By Mike Beas
Archie Griffin didn’t know what he was getting himself into the instant he laid his competition-weathered hands on a second Heisman Trophy statue that December night in 1975.
Surely another two-time recipient would follow. Give it five years, 10 at most.
And then . . . silence.
Pitt tailback Tony Dorsett picking up his hardware in 1976 touched off a run of 33 winners in as many seasons, a fraternity guilty of inviting legends-in-waiting (Earl Campbell, Marcus Allen, Barry Sanders), middle-of-the-roaders (George Rogers, Vinny Testaverde, Desmond Howard) and persons you wouldn’t recognize today if they were seated next to you on an airplane (Rashaan Salaam, Eric Crouch, Jason White).
That’s three-plus decades of Griffin on an island. Waiting. Wondering what makes him so different. The truth is that second Heisman catapulted Griffin into a gridiron icon the way the disappointing seven-year NFL experience with the Cincinnati Bengals that ensued never could.
Professional football mediocrity is what’s expected of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, so, yes, there is a link here.
As of this moment Texas quarterback Colt McCoy deserves the 2009 Heisman Trophy, though the climb will be difficult. You see, fair or unfair, America likes McCoy, but it loves Tebow. All the while it shrugs its massive shoulders when viable candidates such as Clemson tailback C.J. Spiller, Alabama’s Mark Ingram and Stanford’s Toby Gerhart are brought up.
Even so, it’s a three-horse race. Don’t let anyone tell you different. Tebow and Ingram share the same field in the SEC title game on Saturday, which is going to be a double-whammy to the star of the losing ballclub. National championship hopes . . . GONE! Heisman Trophy . . . probably gone.
The Florida-Alabama game’s final minutes are going to overlap with the start of the Big 12 title contest pitting Texas against Nebraska.
Advantage, McCoy. The Cornhuskers’ “D” is decent, but not the imposing brick wall TV’s talking heads try to make it out to be. Besides, Nebraska’s offense is inept to the point where the defense will have to be on the field no less than 60 percent of the time. McCoy should harvest a statistical windfall, which, in turn, will push Heisman voters his way.
Adding to the confusion is that the voting deadline is Dec. 7. Surely some ballots will be there even prior to the SEC and Big 12 championship games.
As for the 55-year-old Griffin, only old Arch knows how old Arch is going to vote. Don’t be surprised if it’s for Tebow for reasons beyond the statistical. More like selfish. You see, that island Griffin’s been on by himself for more than half his life got lonely a long time ago.
• Mike Beas is a freelance writer/columnist and Kokomo native who resides in Carmel. He may be reached at mbeas@att.net.
