College football is finally here!! and with it comes the all the Heisman hype and buzz over who will win college footballs most prestigious award. Will Tim Tebow be the first player since Archie Griffin to take the trophy twice or will it be someone like Ohio States powerhouse Running back Chris “Beanie” Wells? I personally think it will end up being someone very unexpected. Keep reading to find out who.
Below are the top ten payers (in no specific order) that i feel will make u run for the Heisman, Including two that you may find a bit surprising, and at the very bottom i will pick who i think will end up walking away with the Trophy.
1.) Tim Tebow- Now i am not a fan of Tim Tebow’s at all, largely due to the fact that he in my opinion is not a good enough passer to play QB in the NFL (I see him as more of the Eric Crouch type, great athlete who dominates the college level but not great pro potential….and yes i know that everyone who loves Florida will tell me to look at his passing stats and all that, but there is a huge difference between the college throws that Tebow makes and the NFL throws which involve hitting that small window and anticipating where your receiver is going to be during the play) That said, there is no denying the fact that Tebow dominates the college football level and because of this he is one of the front runners for the Heisman Trophy.
2.) Chris Wells- Beanie wells is a beast, pure and simple. His rare blend of size and speed combined with his quick feet make him a terror for apposing
defense. But lets not forget his vision either, over his career Beanie has shown the ability to see the holes and know when to cut outside and when to pound it in the middle. Barring injury, Chris wells should hit the 1,800 mark for rushing yards this season, that and the fact that he is a scoring machine makes him a top canidate.
3.) Michael Crabtree- Crabtree bust onto the scene last year and put up stellar numbers against some of colleges elite secondaries. He pulled in a whopping 134 receptions for 1,962 yards and 22 td’s. The knock against him is that he is from the pass crazy Texas Tech university who is similar to hawaii in the fact that their systems allow for huge inflation in the WR and QB’s numbers. Don’t let this fool you however, as Michael Crabtree is the real deal, look for him to continue to make corners and safety’s cry as he burns past them.
4.) Chase Daniel- Daniel has been nothing but a consistent performer for Missouri, and now after having 2 full seasons of starting under his belt he is poised to lead a talented Tiger team to a top bowl game. He had a Heisman season last year as he passed for 4,306 yards and 33 TD’s with 11 int’s. That is a 3-1 ratio which is pretty impressive and he has only gotten better.
5.) Pat White- Unfortunately for Pat White, he has a long road ahead of him if he wants to play QB in the NFL, but while he is still in college there are few players with the athletic ability of Pat White. White has slowly but surely increased his passing numbers and has made fewer and fewer mistakes as he has grown. Last season white completed 66.7 percent of his passes for 1,724 yards with 14td’s and only 4 int’s, and that’s not all he did. White also added a whopping 1,335 yards rushing and another 14 scores. With numbers like that and his big play ability, look for Pat White’s name to be mentioned anytime someone is talking about Heisman trophy canidates.
6.) Matthew Stafford- Matthew Stafford flashed some serious skills last year, but also showed that he was still a young player and that he had a little work to do. Well now I think he is poised to truly break out, after posting 19 Td’s to 10 int’s last season, the coaches really worked with Matt on his decision making and ability to make the right reads. He has put a lot of work into his game for this upcoming season and i look for it to payoff big as i am sure that he will put up big numbers this season. It also doesn’t hurt that he is playing with one of the leagues top RB’s in Knowshon Moreno.
7.) Sam Bradford- This one is a no-brainer seeing as how Bradford as a freshman was one of the leagues leading passers with an astonishing rating of 176.52 and a TD to interception ratio that would make any coach happy, and like i said he was only a freshman! This season i look for him to put up similar numbers, maybe slightly less than last year but not enough of a drop off to take him out of Heisman contention.
8.) Knowshon Moreno- Another player who burst on to the scene last year out of nowhere, and literally lit up the college football world. Coming out of high school there was no doubt that Moreno was going to be a stud running back, but NO ONE saw this guy (who had never had a career carry in the college
level) running for 1,334 yards and 14 td’s. Now Moreno has officially made a name for himself and with that comes a little more attention from apposing defenses. That being said, i look for Moreno to improve on his stats and finish the season as one of the top 5 Heisman Trophy canidates.
