeated teams. Unfortunately, he plays for Western Michigan, so he really flew under-the-radar this season. He should still get some votes though.
Third Place:
Jabrill Peppers, Michigan
Out of all of the Heisman contenders, Peppers is the most unique. No one else had such a big impact on offense, defense, and special teams. There is probably no player that has made such a huge impact this year. Granted, his stats weren't eye-popping, but for Peppers that's not an issue. His Heisman candidacy is built on his all-world athleticism, not his yards per carry.
Second Place:
Deshaun Watson, Clemson
The first half of Deshaun Watson's season wasn't great, but Clemson was undefeated, so he hung around in the conversation. The second half of the season was a different story. Sure, Clemson lost to Pitt, but Watson played some lights-out football. I was very tempted to put him at #1, but I just couldn't do it.
First Place:
Lamar Jackson, Louisville
At the end of the day, I put Jackson at the top. No one else this year has been anywhere close to as outstanding as Jackson has. Sure, things got a little rough at the end, but that shouldn't erase everything else that happened.
Thanks for reading all our posts this season. Check back soon for more articles.
No comments:
Post a Comment