Look who's #2 on SI's list for 2006

[irish4life99]

SI's list for the best college players in 2006 is out. Look at the #2, and #9 players. I'm already getting pumped about next year!

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/mu...06/01/17/gallery.bestcfbplayers/index.19.html

p.s. SI calls Ohio's Troy Smith a poor mans Vince Young. That cracked me up.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/mu...06/01/17/gallery.bestcfbplayers/index.16.html

 

[Aerosmith777]

I'm glad they're not totally slurping Smith like everyone else off of one good bowl game. I don't know how Ginn Jr. gets as high on the list as he did given the year he had last season. I would've thought Brohm and Hart would be higher on the list than they are.

I'm a little surprised they put Peterson ahead of Brady. I know he was injured last year, but still, Quinn was impressive a lot more recently than Adrian. I do think he's the biggest (and maybe only) threat right now to Brady's Heisman campaign.

 

[jiggafini19]

Smith is probably a better passer than Young. Good runner, not as big as Young. I wouldn't put a lot of stock in his Fiesta Bowl performance....any D-I QB should be able to hit receivers that are wide open by 15 yards.

SI's list is comprised of 16 offensive players out of the 21 listed.

Offense sells.

 

[irishnd31]

Smith is probably a better passer than Young. Good runner, not as big as Young. I wouldn't put a lot of stock in his Fiesta Bowl performance....any D-I QB should be able to hit receivers that are wide open by 15 yards.
SI's list is comprised of 16 offensive players out of the 21 listed.
Offense sells.

Go ahead and say it Jiggs,

...and DEFENSE WINS!!!!

 

[weisfaninmass]

I'm glad they're not totally slurping Smith like everyone else off of one good bowl game. I don't know how Ginn Jr. gets as high on the list as he did given the year he had last season. I would've thought Brohm and Hart would be higher on the list than they are.
I'm a little surprised they put Peterson ahead of Brady. I know he was injured last year, but still, Quinn was impressive a lot more recently than Adrian. I do think he's the biggest (and maybe only) threat right now to Brady's Heisman campaign.

The biggest threat to Quinns Heisman run are teams called Ga Tech, Penn St, Michigan, UCLA and USC.

 

[jiggafini19]

Go ahead and say it Jiggs,
...and DEFENSE WINS!!!!

I think you guys all know where I stand.

If I were the Texans, I'd be looking at Mario Williams or D'Brickashaw Ferguson before any of these COLLEGE superstars like Bush, Leinart and Young.

Defense and stout offensive lines win. Don't sell or get you a lazy eyed BOOYAH on ESPN. (Sorry. Haven't slammed that idiot Stuart Scott in a while. I hope UNC bows out in the first round this weekend just because he went there).

 

[irish4life99]

IMO, there are two things you need to win National Championships. A good experienced QB and a great defense. (one out of two aint bad) A quarterback that won't turn the ball over and a defense that keeps the other team out of the end zone are the key ingredients to success. Lets just look at the last five champs.

2005 Texas Vince Young / #1 in big 12/ 10th in the NCAA.

2004 USC QB Matt Leinart/ #3 in scoring defense (incidentally, 13-0 Auburn was #1)

2003 LSU QB Matt Mauck/ #1 in scoring defense
USC QB Matt Leinart #13 in scoring defense

2002 Ohio State QB Craig Krenzel #1 in scoring defense

2001 Miami QB Ken Dorsey #1 in scoring defense

The one statistic that exists on almost every championship team is a top scoring defense. There is a saying that offense puts fannies in the seats but defense wins championships.

Same goes for every one of ND's defense thats won a NC. Don't have the exact numbers but each one I'm pretty sure each defense was ranked in the top 10. So for everyone who is talking NC next year, our defense will have to pull a 180. Not that it's impossible, but improbable. However, I think Quinn could still pull off the Heisman without winning every game.

 

[BigIrish]

ND needs to win 10 regular season games and a BCS bowl bid for Quinn to win the heisman. I don't see him winning it with more than two team losses.

 

[weisfaninmass]

IMO, there are two things you need to win National Championships. A good experienced QB and a great defense. (one out of two aint bad) A quarterback that won't turn the ball over and a defense that keeps the other team out of the end zone are the key ingredients to success. Lets just look at the last five champs.

This is a great point. The one add on i would say, a great QB is needed to bail out the team when all the chips are down. Game on the line, you team is down - 4th and long. All teams confront 1 or 2 games where you are in jeopardy of losing.

