The 2008 college football season has only been over for a week, but I’m already brimming with excitement for the next season.
As close as the Heisman race was this past season, how close will it be next season, with not one, not two, but all three of the top three finishers back? Runner-up Colt McCoy announced his intentions to return even before the season ended, 2007 winner and 2008 third-placed finisher Tim Tebow announced earlier this week, and yesterday, reigning winner Sam Bradford completed the trifecta.
It’s a shame that Matthew Stafford and Mark Sanchez had to go and declare for the 2009 NFL Draft, but someone had to help make what would’ve been a relatively weak QB class a respectable one.
What should we be more excited about? Another epic national title race? Another Oklahoma-Texas showdown for the title in the Big 12 South? The chance for the second two-time winner in Heisman history?
All three had excellent reason to leave school after this past season, but all three made the right decision in coming back.
Not only is Bradford coming off of a Heisman win, but he‘s a draft-eligible sophomore, and he has. But after missing out on a national championship, he’d be crazy to not come back and try to take his team one step further.
McCoy’s stock may never get any higher, some might say. But he barely missed out on both the Heisman and a national championship shot, and if he made such a drastic improvement from his sophomore season to his junior season, we may not have seen his best yet, which is a scary, scary thought.
Tebow’s done it all at Florida, becoming the first sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy, winning two national championships in three seasons, and after his mentor Dan Mullen left for Mississippi State, he could’ve left without any real regrets.
But if you have a chance to win three national championships in four seasons and win a second Heisman Trophy, along with further developing yourself into a bona fide NFL prospect, take it.
For the sake of development, Tebow had the most reason to come back, because not everyone is sold on his NFL future. Staying one more year won’t dispel all of the doubters, but even if it means he has to make a few trips to Starkville in the off-season, another season can only help him developmentally.
When the odds start rolling out about who the favorite for the 2009 national title start rolling out, expect these three to be at the top of the list. USC’s chances also can’t be discounted even with the departure of Sanchez, what with Mitch Mustain or Aaron Corp ready and waiting to take over.
As is, we’re on course for a rematch in the national championship game come next January. Whether or not that excites you is another thing, but it has an excellent chance of happening.
Florida does lose Percy Harvin to the NFL, but do I even need to start listing the weapons that will be around Tebow next season? Just as importantly, Florida’s defensive leader, Brandon Spikes, is coming back for his senior season.
Oklahoma has retooling to do on both sides of the ball, but their offense will be every bit as prolific again next season, with Bradford and running back tandem Chris Brown and DeMarco Murray back. Murray needs to avoid getting another serious late-season injury, but fortunately, there’s a third option in Mossis Madu, who logged 115 carries and scored six touchdowns in 2008.
They’ll be pushed once again by Texas, who returns McCoy, explosive receiver Jordan Shipley, and several core players from a defense that saw great improvement in 2008 and will be even better next season with another year of getting whipped into shape by Will Muschamp. The Longhorns will need to get regular production out of their running game (excluding McCoy), but if they can do that, then I like their chances to push past the Sooners.
Other contenders will emerge, and if the last couple of seasons are any indication, many surprises are in store. But when one of these guys lifts the Heisman and one of them (maybe the same guy, maybe not) lifts that crystal ball a month later, it won’t be.
