Heisman Watch 2008 – 9, Week 2

The problem with the early season schedule is that no one plays anyone.  Look at the marquis games last week…

Oh wait, there weren’t any. Sure Miami and Florida is a rivalry, but you can't seriously have thought that the Hurricanes were going to do anything other than what they managed – Lose.

So, evaluating Heisman performances in week two becomes a little more difficult because the quality of opponents is still lacking for a number of players.

More interesting this week might have been the impact of injuries on the standings. Without Chris Wells, Ohio State looked almost pedestrian against Ohio U. That is not a good sign for them going into a huge game against USC this weekend. It also isn’t a great sign for Wells’ Heisman hopes as losing a week, especially against a weak opponent, can hurt the numbers so that they are no longer eye-popping.

Yet, you have to wonder how much the “valuable” vote will go up given that Ohio State looks like a totally different team without him.

The other injury that was worth watching was Jeremy Maclin of Missouri. While Maclin played, he suffered in that Missouri used too many weapons in their trouncing of Southeast Missouri State. Maclin isn’t going to handle the ball on every play, or most plays, and over time, that will certainly weigh on his hope for the pose, as it does in my rankings this week.

The picture is still gray, but here is how I would rank the candidates on my ballot after Week 2:

1. Tim Tebow (QB Florida) – 61.2%, 393 yds, 3 TD, 92 yds rush – Tebow looked like last year’s quarterback in the game against Miami. While he didn’t need his A+ game in order to beat the Hurricanes, he at least showed his B game, which is good enough to stay at number one for another week. But Tebow better look out, the rest of the pack is closing fast.
2. Chase Daniel (QB Missouri) – 67.7%, 568 yds, 6 TD, 1 INT, 46 yds rush – Daniel looked like the real deal against Missouri’s 1-AA opponent in week two. He had only a single incomplete pass and left midway through the second quarter with over 200 yards and three touchdowns. Not a real test of his skills, but a dominant performance takes him even closer to Tebow at the top.
3. Sam Bradford (QB Oklahoma) – 76.7%, 578 yds, 7 TD, 2 INT – Wow, Sam. Impressive. Cincinnati is still wondering what cyclone tore through its city after Bradford and Oklahoma dismantled the Bearcats. Bradford had close to 400 yards and five touchdowns. That was skill. Welcome to the top five.
4. Mark Sanchez (QB USC) – 74.3%, 338 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT – I am going to move Sanchez up this week. Sure he didn’t play, but maybe that was a good thing. This is a temporary spot for him depending on how things go against Ohio State this week. They better be big, because I am not sure he is really in this crowd.
5. Knowshon Moreno (RB Georgia) – 227 yds, 6 TD, 8.7 avg.- Ok, I am going to get on the Moreno bandwagon. The guy can run. However, I am holding him back from the top three until I see him run against an opponent in the top 25 this season.

People with still a chance to make this list: Dan LeFevour (Still looked solid against Georgia, but still in the second pack), P.J. Hill (Marshall stopped you? Wow, Time to look in the mirror.), Chris “Beanie” Wells (Still waiting for the magic), Pat White (Gee, Pat, miss Steve Slaton much?), Jeremy Maclin (Wide receivers are destined to drop from the top), Jahvid Best (At least someone in the Pac-10 knows how to run. Can it stand up against a team with a real defense?) Juice Williams (Passes conference foe Kellen Lewis to be the best player no one outside of the Big Ten speaks of)