 

[Aerosmith777]

The biggest threat to Quinns Heisman run are teams called Ga Tech, Penn St, Michigan, UCLA and USC.

not necessarily. They could go undefeated this season and he could still not win the heisman, especially if Oklahoma is undefeated and Peterson is stellar in the process. Plus, I think a lot of voters could feel bad for Peterson that he didn't win in 2 years ago as a freshman when many thought he deserved it.

 

[Aerosmith777]

ND needs to win 10 regular season games and a BCS bowl bid for Quinn to win the heisman. I don't see him winning it with more than two team losses.

I'd be shocked if he won it with that many losses, unless there are no undefeated teams this season and only one or two 1-loss teams (which actually wouldn't surprise me too much this season, I don't think it's a forgone conclusion that anyone's gonna run the table this year). Otherwise, ND has to run the table or lose at most one game I think for him to win it.

 

[BigIrish]

I'd be shocked if he won it with that many losses, unless there are no undefeated teams this season and only one or two 1-loss teams (which actually wouldn't surprise me too much this season, I don't think it's a forgone conclusion that anyone's gonna run the table this year). Otherwise, ND has to run the table or lose at most one game I think for him to win it.

why would you be shocked? carson palmer won the heisman at so cal in 2002 with a 10-2 regular season record, losing to kansas state and washington state. is there a different standard for ND quarterbacks?

 

[Aerosmith777]

why would you be shocked? carson palmer won the heisman at so cal in 2002 with a 10-2 regular season record, losing to kansas state and washington state.

Don't forget, that was also a year where neither of the 2 undefeated teams had a stellar QB, and the best players between the two of them were a couple of underclassmen RB's.

This year will be different for Brady. He'll be going up against a Junior RB, so he won't have the advantage of being the only upperclassmen finalist. And not only that, I think it might be hard for Brady to be significantly better than Adrian Peterson (and vice versa) b/c I think both are gonna have stellar years, so it really may come down to who's team wins the most games. In fact, in that respect I think that's one more advantage for Peterson, b/c RB's don't bear the brunt of losses like QB's do. I could see Oklahoma going 11-1 and Peterson still winning it over an undefeated Quinn at lot more than I could see it the other way around.

is there a different standard for ND quarterbacks?

In a word, yes.

 

[irish4life99]

I think winning the Heisman is completely in Brady's hands. He has all the tools and the coaching to take it all. As long as the O is raking in 500 yards a game he could win it even with two loses. Remember our last heisman in Tim Brown. He was on Jerry Fausts team. So what does that tell you?

 

[TexasDomer]

Tim Brown won the Heisman when Holtz was coach, in 1987.

 

[jiggafini19]

Reggie Bush got the Heisman, Vince Young got the Crystal Ball. I say ditto for Brady Quinn. Let some other bozo have the Heisman and let's see Quinn holding up the Sears Trophy. The Heisman might as well be a Grammy or an Oscar...dumb award that usually doesn't go to the right person and is all political any way.

 

[Aerosmith777]

The Heisman might as well be a Grammy or an Oscar...dumb award that usually doesn't go to the right person and is all political any way.

Amen

 

[irish4life99]

Tim Brown won the Heisman when Holtz was coach, in 1987.

Why the heck did I think it was under Faust? Did he play for both coaches?

 

[Vince Young]

Why the heck did I think it was under Faust? Did he play for both coaches?

I think so. But in support of your point, the year that Tim Brown won the Heisman, the Irish went 8-3 in the regular season, and then got shellacked by Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl. So the trophy doesn't have to go to someone who plays for a dominating team.

It sure helps, though.

 

[Aerosmith777]

I think so. But in support of your point, the year that Tim Brown won the Heisman, the Irish went 8-3 in the regular season, and then got shellacked by Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl. So the trophy doesn't have to go to someone who plays for a dominating team.
It sure helps, though.

That was also about 20 years ago. Paul Hornung won it on a losing team, but I don't I'll live to see that ever happen again either.

I just think its really hard to win it on a team w/ more than 1 loss nowadays, unless there is a weird combination of factors like how Palmer won it a couple years ago. I think it helped him tremendously that, out of the three best (offensive) players in college football that year, he was the only upperclassman. Its hard for me to see a way for Brady to win it w/ 2-3 losses if he doesn't have that luxury, and I doubt he will unless Peterson gets hurt again.

 

[Vince Young]

That was also about 20 years ago.

Good grief, that was 20 years ago?

(finds a calculator and crunches some numbers...)

Good grief. You're right, and I'm getting older WAY too fast.