That's right folks. The votes have been tallied. There were 74 ballots cast with each having an outcome on the overall standings (including the final ballot I received, which moved Michael Crabtree back into 4th place).

We received ballots from as far south as Florida, as far west as California and Oregon, and as far north as the great white north of Canada. Fourteen different players and one unit received votes while another 12 players and one unit were noted as honorable mentions. Without further ado...

(drumroll) Your 2008 Sports Blog Heisman Trophy winner is...

1. Tim Tebow (Florida)

He may not have the numbers he had last year, but the Gators are 12-1 because #15 is the best player in college football. Still against nine defenses ranked in the top 37 (compared to only one opposing defense in the top 50 for Sam Bradford), Tebow scored 28 passing TDs, 12 rushing TDs, only threw two interceptions, and compiled a QB rating of 176 (which is higher than last year's rating).

But forget about the stats! Without Tebow, the Gators are no where near the national title game. He put them on his back the second half of the season and willed them to an 12-1 record, and an SEC title. He also makes announcers like Gary Danielson say things like, "He's the quarterback you'd most want your daughter to marry."

He makes Detroit Lions fans dream of him in Honalulu Blue. As one Lions' fan stated, "He's so good, Matt Millen would probably draft him as a receiver. That is Heisman material."

Those who listed Tebow #1 on their ballot (official ballots in blue):
NoleCC - Scalp Em; Rosenblogger - Blue Workhorse; Paul Thompson - Addicted to Quack; Jonathan Franz - The Rivalry, esq.; Todd - College Football Top 10; Heisman - Blue Workhorse; Mitchell Blatt - Juiced Sports Blog; Tyson Chaney - Sports 2000; The Legacy x4; DRang - Blue Workhorse; CGB - College Game Balls; Graham Filler - The Rivalry, esq; KMac - Blue Workhorse; Alex - BC All Access; Jeff Little - Sports Opinion; Alan Rucker - Over the Pylon; One Bronco Nation Under God; William Q. - Queen's College Football; Sammy Vegas - Double Extra Point; Coaches Hot Seat; Chris - Intentional Foul; Bunkie Perkins - Friends of the Program; Al C Hemist - Eight in the Box; Bertman - SportsRUs; Testudo Times; Wesley Yee - Bay Area Baseball; T-Roc - Cuzoogle; Dead Guy SEC Picks; The Bull Gator; DWalk - Walker Sports

2. Sam Bradford (Oklahoma)

Bradford falls short of Tebow by 23 points, despite leading one of the most prolific offenses in NCAA history. He leads the nation in passing efficiency, with a big reason due to his 48 to 6 TD-INT ratio and 1.36% interception percentage. He led the nation with 48 touchdown passes, and his 4,464 passing yards was third.

"Sam Bradford has had the best individual season of all the Heisman-contending quarterbacks, leading his team to the National Championship game.  Although he lost the head-to-head matchup with Texas, Bradford actually outperformed McCoy in that game.  Additionally, his numbers are better than Graham Harrell, despite playing in a more run-oriented offense than Harrell.  Bradford also brought his A-game with him to every game this season, something that Tim Tebow arguably did not do in the early stages of the year." (Ryan Pfefferle - Around the Oval)

Those who listed Bradford #1 on their ballot (official ballots in blue):
SoB Mike - Sports of Boston; John Havard - Garnet & Black Attack; Cougar Digest; Brandon - Big Red Network; Jacob Swiger - TarEye or BuckHeel; The Zoner - Zoner Sports; Billynho - Kornheiser's Cartel; Matt Ufford - With Leather; Corey - The North Endzone; The Beef - RockMNation; Mike Tag - I am the 12th Man; Ryan Pfefferle - Around the Oval; Kellex - The Sports Dollar; Gunaxin; The D-i-P - The North Endzone; Jarrett Adams - I am the 12th Man;

3. Colt McCoy (Texas)

"No player means more to his team. He is the best marriage of Bradford’s raw production and Tim Tebow’s leadership. He shattered the NCAA passing percentage mark with a surreal 77% completion rate, his only loss was on the road to a Top 10 team after driving his team for the go-ahead touchdown with 1:30 on the clock, and he came up huge in every game of consequence. His rushing production and efficiency exceeds that of Tebow at Florida and he threw for 3,445 yards, 32 TDs and 7 Ints to boot. No one has done more to will their team to victory." (Scipio Tex - Barking Carnival)

