Andrew Luck's Campaign Died Against Oregon; Why It's Still a Surprise He Lost

Andrew Luck is likely to be the first player taken in the next NFL Draft as he is the most complete quarterback prospect in the country right now. Luck has proven his worth through the past two seasons—leading a Stanford squad is nothing short of amazing. He is a proven winner with a ton of talent and knowledge of the position.

Luck has led game winning drives against numerous big time opponents, but his biggest challenge has come against the Oregon Ducks. Unfortunately for Luck, the Ducks have waxed the Cardinal in the past two seasons to the tune of 105-61.

For whatever reason, Luck was unable to beat the Ducks in either season. He didn’t necessarily have bad games, but he did throw uncharacteristic interceptions.

Luck has maintained level play throughout his career. Even his bad games seem controlled with a few hiccups here and there. He has command of the Stanford offense and showed that a coaching transition can be overcome with great player-based leadership.

Luck only had two games where he tossed less than 200 yards through the air and he had eight games with three or more touchdown passes this season. Luck also went on to complete 70 percent of his passes.

It almost seemed to be a touch of fate to have a Stanford Cardinal finish second in the Heisman voting for the third year in a row. Luck was the front-runner from the season start, but the flashy play and big wins of Robert Griffin III pushed the Baylor signal caller to the top at the end of the season.

Luck is a methodical signal caller that was constantly in the focus of the national audience. With Stanford winning ballgames and staying consistently in the Top 10 all season, it wasn’t hard to find Luck and the Cardinal playing in the prime-time television slot.

Luck returned for his senior season to finish school, but he also had business left unfinished on the football field. Most expected him to win the Heisman this season and going down to the last week of voting it still appeared that he had the hidden edge as most were clinging to the “pick of the day” while Luck was the steady name that never wavered.

At the end of the day, Robert Griffin III had the best season of any player in college football for 2011. He was very unique with his play-making and is one game away from setting the record for all-time passer efficiency. Despite his record breaking season, Luck was still a favorite and still pulled a large majority of the points.

The respect for Luck’s play earned him the second chair for the second year in a row, but despite his surprising loss the Heisman Trophy Trust got it right this season with Griffin III.