Heisman Watch : 2009. Is It Colt McCoy's Year ?

There is no shortage of Heisman talent coming into the 2009 NCAA Football season. There is also a handful of names creating quite a buzz when it comes to Heisman talk. I'll take the time to preview some of the leading candidates entering the year, and leave it up to you, the reader, on who your forerunner for distinguished title of Heisman Trophy Winner will be.

 As College Football fans gear up for another year, the question remains, who is the early favorite for the Heisman Trophy ? All eyes seem to be Texas' star quarterback, Colt McCoy, or are they ?

Last year, Colt had one of the greatest seasons of any college quarterback in recent memory. Colt put up almost 4,000 yards passing, with 3,859, 34 touchdown tosses, and only eight interceptions. Not only were his numbers so impressive production wise, he managed to have 76.7% completion rate, and a 173.75 passer rating.  He led his Longhorn's to an impressive 12-1 regular season record, and a close 24 - 21 victory over the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Tostito's Fiesta Bowl.

The Longhorns will open the season against The University of Louisiana, Monroe on September 5th. Of course the offensively dominated Big 12 is no picnic, but I look for the Longhorns to take the conference in 2009. They have the annual battle against Oklahoma on October 17th, and will play Zac Robinson's Oklahoma State Cowboys on October 31st. These two games look to be pivotal for the Horns, if they have National Championship/BCS aspirations. As we've seen in the past, it is possible for a one loss team, whether it be SEC or Big 12, to reach the National Championship game. In my opinion, it looks like the Longhorns will have another one loss year, a loss at the hands of Oklahoma State.

This brings me to my next candidate, another Big 12 quarterback, Zac Robinson. Zac is the general of the high powered Cowboy offense, and should have a mirror season compared to his Sophomore and Junior year campaigns.

Robinson threw 25 touchdowns, 10 picks, and finished the year with a 166.84 passer rating. Accompany maturity, pocket presence/poise, and laser accuracy, you have a force to be reckoned with.  When you team a guy like Robinson, with a 6'2" premier wide reciever like Dez Bryant, that usually equals trouble for any opposing defense/secondary. Let us not forget Oklahoma State's emerging running back, the 5'8" junior, Kendall Hunter.

The Cowboys open the year against a tough Georgia Bulldog squad, who lost quarterback Matt Stafford (Detroit Lions), and running back Knowshown Moreno (Denver Broncos). Even with the loss of two important offensive pieces, the Bulldogs look to be a formidable opponent for the 'Boys on the 5th of September. Oklahoma State will play Colt McCoy's Longhorns on October 31st, and the Sooners of Oklahoma, led by 2008 Heisman Trophy Winner, Sam Bradford, on November 28th. I look for the Cowboys to finish their Big 12 season at 11-2.

I now move on to the SEC, and no, I'm not going to talk about Tim Tebow. There is no doubt in my mind that Tebow will have a great year, but I'm shifting the attention to Ole Miss quarterback, Jevan Snead.

The Runnin' Rebels of Ole Miss have earned themselves a preseason no. 8 ranking. This ranking comes off the strength of an 8 - 4 SEC record in 2008, and a 47 -34 Cotton Bowl victory over Michael Crabtree and Graham Harrell's Red Raiders of Texas Tech. The Runnin' Rebels finished the year at 9 - 4 overall.

Ole Miss suffered a close, heart breaking loss last year to 2nd ranked Alabama (24-20), and managed to edge out 4th ranked Florida (31-30). With Snead returning, Jevan looks to have his Rebels runnin' with the best of 'em in the SEC this year. Here's a quick reminder of Jevan's numbers from the 2008 season... 2,762 yards passing, 26 touchdowns, 13 interceptions, 56.3% completion rate, and a respectable 145.50 passer rating. Considering the quality of Jevan's opponents last year, and a relatively lack luster Ole Miss line up, these stats are likely to stand out to just about anyone. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Ole Miss and Florida will be duking it out for the SEC Championship in December.

Quarterbacks, quarterbacks, quarterbacks.... Those guys get all the Heisman hype, don't they ? What about the running backs ? We saw a handful of talented tailbacks last year vying for the Heisman. Michigan State's Javon Ringer, Georgia's Knowshown Moreno, Connecticut's Donald Brown, and to round out the list,  Ohio State's Chris "Beanie" Wells.  This year, in my mind, as well as in other's, the Golden Bear from California, Javihd Best, seems to be the stand out.

The California Golden Bears of the Pac 10 never seem to receive any hype. USC is easily the most dominant program in that conference, and will more than likely continue to be, as long as Pete Carroll is in charge. That does not change the fact that Cal's star running back, Javhid Best, is on my Heisman Watch List.

Javhid averaged over 8 yards a carry last year, combined with 15 rushing touchdowns, and 1,580 yards via ground game. Best also had 1 receiving touchdown, and 246 yards receiving, which put him near the top in the Pac 10's all purpose yards category.

The Golden Bears went 8-4 in 2008, and capped off the year with an Emerald Bowl victory over Miami, 24-17.

With the USC Trojan's choice to start true freshman Matt Barkley, and having to endure some key losses defensively, namely Roy Malaluga... don't assume that USC will bury the competition in 2009. The Pac 10 looks to be one of the more underrated conferences, and I would not be surprised to see the Trojans have a sub par season (under the current Carroll standard). California is my "dark horse" when it comes to winning the historically (over the last decade) Trojan dominated Pac 10. If the Bears can run their schedule prior to the showdown against Pete Carroll's Trojans on October 3rd, I believe they have a shot at a Pac 10 Title, and a Rose Bowl Bid.

This is my take on the upcoming Heisman Hopefuls, and once again, this race promises not to dissappoint. Like most of you, I am looking ahead to the year that will be in college football, and will continue to write more articles keeping you, the reader, "in the know".