As we creep towards the end of the 2020 College Football season, all talk about the Heisman Trophy seems to be centering around three guys – three quarterbacks, mind you. Florida’s Kyle Trask, Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence, and Alabama’s Mac Jones. There’s a little bit of love for Alabama wide receiver DeVonta Smith (who I’ll establish in this piece right away as my personal choice as the best player in college football this season), but anyone who knows anything about the Heisman race knows that he’s not a serious contender right now.
Listen, I’m all for the Mac Jones come-up – hell, I actually wrote about him being “the guy” back in February. I always felt like people were sleeping on how talented he was, and his grasp of what Nick Saban and Steve Sarkisian wanted to do on offense. It just so happened that he was playing at the same time as a generational talent in Tua Tagovailoa. That limited the opportunities he was goin
But, with all due respect to all of these quarterbacks, what Smith is doing is just freakish.
DeVonta Smith for Heisman. #RollTide pic.twitter.com/XaCxWPbXNZ
— SoBros Network (@SoBrosNetwork) December 6, 2020
The Heisman is pretty much just a quarterback award – that’s what it’s come to. We just aren’t even talking about other candidates. Or, if the national media is, I haven’t seen it. I even heard the broadcast team mention it a couple of weeks ago in the LSU game – something along the lines of, “if you take out the quarterbacks, Smith’s the frontrunner.” Cool.
That’s one of my larger criticisms of the Heisman, though. They really want it to symbolize being the best player in college football. But, that’s not what it is. It’s not a true MVP award. It’s basically become the Best QB/RB from one of the College Football Playoff teams. I know, I’m ranting – let me get to the point here. Smith is the best wide receiver in college football. He’s going to be a first round draft pick in the NFL, maybe even the first wide receiver off the boards. He’s absolutely having a Heisman campaign.
I mean, what do you want in a receiver? ‘Cause I’ll tell you right now, Smith checks all the boxes. He has the freakish measurables – he’s fast and athletic. I don’t know who in college football lines up against Smith and stops him. He has the reliable hands you look for in a true #1. And, how about the route running? He can line up and run anything from anywhere. He’s a game-changer, period! Need some points? Put him out there returning punts. Ask Arkansas how easy he is to cover on punt returns.
DEVONTA SMITH FOR HEISMAN @__RUGGS x @AlabamaFTBL pic.twitter.com/0b5p7BS4ut
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) December 12, 2020
If you asked me to bet my life on it today, I’d say this year’s Heisman goes to Jones, especially after Trask’s game against LSU. But, you won’t get me to say that anyone deserves it more than Smith. That dude has been the best, most explosive, and most reliable player in college football this season. He deserves that Heisman.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD and #BeBetter. “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
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