By Michael Dorausch, D.C.
The question of who will win the 2008 Heisman Trophy has finally been answered with a ceremony taking place in NYC. From the time college preseason football begins to the conference title games, the Heisman race is run, and this year’s predictions have been tight. Sports commentators, journalists, and college football fans all share their opinions for who they think best deserves the Heisman award, but there can be only one Heisman Trophy 2008 winner.
(photo: a cast bronze 25 pound Heisman Trophy)
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award (commonly referred to as the Heisman Trophy or the Heisman) is an accolade for a college football player’s accomplishments during the season. While essentially every winner of the Heisman Trophy goes on to play in the NFL, winning the trophy does not guarantee future NFL success. This year’s Heisman Trophy award show took place at the Nokia Theater in New York City and three college quarterbacks were in New York City for the event.
For the first time in more than seven decades of Heisman history, none of the Heisman Trophy finalists were college seniors. All 3 finalists were quarterbacks, making 2008 the ninth time in 10 years that a quarterback was honored with the award. This year’s Heisman vote had great participation, with 98% ballot return, reportedly the highest in history. According to ESPN reporters, 86% of voters did so after championship Saturday, and the majority cast their ballots online.
All three quarterbacks had great seasons and were well deserving of 2008 Heisman Trophy nominations. The 3 college quarterbacks nominated for the Heisman were Texas quarterback Colt McCoy, Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford and Florida quarterback Tim Tebow.
Florida quarterback Tim Tebow – Tim Tebow set a school record for passing attempts without an interception (230). In the Florida game against Miami on September 6, he finished with 311 total offensive yards, bringing his career total to 5493 and surpassing former Gator quarterback Steve Spurrier (who won the Heisman in 1966).
Texas quarterback Colt McCoy – Colt McCoy was the leading rusher on the Texas football team. He had 10 rushing touchdowns this year and the Texas Oklahoma game was his biggest game of the year. In that game he had 25 points for Texas in the second half (3 touchdowns and one field goal), he had 277 passing yards, and Texas won by a score of 45 to 35.
Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford – Sam Bradford had more touchdown passes than any quarterback that’s ever won the Heisman Trophy. He had nine 50+ yard touchdown passes, a total of 4,464 passing yards, and 48 touchdown passes.
So who won the 2008 Heisman Trophy? This years win goes to Sam Bradford, quarterback for Oklahoma. Congratulations to all 3 players and to Sam Bradford – Heisman Trophy 2008 winner.
The Heisman presentation took place at the Nokia Theater in New York with an 8 p.m. Eastern time ESPN broadcast Heisman Show event. For those that missed the Heisman Trophy show on ESPN TV, you should be able to catch highlights of the Heisman TV event by checking out ESPN sports video pages (look for the latest videos and the Heisman Trophy presentation show)
Heisman Trophy History – The first trophy was awarded in 1935 and it was then known as the DAC trophy. After John Heisman died in 1936, the trophy was renamed in his honor and it has since been known as the Heisman Memorial Trophy Award.
The first African American player to win the Heisman Trophy was Ernie Davis of Syracuse, New York. He never played in the NFL, as he was diagnosed with leukemia shortly after winning the award, and died in 1963. A movie titled The Express was released in October of this year, featuring the story of his life and role as an unstoppable running back for the Syracuse Orangemen.
University of Southern California (USC) running back O.J. Simpson won the Heisman Trophy in 1968. His trophy was reportedly sold in February 1999 for $230,000 as part of the settlement of the civil trial in the O. J. Simpson murder case.
Recent Heisman Trophy winners include Tim Tebow 2007, Troy Smith 2006 (drafted by Baltimore Ravens in 2007), Vince Young 2005 (drafted by Tennessee Titans in 2006), and Matt Leinart 2004 (drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in 2006).
planetc1.com-news @ 5:57 pm | Article ID: 1229219861
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