Trent Richardson's Heisman Stock Skyrockets with Andrew Luck Loss

News flash: The media's favorite darling and the lock-in for the Heisman Trophy just lost to the Oregon Ducks, and lost big, 52-30.

Andrew Luck and the Stanford Cardinal could do nothing right against the Ducks' surprisingly stout defense, and Oregon running back LaMichael James could not be caught.  

Statistically, it was one of the worst games of Luck's entire career.  

His completion percentage looked okay, at just under 66 percent, but he averaged a mere 6.6 yards-per-attempt—hardly enough to win a ball game, let alone the Heisman Trophy.  

Luck had a low five interceptions going into the game, but Oregon picked him off twice and sent him home a loser. Too be fair, one of the interceptions bounced right off the numbers of his receiver. You can't really blame Luck, it was just bad luck.  

The last time Luck threw two interceptions in a game was in a losing effort against Oregon in 2010, a game that looked eerily familiar to last night's game. The 2010 game finished with a 52-31 score.

To top off an overall mediocre performance, Luck could do nothing on the ground. He's not a rushing quarterback, but he usually gets a few yards rushing or at the very least avoids the pass rush and extends place. Not last night, though. He was sacked three times and finished with minus-13 yards rushing.  

During the game, Luck made some very nice NFL-like throws. But was he a Heisman-worthy quarterback last night?  

I'm not so sure, and I don't believe the voters will be either. Unless the Heisman Trophy is awarded to the best NFL prospect, I don't see Luck winning it.  

Trent Richardson actually might be the best NFL prospect in the nation, but with the dwindling importance of running backs in the NFL, he won't be the first pick like Luck will be.  

Richardson also had his own troubles last night when the Crimson Tide played the Mississippi State Bulldogs.  

The home team in Starkville, Miss. put their entire defense into stopping one man. For much of the game, Trent Richardson could go nowhere on the ground. The offensive line did what they could, but play after play the Bulldogs created a huge man-pile to stop him. Richardson had to break numerous tackles on every carry.

The Tide's aerial assault was crippled on the first play of the game. A.J. McCarron threw a short pass to Darius Hanks for a two-yard gain, and a Bulldog defender stopped him by launching his body head-first into Hanks' knees.  

This extremely dangerous type of tackle, which I believe should not be allowed in football due to the high injury rate involved, sidelined Hanks for the rest of the ball game with an unknown leg injury. 

After that, the Tide passing game only managed 161 more yards through the air.  

It was up to Richardson. He had to put the team on his back in a game that was much closer than anyone expected it to be.  

Much like he did with Mark Ingram against South Carolina in 2009, coach Nick Saban put Richardson in the Wildcat (or Wild Tide) several times. Richardson pounded the ball over and over, and as the defense got tired, Richardson went into Beast Mode.  

He finished the night with 32 carries, something a running back should never have to do, but did manage 127 yards rushing, and tacked on 26 receiving yards.  

It wasn't the prettiest game, but with brute force, double-digit broken tackles and a never-quit attitude, Trent Richardson put on a Heisman-worthy performance.

The only real blemish on his Heisman resume was the LSU game, but I believe the voters will look past the fact that the Tide lost that game. After all, Richardson did put up 169 yards of offense (89 rushing, 80 receiving) against the second-best defense in the nation and the No.1 team in the land. Richardson could not be blamed a bit for the loss.  

Luck, however, put up average numbers against the first real competition he's faced this year.  

Richardson's Heisman stock just went way up as Luck's will be going down.  

Neither the Tide nor the Cardinal look to be playing in their respective conference championships, so the last of the regular season games are really going to count.  

As long as the voters can take off their NFL-glasses for just a moment, Richardson will win the Heisman Trophy. Luck may be the best NFL prospect in college football, but he is not the best player in college football.  

That title belongs to the Crimson Tide's very own Incredible Hulk.