Soooo.....Suh, me?

It started as a whisper in the plains of Nebraska after the Cornhuskers started 4-1. In those 5 games a name started forming on the lips of Heisman voters. It was a name very few could pronounce and no one could spell. The man with the impossible name had 32 tackles, 15 of them solo tackles. He had 2 sacks and one interception. That faint whisper heard in the mid-west has now become a violent uproar after the Big 12 championship game. The man with the name had 12 tackles, 10 of them solo and four sacks. This man's name is Ndamukong Suh and he is a Heisman Finalist.

The Heisman Trophy has never been won by a defensive player. ( I know that Charles Woodson won the Heisman as a defensive back. But he was also a return man and played receiver. ) If Suh won the Heisman it would be an epic turn in college football thinking. I am a victim of the same thinking that has kept a defensive player from winning the Heisman. I have argued for players like Toby Gerhart and Kellen Moore. Never once did I give a thought to Suh as a Heisman Trophy candidate. I figured that it was good enough that he sweep all of the defensive awards. But it is not. I learned that in the Big 12 championship game. Suh took over and willed his team. The Blackshirt defense played inspired and there was no question who was leading it. It seemed as if Suh was in on every play. He made a believer out of me and apparently the rest of the nation as well.

There are thousands of websites that predict and track the Heisman votes. Voters often converse with each other after they vote and these conversations get leaked. The people who know what they are talking about at stiffarmtrophy.com have Suh in the lead. According to Tim Colishaw , a Dallas Morning News sports writer, via a tweet by Jemele Hill, an ESPN contributor and great twitter follow, stiffarmtrophy.com has predicted the Heisman winner the last seven years. That is a pretty big boost of confidence for the defensive tackle from Nebraska.

I still believe that Toby Gerhart deserves the Heisman. But I am amazed at the groundswell of support and votes for the defensive lineman. Make sure you all tune in to the Heisman presentation show, because you may see history. Live like no one is watching and defensive tackles are Heisman candidates too!