Your 2004 Heisman Trophy Winner Is...
Will Mr. Leinart Please Step to the Podium?
See if you can spot the parallels beteen 2002 and 2004...
Carson Palmer capped his rise from mediocrity to stardom by winning college football's most prestigious award Saturday night, taking the bronze statue back to the West Coast for the first time since USC's Marcus Allen did it 21 years ago.
The quarterback completed nearly 63 percent of his passes for 3,639 yards and 32 touchdowns with 10 interceptions this year. His biggest performance was his last against Notre Dame in a nationally televised game.
Palmer turned around his career dramatically this year, leading the Trojans to a 10-2 record and a spot in the FedEx Orange Bowl -- against Iowa and Banks. His stunning performance against Notre Dame, in which he threw for 425 yards and four touchdowns, was crucial for a West Coast Heisman hopeful who doesn't get as much exposure as other candidates.
''I think it was the Notre Dame game,'' Palmer said. ''If anyone else was playing in that game, maybe they would have gotten the trophy.''
5 Comments:
I suppose in one sense it's reassuring that Notre Dame can still make or break a Heisman candidate's chances. But it'd be nice if voters tuning into the game were evaluating a player in a gold helmet for a chang.
...or "change".
Perhaps the Downtown Athletic Club will start a new tradition and designate mini-Heismans, bestowed upon those programs most indirectly associated with said Heisman winner's success. By my (and popular) estimation, there are no less than three other Heisman winners beyond Palmer & Leinart since 1991 who can point to ND as their springboard to success:
1991 Desmond Howard Michigan WR Jr.
http://heisman.collegesports.com/winners/d-howard91.html
1993 Charlie Ward Florida State QB Sr.
http://heisman.collegesports.com/winners/c-ward93.html
1994 Rashaan Salaam Colorado RB Jr.
http://heisman.collegesports.com/winners/r-salaam94.html
The line on Leinart: 24-of-34 for 400 yards and 5 TDs in No. 1 USC's 41-10 victory over ND.
In over 100 years of ND football, no QB had ever thrown more than 4 td passes against the Irish. Now it's happened twice in consecutive games. Pitiful.
Desmond Howard definitely belongs on the list. But I think Ward had the Trophy basically sewn up before he faced the Irish in mid-November, and Salaam already had the hardware in his possession when the Irish faced the Buffs in the Fiesta Bowl.
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