Now i feel that these next two are going to be two names that many people will not necessarily agree with. However, these are my two sleeper picks for Heisman Trophy surprises and are two guys that i think will open a lot of eyes this season
9.) Hunter Cantwell- This guy has done everything right so far, he came into college and sat behind Brian Brohm on the depth chart, but he did not whine and complain or try and transfer, no instead he sat and learned and worked with the second string offense and when it was asked of him he would come into games and either play mop up duty or make a couple throws here and there until Louisville could get Brohm back onto the field. Well now Cantwell will show that all the work he put in is finally going to pay off as he takes over a young but talented Cardinal offense. I look to see big things out of Cantwell this season and don’t be surprised if you here his name listed amongst footballs elite when Heisman voting rolls around.
10.) Josh Freeman- If i had to build the ideal QB from scratch, Josh Freeman would be the result. This guy has everything you are looking for in a Quarter back, he has a monstrous frame at 6′6″ 250 pounds with a rocket for an arm, not to mention the fact that the guy has good mobility for his size. He also has something that you can’t teach, and that is his intangibles. He is a great leader on and off the feild and was actually the only starting true freshman in 2006 to lead his team to a bowl game. Last Season as a sophomore Freeman threw for 3,353 yards with 18 td’s and 11 picks. Look for his decision making to be much improved this season as he now has another season of maturity under his belt, and come Heisman time I guarantee this guy will be in the race
Honorable Mention- LeSean MCoy, Graham Harrell, Cullen Harper James Davis, and a couple others.
And the Winner is…..
Josh Freeman
Yes i realize that to many this may seems like a long shot, but just watch and see as Freeman takes everyone by surprise and takes home college football’s most prestigious award. Also don’t be surprised if this guy leaves early following this season and ends up being the first QB taken in the draft due to that fact that his size, arm strength and intangibles are off the charts (I expect him to be this seasons Jamarcus Russell)
Freeman opens up his 2008 Season against North Texas…now i know that it is only North Texas, but i am predicting 300 yards and at least 3 TD’s for Josh as he starts his season off in Heisman form.
So will someone please tell the NHL and Russian Leagues that the Cold War is over? Earlier this week, Alex Radulov was suspended by his NHL team, the Nashville Predators. Without pay. Why? He signed a deal with a Russian team with ONE YEAR LEFT ON HIS CONTRACT. At the time, there was no transfer agreement between the NHL and Russia, so Radulov thought he could sneak over to Russia and bail out his contract. The issue of player transfers between the NHL and Russia has been a touchy subject, and earlier this season they came to an agreement. Radulov sneaked over by signing with a Russian club days before the agreement was signed. Both sides didn’t seem to want to make a move, as like I said it was a touchy subject, and let Radulov do his thing. The Predators gave him until September 1 to announce his decision, and he did no such thing. So, I’d expect to never see Radulov in the NHL again. I don’t know if he could come back considering he still hasn’t completed his last season, but you never know. Regardless, Radulov won’t be around this season.
Moving on, Toronto fans should be overjoyed. Brian McCabe is gone, and cap space has opened up! McCabe was set to take a $5.75 million cap hit onto the Toronto, a team that is desperate to get its young guns going. With McCabe gone and the possibility of Sundin leaving as well, a good $8 million will be freed up, though later than I’m sure Toronto wanted. In the deal that sent McCabe to Florida, Toronto also gives up a 4th round pick in 2010, and in return get Mike Van Ryn. Van Ryn missed plenty of time due to injury last season, only playing in 20 games. He only had 2 points last season, but produced roughly 30 points the 2 seasons prior. He also is a cap hit of $2.9 million, thus opening up nearly $3 million. Toronto wins in this trade. They desperately needed to open up space, and they made a good move. Still, a smart move was made by Florida, who waited until September 1 because Toronto had to pay McCabe a $2 million bonus that he was still owed by that date.
So I know I said that I would have everything done by Friday, but I got some free time that managed to open up, and I figured I’d finish this off. Here you are…the East.
Tue, Sep 9, 2008
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