Is It Colt's Turn to Capture the Heisman?

Is it mid-April already? Well, as we know, it's never too early to start some Heisman banter.

Not much mystery for '09.  Think Tebow, Bradford, and McCoy.  Sound boring?  Not so much. 

Last year, the aforementioned signal callers battled it out in legendary fashion for the award.  Tim Tebow got his in 2007.  Sam Bradford won it last year.  So is it McCoy's turn this year?

At early glance, it appears Tim Tebow will be the front runner. 

Tebow has the overwhelming backing of the media, the nation's probable preseason No. 1 team, and a head to head victory over the Sooner's quarterback in last year's BCS title, in which he outplayed a seemingly mesmerized Bradford.

This brings us to Colt McCoy. 

The senior put up astonishing numbers a year ago, throwing for 3,859 yards and 34 touchdowns.  His completion percentage was a gaudy 77 percent and his passer rating was 173.74. 

Did I mention he led the 'Horns in rushing with 561 yards and 11 scores.  Oh yeah, Texas was 12-1 with that win over Oklahoma too.

The prospectus for the burnt orange in 2009 is promising. 

Although McCoy loses receiver Quan Cosby, he returns the explosive Jordan Shipley, who could be one of the nation's elite pass catchers after snagging 89 passes and 11 scores a year ago. 

Junior Brandon Collins returns after catching 35 passes last year and the coaching staff is very high on talented sophomore Malcolm Williams.  They compare the 6'3" 220 pound receiver to Terrell Owens—his playing style that is.

Coach Mack Brown doesn't plan on using McCoy as a runner quite as much.  This will probably mean a healthier McCoy.  They better hope their stable of young, unproven backs can take some pressure off their quarterback.

There's no reason to think that McCoy won't put up similar numbers this season. 

He has put on 10 pounds of muscle and is apparently more focused than ever.  As long as the "pillowy" Big Twelve pass defenses don't miraculously turn into SEC ball hawks, McCoy, and Bradford for that matter, should flourish once again.

Both Oklahoma and Texas will come in rated in the top five in the country. 

The October 17th matchup in the Cotton Bowl could eliminate one of the two quarterbacks, but of course, that was not the case a year ago as McCoy beat Bradford head to head. 

I'm not naive and I don't dare attempt to predict anything in this day and age of college football. 

Who knows what teams will be in the hunt come December, and who knows what other players will make their way to New York for the Heisman presentation.  All we can do is speculate. 

I can definitely speculate that whether Colt can claim the Heisman or not, the names Tebow, Bradford, and McCoy will be batched together for years to come.  This could be a race for the ages.