The race for the Heisman

This weekend was as wild as any in college football this season. The #1 team in the country fell once again as LSU lost to Arkansas, 50-48 in a triple overtime thriller. The loss helped muddy up the national title picture even more, but from what I understand, if Missouri and West Virginia win out, they will face off in what will probably be the lowest rated National Championship game ever. West Virginia is a fun team to watch, but I just can't get all that excited about this potential match up.

What also became muddy was the Heisman trophy race. Darren McFadden, Tim Tebow and Chase Daniel all had "statement games" to lead their teams to victory. Here's my top four (four instead of five, because these four are the only ones with a real chance to win it)..

1.) Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas - 1,725 rushing yards, 20 total TDs
I can say with some certainty that McFadden is the best player in college football and should be the top pick in next year's NFL draft. He had been on the outside looking in for the last couple of weeks but after basically single handedly taking down LSU with a 206 yard, 4 TD performance last week, he should vault back up to the top of the Heisman list.

2.) Tim Tebow, QB, Florida - 3,132 passing yards, 838 rushing yards, 29 passing TD's, 22 rushing TDs.
First player to ever throw and run for 20 TD's each in the same season. It's hard to argue against him, but I think he'll run into trouble because Heisman voters hate to vote for underclassmen to win the Heisman. For those voters who, because of that, were looking for a reason to vote against Tebow, McFadden's performance against LSU gave them every reason to switch their vote over to him. I don't think this is Tebow's year to win it, but they can pretty much give him the 2008 Heisman right now if they want to.

3.) Chase Daniel, QB, Missouri - 3,931 yards, 33 TD
Daniel (not Daniels) shot himself way up the charts with his 40-of-49, 361 yard, 3 TD performance against Kansas. Who would have thought this guy would be anywhere near the Heisman discussion to begin the season? The success Missouri has had, coupled with his nearly flawless game against Kansas will have him in the minds of voters, but I can't see him getting it over McFadden or Tebow.

4.) Patrick White, QB, West Virginia - 1,498 pass yards, 1,144 rush yards, 12 passing TDs, 12 rushing TDs
White is the prototype for the new spread option offense that is sweeping college football. He leads a very explosive offense but his numbers just don't stack up to those of Tebow and he hasn't had that one signature game against a critical opponent like McFadden and Daniel had this weekend.

All things considered, this will probably be the closest Heisman race ever, because you can make legitimate cases for all four candidates, which isn't usually the case. Tebow was leading late in the season but I think McFadden takes it after his performance to help knock off the top-ranked Tigers. Have no fear Gator fans, it will be Tebow's next year.

And hey, if you were thinking about voting against McFadden, remember one thing - HE GOT DAT WOOD~!..