2020 Heisman Trophy candidates | Yahoo Sports College Podcast
Yahoo Sports’ Dan Wetzel and Pete Thamel, and Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde discuss their 2020 Heisman Trophy candidates.
Video Transcript
DAN WETZEL: Mac Jones, Kyle Trask, Trevor Lawrence, Ian Book-- briefly, if one of you guys-- do you guys both vote or just Pat?
PAT FORDE: I think--
PETE THAMEL: I vote as well.
DAN WETZEL: You both vote. If we were going to have a vote right now, your thoughts?
PAT FORDE: Uh, boy, I'm not-- I mean, I am not ready to cast a ballot, I've got five guys, basically, that I'm looking at for three spots. And I don't know who would be one, two, or three. But I've got Trevor Lawrence. I have DeVonta Smith instead of Mac Jones, because I think DeVonta Smith is the best player on the best team.
I have Justin Fields, but he's only played five games. It's a problem. I have Zach Wilson, who I think is phenomenal, and showed it by leading that drive at the end. He didn't play a great game, but he also had some guys dropping some balls on him. And who is my fifth?
PETE THAMEL: Ian Book?
PAT FORDE: No. And I like Ian--
PETE THAMEL: You don't have Ian Book?
PAT FORDE: --a lot. No, I don't think so. Oh, Trask, Trask, Kyle Trask. Yeah, that's my fifth. Yeah, yeah, yeah, so it's one of those five. And it's three of those five for me, but I don't know who exactly.
PETE THAMEL: Yeah, I don't have a ton of conviction right now on a one or a one, two, three. Nobody-- well, out of Pat's five, I would at least going to consider Ian Book. I mean, he was really--
PAT FORDE: Oh, I'll consider it. I'll consider it.
PETE THAMEL: Yeah, he was-- he was a magician in that North Carolina game. And Ian Book's been really, really, really good. The Trevor Lawrence case is going to be the fascinating one, right? Because Trevor Lawrence is the best player in college football, I don't think there's any doubt.
Now, again, it's a one season. It's a sample. It's because there has been some COVID issues and the ACC pulls a data point away. Do we do we hold that against Trevor Lawrence? Again, and I know Dan can speak to this, because he has strong stronger opinions on it than I do. But are you going to regret not voting for Trevor Lawrence because he is so much better than everyone because he had a lack of opportunity and showcases to show it this year?
DAN WETZEL: Yes, you will. Yes, you will. Trevor Lawrence is the Heisman Trophy winner. Look, I will not vote. I've never voted. I vote for nothing. OK, I shouldn't have this job because we're unqualified.
But if you're going to give me an unqualified vote, and I think they've asked me to vote, Trevor-- what are you guys doing? Let's line up all the college football players in an open field and say who you got for the first pick of the today's game. Who you want? Pick up sides.
Trevor Lawrence is getting picked. He is the best player. I don't care if he had COVID for a couple games. They ended up losing to Notre Dame. I don't care about data points.
Trevor Lawrence, this is how you end up with know Jason White beating Larry Fitzgerald, Eli Manning, and Ben Roethlisberger out, because you come up with some stats system. It's always well, he's got a better year, ten games, eight games than Joe Burrow had. And since Joe Burrow won, or he's the first guy to rush for this many yards and this many things or this while having three consonants in his last name.
They come up with anything they want. Or they send-- they used to buy all the sportswriter's stakes out the night before the game. Hey, we won the Heisman. The same schools would win the Heisman every time.
This is easy. Trevor Lawrence is the best player. What are you people doing? This is why you people shouldn't vote. You don't know what you're doing.
PETE THAMEL: So you're telling us both that we should not vote and that we're unqualified to vote and who we should vote for. Is that what I'm--
DAN WETZEL: Yes.
PETE THAMEL: --getting out of this lecture, Professor Wetzel?
PAT FORDE: Yeah, do you got that right?
DAN WETZEL: If you're corrupt enough-- if you're corrupt enough to vote, if you're willing to give away all your journalistic integrity and you don't care and you're willing to be a voter in the Heisman, listen to me, people, all of you, not just you two, but the rest of you listen-- to at least vote for the right guy. My goodness.
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