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| Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o, Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel and Kansas State quarterback Collin Klein are the 2012 Heisman Trophy finalists. (Joe Raymond, Dave Marin and Charlie Riedel) |
Collin Klein: The Kansas State senior quarterback has accounted for 37 of the Wildcats' 56 offensive touchdowns this season. According to ESPN.com, he became the first quarterback from a BCS AQ school in the BCS era with 20 rushing touchdowns and 10 passing touchdowns in multiple seasons. Klein's best game of the season was on October 20 at West Virginia. He completed 19 of 21 passes for 323 yards and seven total (three passing and four rushing) touchdowns. Klein's 55 career rushing touchdowns rank second among all active players, and are the fourth-most in Big 12 history. He also threw for at least 200 yards in six of his 12 games this season.
Johnny Manziel: The Texas A&M redshirt freshman quarterback has already made a name for himself in households around the country. "Johnny Football," as the call him rushed for a freshman quarterback record 1,181 yards. Manziel's 4,600 yards of total offense are a school record and another national record for freshmen. He became just the fifth player, and first freshman, in FBS history to pass for at least 3,000 yards and rush for 1,000. Manziel accomplished all of this while leading Texas A&M to a 10-2 mark in their first season in the SEC. His best game of the season came in the biggest one of all. He had 345 total yards and two touchdowns to lead the Aggies to the upset of previously undefeated Alabama.
Manti Te'o: The senior linebacker has anchored a rock solid Notre Dame defense (allowed 10.3 points per game) that lead the Irish to the BCS National Championship Game. He lead the unit in tackles for the third straight yeah a team-high 103 tackles. Teo's seven interceptions are the most ever for a Notre Dame linebacker and rank him second nationally among all players. His best game of the season came back in Semptember against Michigan when he accounted for eight tackles and two interceptions.
Prediction: I loved Klein early in the season. His effort was remarkable and enjoyable to watch. Unfortunately for him, his stock dropped as Kansas State's stock dropped. I would consider Klein a long-shot to win and expect him to finish third in the final voting. Te'o was the next player to grab my attention. He seemed to be everywhere on the field making plays from his linebacker position. Te'o is true leader at Notre Dame and is respected as one both on and off the field. But then, it was the freshman who stepped his game up to take the hearts of America captive. Manziel put up numbers week after week. When he led Texas A&M to the upset of previously undefeated Alabama, he was thrust into the forefront of the Heisman race.
There has never been a freshman Heisman winner and some voters will like to keep it that way, so that will cost Manziel some votes. However, I don't believe it will be enough. Te'o has put up great numbers, but Johnny Football has been special. I predict that Manziel will win the Heisman Trophy by a comfortable margin, but I still think it will still be closer than some expect.
