Johnny Manziel won the Heisman Trophy last season and is still considered to be a strong candidate for this year’s trophy. Texas A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin is now getting involved with stumping for one of his players to be considered for the Heisman, and it may not be who you think it is.
Sumlin thinks Aggies receiver Mike Evans should be receiving more consideration for the award and wonders why nobody seems to be mentioning it as a possibility.
“I’m puzzled why Mike Evans isn’t in the Heisman race,” Sumlin said in a report by the Associated Press. “I think he’s as good a player as there is in the country.”
“He’s second in the country in yards per game and everybody knows we’re going to throw him the ball,” Sumlin said. Evans is also third in the nation with 11 touchdowns and second in total receiving yards. Evans is also one of the game’s top big-play threats with the nation’s fifth best average yards per reception with 22.94 yards per play.
History is against Evans though. The last time a wide receiver won the Heisman Trophy was 1991 when Michigan’s Desmond Howard was named the Heisman Trophy winner. The only other two receivers to win the Heisman Trophy are Nebraska’s Johnny Rodgers in 1972 and Notre Dame’s Tim Brown in 1987. Since 1998 a running back or quarterback has been named the Heisman Trophy winner each season.
At this point in the season the top Heisman candidates are probably pretty much set. Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota and Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston appear to be locks, and Manziel could very well make the return trip to New York as a finalist. Other candidates still considered to be in the running include Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron and Baylor quarterback Bryce Petty.