Archive | November, 2010

The Heismanpundit.com Heisman Poll, Week 13

By on November 30, 2010 in Heismanpundit Straw Poll

Total Points (with first place votes in parentheses)

1. Cameron Newton, QB, Auburn — 33 (11)

2. (tie) Andrew Luck, QB, Stanford — 14 (2)

2. (tie) LaMichael James, RB, Oregon — 14

4. Kellen Moore, QB, Boise State — 13

5. Justin Blackmon, WR, Oklahoma State — 3

6. Andrew Dalton, QB, TCU — 1

About the poll
The HeismanPundit.com Heisman Poll is made up of 13 Heisman voters from across the country. They vote for three players each week. Tabulations are made on a 3-2-1 basis, with three points awarded for a first-place vote, two points for a second-place vote and one point for a third-place vote.  The last two years the Heismanpundit poll was the most accurate in the country, picking five of the top six finishers in the Heisman vote in 2008 and the top four in 2009.

Members of the panel include: Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel, Teddy Greenstein and Brian Hamilton of the Chicago Tribune, Olin Buchanan and Tom Dienhart of Rivals.com, Jenni Carlson of The Oklahoman, Bruce Feldman of ESPN.com, J.B. Morris of ESPN the Magazine, Austin Murphy, B.J. Schecter and Stewart Mandel of Sports Illustrated, plus Dick Weiss of the New York Daily News.

Chris Huston, owner of Heismanpundit.com, coordinates and also votes in the weekly poll.

HP’s Thoughts
While Newton is the sure winner, things are not so clear when it comes to who will finish as the runner up.  James, Moore and a surging Luck are all vying for that second slot.  James and Moore each have one more game to state their case, while Luck has finished his season.  I believe that if James doesn’t play well against the Beavers, it could open the door for Luck to be the fourth finalist in New York.

Heisman Game of the Week
Oregon at Oregon State — This is LaMichael James’ last chance to impress Heisman voters.  He’ll have the benefit of ESPN Game Day descending upon Corvallis and the Ducks will be going for a BCS title bid, so many eyes will be on this game.  At this point, there is very little James can do–short of a 350-yard-plus explosion–to overtake Newton’s candidacy, but he can secure his spot as the highest-placing Duck in Heisman history.

Player to Watch
Kellen Moore — What he does against Utah State won’t have a whole lot of bearing on the Heisman race, but I’m curious to see how Moore and the Broncos bounce back from that devastating loss to Nevada last weekend.  If Moore can finish strong, he still has a chance to be the Heisman runner up–no small feat for a quarterback from Boise State.

This Week in Heisman History
Reggie Bush rushed for 260 yards and two touchdowns on just 24 carries to lead USC over UCLA, 66-19, in 2005.  Bush would later go on to win the Heisman with the largest percentage of first-place votes in history, beating out Vince Young of Texas and teammate Matt Leinart.  But it was all for naught, as the trophy was later vacated.

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Score Another One For the Mobile Quarterbacks

By on November 29, 2010 in General CFB

Could the age of the statue-like quarterback claiming the Heisman statue be going bye-bye?

With Cam Newton’s pending triumph, it means four of the last eight quarterbacks to win the Heisman–and three of the last four–have been of the more mobile variety.  A fifth quarterback–Vince Young–is considered by many as a guy who probably should have won.

Why the move by the Heisman electorate toward mobility?  I think, simply put, the mobile quarterbacks are more appealing to watch.  They produce yardage and touchdowns in the air and on the ground and have a unique ability to take over a game.  They are also the featured weapon in most of the spread offenses that are currently dominating college football.

I think we’ll still see occasional pocket passers in the mold of Sam Bradford winning the Heisman, but only within the context of the current en vogue, wide-open spread systems.  

The day of the I-formation, pro-style passer winning the trophy may be long gone.

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Heisman News Round Up

By on November 29, 2010 in Heisman News

Thayer Evans of Fox Sports Continues His Witch Hunt Against Auburn’s Cam Newton

Newton all but seals up trophy with comeback win over Alabama?

Heisman update: Newton, James, Moore, Luck?

Michigan QB Denard Robinson an unlikely Heisman hopeful

John Adams: Theory about Newton drags down Heisman?

Cam Newton extends lead in Heisman poll?

What We Learned: Newton should win Heisman

Holy Heisman, the Newton saga?

Heisman or not, Ponder lives up to hype

Oregon football: LaMichael James is shaken, but never deterred?

Daily Duck: Iron LaMike

Allegations Complicate Heisman Trophy Voting

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If the Vote Was Held Today

By on November 29, 2010 in Uncategorized

1. Cameron Newton

2. Kellen Moore

3. LaMichael James

4. Andrew Luck

5. Andy Dalton

6. Justin Blackmon

7. Terrelle Pryor

8. Denard Robinson

9. Ryan Mallett

10. Tyrod Taylor

What positions have the most potential to change?

Not the top spot.  This race has been locked up by Newton.  And I believe that Moore is a comfortable second, though a huge game by James against Oregon State might cause the two to swap spots.  I think there is also a possibility that if James stinks up the joint against the Beavers, Luck–whose support has grown steadily these past couple weeks–might eat into his West Coast support enough to snag a trip to New York along with the main three contenders.  I think that Blackmon could very well end up in fifth, but my sense now is that Dalton will get extra props in the Southwest for his work in helping TCU go undefeated;  plus, OSU just lost.  Pryor and Robinson will both get some random support in the Midwest, with Pryor picking up a bit more due to the somewhat large Buckeye ex-Heisman contingent.  I think Taylor will get some residual support in the Mid-Atlantic while Ryan Mallett will get some stray votes down South.

We’ll see how the HP Heisman Poll jibes with these thoughts on Tuesday.

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HP Fantasy Challenge Results, Week 13

By on November 29, 2010 in Uncategorized

For latest updated results page, go here.

For results file, click here.

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HP’s Top 10 Teams, Week 13

By on November 28, 2010 in The HP Top 10 Teams

1. Oregon

2. Auburn

3. Stanford

4. TCU

5. Wisconsin

6. Arkansas

7. Ohio State

8. Boise State

9. Texas A&M

10. Virginia Tech

On the cusp: Michigan State, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Oklahoma State, Nevada

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Moore Will Be Second

By on November 27, 2010 in Uncategorized

I believe that by virtue of his performance in a dramatic loss to Nevada, Kellen Moore has pretty much locked up second place in the Heisman.  That bomb he completed with one second left showed that the guy has a lot of magic in him.  It was such an amazing play that my early call for Newton might’ve been in jeopardy for a brief moment.  But it was not to be.

LaMichael James had another solid game for Oregon, but he was again held to under five yards per carry and it’s clear that the Oregon attack is having some issues that are affecting his production.  I think he is going to finish a hair behind Moore in third, although a monster game against Oregon State still might propel him into the runner up spot.

But as it stands now, I believe the largest chunk of ballots will read:

1. Newton

2. Moore

3. James

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