Miami's Ken Dorsey Finishes Third In Heisman Votes
Dec 9, 2001
By RICHARD ROSENBLATT
AP Football Writer
NEW YORK (AP) – When Eric Crouch wrapped his hands around the HeismanTrophy, he finally let loose with a smile.
`Yes!” he said, slowly lifting the 25-pound bronze trophy. “It’s a littleheavier than I thought.”
Crouch is used to carrying a heavy load. Three years after briefly leavingNebraska when he lost the starting job, the quarterback won the Heisman Trophyon Saturday night in one of the closest races in the history of the award.
“I just made history,” Crouch said after winning college football’s topindividual prize by 62 points, 770-708, over Florida quarterback Rex Grossman.”I never thought that in a million years I’d stick through it and be sittinghere. I always believed in myself. I beat the odds. I’m proud of myself.”
Crouch capped a sensational career by keeping the Huskers (11-1) in thenational title race all season, and not even a 62-36 loss to Colorado two weeksago kept him from winning the Heisman.
A few hours later, Crouch and the No. 5 Cornhuskers got another present.Second-ranked Tennessee lost to LSU 31-20 in the SEC championship game, perhapsgiving Nebraska a chance to go to the Rose Bowl for a matchup with No. 1 Miamiand a shot at the national title.
Miami quarterback Ken Dorsey was third with 638 points and Oregonquarterback Joey Harrington fourth with 368 points. Crouch’s margin of victorywas the fourth closest in the Heisman’s 67-year history.
“There was something deep down inside that said, `Eric, you want thattrophy,” Crouch said. “But win or lose, I knew I would be the same person -keep my character and keep composed.”
The Heisman ceremony was held at a midtown hotel, the first time it’s beenaway from the Downtown Athletic Club. The club was damaged in the Sept. 11terrorist attacks.
A gutty 6-foot-1, 200-pound senior from Omaha, Neb., Crouch ran for 1,115yards and 18 touchdowns, passed for 1,510 yards and seven scores and evencaught a 63-yard TD pass in a big win over Oklahoma. He’s one of only threemajor college quarterbacks to run for 3,000 yards and pass for 4,000 yards in acareer.
Crouch’s winning point total was the smallest since Oregon State’s TerryBaker won in 1962, but there may be an explanation.
Heisman officials mailed out 924 ballots, but only 585 were counted amongthe top 10 finishers, or just 63.3 percent. On average, there’s about an 80percent return rate, according to Heisman officials, who offered no explanationfor the unusual amount of missing ballots.
Last year, 796 of 922 ballots were returned, an 86.3 percent rate, whenChris Weinke won over Josh Heupel.
When Crouch’s name was called, his mother, Susan Sanchez, said she was “overwhelmed with pride.”
“Did I really just hear his name? Did he really just win the HeismanTrophy? It was surreal. I feel like I’m in a dream,” she said.
Grossman, who threw for 3,896 yards and 34 TDs in the Gators’ 9-2 season,became the fourth sophomore to finish second in the Heisman. No sophomore haswon it.
“I’m going to get another shot at it next year to prove that I’m a prettygood player,” Grossman said. “I’m not going to dwell on it like a loss or notplaying in the SEC championship game.”
Crouch, the first true option quarterback to win the award, had 162first-place votes, 98 second-place votes and 88 third-place votes, but won onlyone region – the Southwest. Grossman had 137 first-place votes, 105 for secondand 87 for third. He won the Mid-Atlantic and South.
Dorsey, who led Miami to an 11-0 record and a spot in the national titlegame, had 109 first-place votes, 122 for second and 67 for third. He won theNortheast.
Harrington, who threw for 2,414 yards and 23 TDs in leading the Ducks (10-1)to the Pac-10 title, had 54 first-place votes, 68 for second and 66 for third.He won the Far West.
The closest Heisman vote was Bo Jackson’s 45-point victory over Chuck Longin 1985. Other than the first Heisman, when there were just 65 voters, thetightest three-man race was a 93-point margin in 1956, when Paul Hornung wonover Johnny Majors and Tom McDonald.
Voters list three choices on their ballots, and players are awarded 3 pointsfor first place, 2 for second and 1 for third.
Fresno State quarterback David Carr was fifth, followed by Indianaquarterback Antwaan Randle El, Oklahoma safety Roy Williams, Miami left tackleBryant McKinnie, Syracuse defensive end Dwight Freeney and North Carolinadefensive end Julius Peppers.
With the race wide open the past two weeks, voters were looking for one ofthe four finalists to produce a breakout game. It never happened. Nebraska andFlorida lost, and Miami and Oregon won close games. In the end, Crouch’s seasonwon out, despite the loss to the Buffaloes.
“It’s been a great ride,” Crouch said.
In 1999, after Crouch started five games for the injured Bobby Newcombe,coach Frank Solich went back to Newcombe. Crouch was crushed. He got in hiscar, drove home and considered leaving the team.
But Solich drove to Omaha, too. The coach convinced him to return, and threegames into the season Newcombe was benched for ineffectiveness and Crouch wascalling signals again.
Great move, coach. Crouch is 35-6 as a starter and led the nation’s toprushing offense with a knack for breaking big runs and hitting key passes.Crouch completed 55.6 percent of his passes, but critics saw more interceptions(10) than TD passes (7).
Of his trip to retrieve Crouch, Solich said: “I felt he would just needsome time to step back and think things over. He’s very much a team player. Heunderstood he was going to be an integral part of what we were going to do atNebraska.”
Even though he had surgery twice on his right throwing shoulder, he nevermissed a snap due to injury in his final three seasons.
The 23-year-old Crouch, who has a 2-year old daughter with his fiance,Nikki, is the third Heisman winner from Nebraska, but the first quarterback.Running back Mike Rozier won in 1983 and wingback Johnny Rodgers in 1972.
“When you’re a Heisman winner, they remember you for life,” said Rodgers,who was in attendance with Rozier.
Unlike some of the top Nebraska quarterbacks before him, Crouch was the mainman in crucial situations. Tommie Frazier, for example, had star I-backs AhmanGreen and then Lawrence Phillips from 1992-95. And in the early ’80s, TurnerGill had Roger Craig and then Rozier and All-American receiver Irving Fryar.
This year’s Huskers ran for 314.7 yards per game, with I-back DahrranDiedrick producing a 1,000-yard season. But when a game was on the line, Crouchcame through.
“We literally put the ball in hands to win football games, and heresponded,” Solich said.
While Grossman put up awesome numbers, Dorsey’s team didn’t lose andHarrington led the Ducks to 10 wins, it was Crouch who convinced the voters hehad the best Heisman-winning combination.
Even in the loss to Colorado, Crouch rallied the Huskers from a 32-pointdeficit within 12 points late in the third quarter, and wound up with aschool-record 360 total yards.
“It’s kind of been an up in the air type of thing all year long,” Crouchsaid.
Not anymore.
