I had the good fortune to receive a Heisman Trophy vote for the second consecutive season.
I don’t take receiving a Heisman vote lightly. As I do every week with my Associated Press top 25 ballot, I took a long time to sort through all of the material that was available. I also thought I would share my Heisman ballot, just like I do with the AP poll.
Now that a winner has been announced, Travis Hunter is the obvious choice. I can show you my ballot for Heisman. Voters select their top three choices. Yes, Penn State tight end was among my top three.Warren, Tyler.
Travis Hunter, WR/CB, Colorado, won.
Players like Hunter, who can play wideout, cornerback, or both in the NFL, are hard to come by. Hunter is second in the FBS with 14 touchdown catches. He is fifth nationwide with 92 receptions and sixth with 1,152 receiving yards. His 15 passes defended (11 breakups, 4 interceptions) at cornerback tie him for seventh place in the nation.
Out of 1,696 possible snaps, Hunter has played 1,422 (709 offensive, 713 defensive) in 12 games. Despite suffering a midseason injury, the outstanding junior played 83.8% of Colorado’s offensive and defensive snaps. That is absurd.
The most exceptional college football player receives the Heisman. That fits the bill when you are a top-tier player at two different positions.
Ashton Jeanty, RB, Boise State, came in second.
I thought Jeanty was a dark horse candidate for the Heisman Trophy back in the preseason. However, I didn’t think he would dominate college football every single week the way he did.
In the College Football Playoff, Jeanty led Boise State to a first-round elimination. He averaged 7.3 yards per carry and 192.1 rushing yards per game. Since Devin Singletary of FAU in 2017, no tailback has scored as many rushing touchdowns as he has. Additionally, he is just 131 yards away from breaking Barry Sanders’ single-season FBS record with 2,497 rushing yards.
My vote would have gone to Jeanty if it weren’t for Hunter’s two-way bravery.
Third place: Penn State’s Tyler Warren, a tight end
Here, I thought of more possibilities. Cam Skattebo, the running back for Arizona State, is amazing. Dillon Gabriel, the quarterback for Oregon, is guiding the nation’s top team. Miami quarterback Cam Ward has amassed incredible stats. And the Hoosiers’ unlikely run to the CFP was led by Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke, a former transfer from Ohio.
Warren, however, was maybe the most crucial player for their team to qualify for the CFP outside of Jeanty. Andy Kotelnicki, the first-year offensive coordinator, has found the outstanding Penn State tight end to be the ideal chess piece. As a tight end, receiver, blocker, and Wildcat quarterback, he has been the mainstay of the offense and a dependable target for Drew Allar.
Warren’s 88 receptions for 1,062 yards set a single-season record for tight ends in the Big Ten. This season, Warren has six receiving touchdowns. His 17 career receiving touchdowns set a tight end program record. In addition, he ran for four touchdowns and 191 yards.
Warren received the John Mackey Award, which is given to the best tight end in college football, in recognition of his performance. However, I believed he ought to have traveled to New York as well.
Stories by
Johnny McGonigal
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