Heisman history hasn't been kind to Jason White
Published: 12/12/2010 11:10 PM
Last Modified: 12/12/2010 11:10 PM
Two things make Oklahoma fans a little uneasy on Heisman Week every year – the possibility that Billy Sims will yell, "Boomer!" at the ceremony, and the relatively low placement of Jason White on the Heisman totem pole.
I didn't watch Cam Newton's coronation Saturday night – too long a day thanks to my new "friends" at GatorCountry.com – but as far as I know Sims kept it down in New York. (He was in New York, wasn't he?)
As for White, well, it happened again.
Ranking the past 25 Heisman seasons recently, Stewart Mandel of SI.com slotted White at No. 21. That was better than Gino Torretta, Eric Crouch and Ty Detmer, but worse than such quarterbacks as Carson Palmer (No. 19), Matt Leinart (No. 14) and Chris Weinke (No. 12).
White, remember, finished the 2003 season with 40 touchdowns, 10 interceptions and 3,846 yards.
Palmer's numbers: 3,639 yards, 32 TDs and 10 interceptions.
Leinart's: 2,990 yards, 28 TDs and 6 interceptions.
Weinke's: 4,167 yards, 33 TDs, 11 picks.
Think that was a tad disrespectful? Check out where Pete Fiutak of CollegeFootballNews.com put White among his 76 Heisman winners last week:
No. 60.
Fiutak did rank White ahead of Palmer (No. 63) at least. But, among quarterbacks, not Detmer, Danny Wuerffel, Troy Smith, Steve Spurrier, Terry Baker, or the world famous Clint Frank, Yale's Heisman-winning QB from 1937.
The problem, according to Fiutak: "Unfortunately, (White) will be remembered for his end-of-the-year collapse than his phenomenal 3,846-yard, 40-touchdown performance."
OU's season-enders against Kansas State and LSU hurt White's legacy. But so does the '03 Heisman runner-up, Pitt wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald. Mandel mentions Fitzgerald's NCAA sophomore-record 22 receiving touchdowns in his write-up on White.
What's more, the two are linked a little closer every year Fitzgerald excels with the Arizona Cardinals, which is another year White spends out of football.
Is that fair?
Absolutely not. And if you don't believe me, take it from Ron Cook, the columnist who covered Super Bowl XLII for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Fitzgerald and the Cardinals were there to face the Steelers, prompting Cook to pronounce that he wouldn't change his '03 Heisman vote if he had to do it over again.
A ballot he cast for White.
"The best college player in '03," Cook wrote from Tampa. "Isn't that who is supposed to win the Heisman? It shouldn't necessarily go to the guy who's going to be the best NFL player…
"White had the best passer rating in the country, threw 40 touchdown passes for an Oklahoma team that played for the national championship. Fitzgerald touched the ball seven times a game for a Pitt team that started the season ranked No. 10 and badly underachieved with losses to Toledo, Notre Dame, West Virginia and Miami…
"Don't be too surprised if Fitzgerald wins the Super Bowl MVP if the Cardinals beat the Steelers. I know he'll get my vote if it's the right thing to do.
"It wasn't the right thing in '03."
-- Guerin Emig
Written by
Guerin Emig
Sports Writer
