As the final seconds of the Rose Bowl ticked away, one thing became frustratingly obvious for both elated Texas fans and dejected USC fans-Vince Young should have won the Heisman.
Young was not only the best player in college football this year, but his 2005 campaign will go down as one of the greatest individual seasons ever.
En route to leading his team to the national title over a team that had won 34 straight games, Young totaled 38 touchdowns (26 passing and 12 rushing) and became the first player to pass for more than 3,000 yards while rushing for more than 1,000.
Yet USC running back Reggie Bush-who didn’t even have half as many touchdowns as Young (Bush had 18 touchdowns; 16 rushing, two receiving)-won the 2005 Heisman Trophy.
While it is difficult to compare running backs and quarterbacks, the two stats that tip the scale in Young’s favor are rushing touchdowns and all-purpose yards.
Bush, a running back, had just four more rushing touchdowns than Young, a quarterback. In addition, while Bush’s 2,218 total yards (1,740 rushing and 478 receiving) and 2,890 all-purpose yards are impressive, it is still short of Young’s passing total alone (3,036 yards); coupled with his 1,050 rushing yards, Young combined for nearly 4,100 total yards. Not only did Young outplay Bush in the regular season, but the Longhorns’ quarterback also outplayed him in the Rose Bowl.
While Bush’s 279 all-purpose yards (more than 100 of which came on kick returns) and 26-yard rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter that put his team up by eight points were indeed Heisman-like, he will be remembered more for what he should not have done on one play (lateral), and what he did not do on another (as he sat on the sidelines).
After catching a screen pass from last year’s Heisman winner, Matt Leinart, Bush ran for 37 yards before trying unsuccessfully to flip the ball to teammate Brad Walker. With the Trojans already winning 7-0, USC would have had a first down inside the Texas 20-yard line with a chance to go up by 14 points.
Instead, Texas safety Michael Huff recovered the ball and gave his struggling offense a chance to finally put some points on the board. Nine plays and 52 yards later, they did; a 46-yard field goal by David Pino made the score 7-3. The three points that resulted from Bush’s turnover proved to be the difference in the game, and Texas eventually won 41-38.
When Bush’s team needed him the most, he was nowhere to be found. With USC winning 38-33 in the waning minutes of the game, Bush’s Trojans faced a fourth-and-two. Rather than punting the ball and making Young drive the length of the field for the game-winning touchdown, USC coach Pete Carroll elected to go for the first down and run out the clock.
But instead of drawing up a play for his Heisman winner, Carroll put the fate of the Trojans’ national championship aspirations-and their shot at an unprecedented three-straight titles-on Bush backup LenDale White’s shoulders.
Where was Bush, you ask? On the sidelines.
And with Bush on the sidelines, the Texas defense stopped White short of a first down. Some may blame Carroll (which he partially deserves) for not having his Heisman winner in for the most important play of the season. However, if I were Bush and I had earned the right to be called the best player in college football, I would be pleading with my coach to put me in so I could win him the game. But Bush did not do that, and his team lost because of it.
Young, meanwhile, stole the spotlight when it was shining the brightest. With his team trailing 38-26 and less than seven minutes left in the game, Young calmly led the Longhorns down the field with eight-play and 10-play touchdown-scoring drives of 69 yards and 56 yards, respectively. It was fitting that Young ran for both touchdowns and the two-point conversion to give his team a 41-38 lead. Young’s 467 total yards (267 passing and 200 rushing) were a Rose Bowl Record, and Young had more rushing yards than Bush’s total yards (177). The biggest difference between Young and Bush is that Young wanted the ball and Bush did not; while Bush was trying to lateral or was busy not being in the game, Young carried Texas to the title by passing or running on 59 of Texas’ 76 offensive plays and by scoring three touchdowns.
The NCAA needs to postpone its Heisman voting until all bowl games have been played.
How can one determine the best player in college football without seeing how he performs when it really matters? One person who would undoubtedly be against this idea is Reggie Bush himself.
After all, Vince Young already has Bush’s national championship- why not give away the Heisman, too?
