The Heisman Trophy is the single most overrated award in all of sports.
That may seem like an odd thing to write the day an Ohio State quarterback is a finalist for it, but it’s true.
Let’s just get a few things out of the way up front:
1) Dwayne Haskins had an amazing season.
2) Haskins has arguably had the single greatest statistical season of any Buckeye in history, regardless of position.
3) He deserves to be part of the discussion for the best player in the nation.
4) It’s great that he got a trip to New York out of this.
Okay, so now everyone gets that this isn’t a knock on Haskins in any way, right?
Okay.
The Heisman is supposed to go “the outstanding college football player in the United States.” It says so right on the front of the award.
Instead, it goes to the quarterback or running back from a top-10 team that has the best combination of stats and narrative hype for that particular season.
There have been rare exceptions in the last 20 years, like Lamar Jackson and Robert Griffin III. They completely broke the stereotype by being the quarterbacks of top-15 teams, not top-10, with the best combination of stats and narrative hype back in 2016 and 2011, respectively. Those were earth-shattering, trend-busting moments, to be sure.
As essentially a position-specific award, the Heisman deserves exactly as much attention as the Ray Guy Award, the Doak Walker Award, the Rimington Award, or any other college football individual honor.
Instead, media outlets dutifully crank out Heisman Watch Lists starting before the season even begins.
While every other positional award gets handed out at one televised college football awards show, the Heisman gets its own prime time TV slot.
Saturday night, ESPN will once again treat “Davey O’Brien Award 2: Electric Boogaloo” as one of the signature moments of the entire sporting calendar.
You’ll probably be tempted to watch to find out if Haskins wins.
But don’t worry – ESPN has already told you he won’t.
On the top of the front page of their website is the headline “Who Will Win The Heisman? Kyler vs. Tua is historic battle.”
Great news: They have now told you Haskins isn’t going to win, so you don’t need to waste your time watching them stretch 8 minutes of content into an hour or more of TV time.
Go do something fun tonight and don’t turn ESPN on at all. pic.twitter.com/k08IKhD0Zo
— Tom Orr (@TomOrr4) December 8, 2018
It’s an odd choice to notify one of the nation’s biggest fanbases in advance that their player has no chance, and is basically there just to fill a seat like Kramer at the Tonys. But here we are.
It’s nice, in a way. This is a hectic time of year. Between Christmas parties, decorating, shopping, wrapping, and a half-dozen other tasks, you could probably use an extra hour to get stuff done.
And lucky you, an hour just freed up in your schedule!
So go do something fun instead. Enjoy a spontaneous date night. Or take your kids to see the lights at the zoo, or just be responsible and get your Christmas cards mailed out.
But don’t feel bad about skipping the Heisman, Buckeye fans.
ESPN has made it quite clear they don’t want you watching.
ESPN is for everybody except The Ohio State University football coach and team! It was that way all season especially from the start with the trouble that plagued Coach Meyer and the Buckeye Program as a whole. They never let it go and I believe they will continue to harass The Ohio State University. It wouldn’t have mattered if Haskins had thrown 100 TD passes this year, one of the only two they interviewed in most interviews would win that award. As far as I’m concerned, one of the best players in the college ranks had hardly any mention at all and perhaps the best player had no mention at all. His only problem was that he sustained an injury that put him out for the rest of the year. I do have a problem with that, I wished Bosa would have stayed with the team and the University through the remainder of the season. Instead of withdrawing from Ohio State University, he could have stayed and encouraged and help the defensive lineman as well as supporting the entire team while continuing his rehabilitation while at Ohio State. Do they not have one of the best training facilities and trainer in the nation? I’m sorry, but Bosa let the team down and the coaches. I also believe they may have had much better outcomes in several of those games for the remainder of the season had he been by their side cheering them on and even given some of those youngsters some personal coaching. Even though I don’t think much of what he did, I still wish him well in the future of his professional career. Now, let’s get behind the team as they prepare and play in the Rose Bowl, a fitting end for Coach Meyer and the beginning of a new era for Buckeye Football with Coach Day! To heck with ESPN!! GO BUCKS!
I didn’t even watch the show. Curious to see the ratings.
EsecPN has gone downhill since their early years of broadcasting tiddelywink tournaments and 14U hockey tournaments at 3:00AM…
ESecPN is such a biased tabloid crap show full of liberal sh%^ starting amateur journalists. Stopped watching them and gamely years ago. You think Herbie played for Georgia the way he was kissing their butts. I know they butter his bread (ESecPN) but really Kirk? Embarrassing. Haskins better than both the other candidates!!
espn is not a good sports channel, that much I know! I have cheered for the Bucks since 1954. My Wife, two boys Doug and Brett and myself graduated from OSU and all cheer for the Bucks.
Haskins will win.
Been calling it the Hypesman for over a decade now. The last shred of credibility it had vanished in the 1996 season. Hypesman winner? Danny Wuerffel, while the greatest lineman of his era and among the greats of all-time finished…4th?! The only real surprise ever (if you can call even that a surprise) was when Paul Hornung won the award for a 2 – 8 Notre Dame.
I haven’t watched College Gameday in years, for the same reason I won’t watch Skip Bayliss and that gaggle of idiots. Herbstreit and Howard are tools, and I’ve even cooled on Reece Davis, who used to maintain an air of integrity. All they do is try-in vain- to appear more “hip” and in the know than the other. I end up thinking that it wouldn’t be too sad if their stupid bus crashed with all of them in it…
While I’m at it, when Herbstreit and Fowler- who is a sniveling, talentless dink- are the commentators on an OSU game, I turn down the sound. The silence is glorious!
Silence is golden…..TRY IT!!!
Hey Bill- you can’t outshout me, pal. Remember the adage about not getting into peeing contests with skunks? Now go back to watching Golden Girls reruns. That betty White is HOT (caps done for your benefit).
Come on! That’s what your bringing?!
No, that’s all your worth. Next idiot, please…
Sort of was shocked when I watched College Game day. They had a few stats, nothing as exhaustive as The Ozone’s stags, about all three. However, they could only interview Kyler and Tua and you would of thought that Haskings wasn’t in the mix. At least The B1G had some special reporting on him. Seems like The Heisman should be changed to the MVP of playoff bound teams instead of the nations’ best player.
Yes, unfortunately it’s become about $ & “feel good” narratives, not objective based sports. eSECpn is in fact in bed with the SEC and their news coverage & personal attack articles on others outside the conference have proven it!
I say: don’t waste your time watching ESPN…that station has gone downhill for years and is in bed with the SEC..the fact they’ve eliminated Haskins from contention in their minds is pathetic and revealing…and biased as usual on their part.
Other than the fact that you stole my thunder, perfect!