Those who listed McCoy #1 on their ballot (official ballots in blue):
Scott Jacobs - Juiced Sports Blog; AB - Blue Workhorse; Faimon Roberts - Pelican State Sports; Alligator Army; Scipio Tex - Barking Carnival; Scals - Blue Workhorse; MoonDog Sports; Ryebreadraz - Bruins Nation; Dustin Hockensmith - Imaginary Diamond; Abram Orlansky - 40 Acre Sports; A.J. Hooper - Crowd the Ball; 54b - 54b blog; Dr. Aaron - JoeSportsFan; The Cynic - Hugging Harold Reynolds; 3 Idiots on Sports; Longhorn Nation Poll

4. Michael Crabtree (Texas Tech)

Crabtree finished with 1135 receiving yards and 18 TDs, which is impressive enough, but when you consider that Crabtree played injured for half of the year and received the majority of defenses' attention, his numbers become incredible. "He will be the best in the NFL from this year's draft. Dominant at his position." (Scals -The Blue Workhorse)

Those who listed Crabtree #1 on their ballot (official ballots in blue):
Stewie - Blue Workhorse; Kyle Bunch - Trojan Wire

5. Graham Harrell (Texas Tech)

Harrell completed nearly 72 percent of his passes, amassed 4,747 yards, and threw for 41 touchdowns against just seven interceptions. He led the Red Raiders to their best-ever record (11-1), a share of the Big 12 South title, a win against Texas, and a Cotton Bowl bid.

"While Oklahoma, Texas, and Florida were all supposed to be Top 10 teams, and their quarterbacks were all likely Heisman candidates before the season began, Harrell went out and outperformed these guys each time he played against them. He was the most impressive player this season, finishing just 23 yards short of being the leading passer in the country." (Mad Love - The Love of Sports)

Those who listed Harrell #1 on their ballot (official ballots in blue):
Hell in a Red Shell; Mad Love - The Love of Sports; Amy - Gridiron Goddess; Chris - Smart Football

6. Shonn Greene (Iowa)

"Shonn Greene has rushed for 100+ yards in all 12 of Iowa's 12 games this season.  Iowa finished 8-4 (4 losses by a total of only 12 points) and is going to the Outback Bowl.  Had he not been knocked out of the Northwestern loss, the Hawkeyes would be 9-3 and 7 points away from being perfect.  He is by far the best player in the Big Ten and arguably the most VALUABLE player in the nation if you look at what Iowa would be without him this year." (Brad Gade - Hawkeye Sports Network)

Those who listed Greene #1 on their ballot (official ballots in blue):
Shotgun Spratling - Blue Workhorse; Travis - Off the Tracks; Oops Pow Surprise - BlackHeartGoldPants; JHC -BlackHeartGoldPants; Brad Gade - Haweye Sports News

7. Javon Ringer (Michigan State)

"Football is a team game. That said, no other player in America has had a heavier workload than Ringer. No other player has made more of an impact for his team. Ringer has led the Spartans to its winningest record in 10 years, and its second winningest record in 40 years.  He is a beast." (The Enlightened Spartan)

Those who listed Ringer #1 on their ballot (official ballots in blue): The Enlightened Spartan

8. Eric Berry (Tennessee)

"Berry has posted gaudy numbers this year with 7 interceptions for the season (12 all-time) and now holds the record for all-time SEC interception return yards.  Furthermore, he just won the SEC Defensive Player of the Year Award, as well as being a finalist for the Lott Trophy.  Oh, and did I mention he's only a sophomore?" (LawVol - Gate 21.net)

Those who listed Berry #1 on their ballot (official ballot in blue): LawVol - Gate21

***I sent out as many e-mails as I could to sports web sites all across the nation and received back 74 ballots. Of the 74 ballots that were sent in, the most represented region is the Southeast with 27. The remaining representations: Midwest - 18; Far West - 10; Northeast - 9; Southwest - 8. One possible reason for the # of Southeast ballots sent in is because I eliminated the Mid-Atlantic region, so therefore there were a number of ballots from Virginia and the surrounding states that were included in the Southeast region.

Shotgun Spratling

TrackBack URI for this entry

Comments (0)

Name

Email

Website

Title

Comment

smaller | bigger

Subscribe via email (registered users only)

Add Comment