Spiller Snubbed By Heisman Committee

By MikeBullock  |   Wednesday, December 09, 2009  |  Comments( 10 )

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The worst kept secret in sports is the complete farce called the BCS system. Everyone knows it’s a joke, everyone agrees it needs to be scrapped in favor of a playoff system and every year fans, media, coaches and others moan and groan about the terrible standings, terrible matchups and downright ridiculous way a National Champion is crowned.

To a lesser extent the Heisman committee is under similar scrutiny, often referred to as more of a popularity contest than a true measurement of athleticism.

From the Heisman site: “The Heisman Memorial Trophy annually recognizes the outstanding college football player whose performance best exhibits the pursuit of excellence with integrity.”

The trophy is more often than not awarded to the player with the most star power, not the best athlete.

Once again that becomes evident this year as a player who shattered several records over his career, in his final season, and even in the last game he played in 2009 is snubbed by the selection committee and players like the media superstar Tim Tebow and one hit wonders like Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh get the nod to travel to New York for the selection show, while the ACC Player of the Year, Clemson’s C.J. Spiller sits home, completely ignored.

When presented with the news of this almost unbelievable gaff, Spiller handled it like a true professional, which is even more amazing since he’s still an amateur athlete.

“I certainly wanted to make it to New York for the Heisman presentation,” said Spiller. “It would have been great for this football program and Clemson University in general. But, I have done the best I could in every game. I have no regrets.”

Even in the face of adversity, Spiller still talks like a team player, speaks with integrity, voices his concern for the well being of his team, his school and the program in general. If that isn’t an “outstanding football player”, what is?

Sure Spiller didn’t turn on the jets in two of his last three games, however, when you set a new NCAA yardage record, set a new scoring record in the ACC title game and almost singlehandedly win said game how can those efforts be ignored?

If there was a next year, maybe Spiller should hire a publicist and spend more time working on his celebrity and less time working on his play.

While this is in no way meant to disparage the eventual winner of the “most prestigious award in college football”, it should certainly put an asterisk next to it. Whoever the winner is, it should always be clear they didn’t beat the best competition on the field, statistically or in the record books.

It remains to be seen if Spiller will land the Doak Walker award, but no matter what happens, Spiller’s mark on NCAA football is secure and can’t be erased by any committee.
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CommentsComments: 10  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
DeeEmSea		01:25 PM
12/09/2009
How can you call Suh a one hit wonder? He has been the most dominant player in college football all season. This isn't a life...
No.2
night1		03:53 PM
12/10/2009
Those Heisman committee are idiots, they don't know a good things If it comes and bites them in the ass. Some of these so call...
No.3
Big Tex		12:13 PM
12/11/2009
So now Suh has won the Lombardi AND the Bednarik trophies. One hit wonder my a$$! While I expect Spiller to be the first RB...
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