Pool

by Tom Campbell and Glynn Wilson

NEW YORK — Running back Mark Ingram became the University of Alabama’s first Heisman Trophy winner Saturday night in the closest vote in the history of college football’s most prestigious award. Ingram becomes the 75th winner of the stiff-arm statue and puts the university into the record books with the only major prize in big time college football to elude Alabama in its storied history.

Toby Gerhart of Stanford placed second just 28 votes behind Ingram. He was followed by Colt McCoy of Texas, Ndamukong Suh of Nebraska and Tim Tebow of Florida, according to coverage by the host network, ESPN.

Tom Campbell

Ingram holds Alabama’s first Heisman [More Photos...]

Ingram received 1,304 total votes. Gerhart placed second with 1,276, followed by McCoy with 1,145, Suh 815 and Tebow 390. Ingram won by dominating votes in the North and Midwest regions as well as the South. Ingram got 254 votes to Tebow’s 106 in the Southeast.

Ingram, originally from Michael Moore’s hometown of Flint Michigan and the 10th Alabama player to finish in the top five of the balloting and the ninth SEC player to win the Heisman, became emotional when the award was announced.

“I’m just so excited to bring Alabama their first Heisman,” he said.

When asked at the press conference after the trophy presentation if he was surprised by the award, Ingram said, “Yes, I was surprised, but it’s a dream come true. It’s something I’ll carry for the rest of my life.”

On TV before the award presentation and in the press conference, he urged other young people to pursue their dreams.

“Don’t let anybody stop you,” he said. “You can do it if you have the inner drive and determination.”

While Ingram’s mother was there for the presentation, his father, a former Super Bowl star, was just a few miles away, incarcerated on bank fraud and money-laundering charges, watching his son’s big win on a prison television.

“My father has been a great influence on my life and I love him to death,” Ingram said from the podium.

During the press conference, which was not televised, Ingram said he would not think about the award for too long, since his focus is going to be on the national championship game Jan. 7 in Pasadena against Texas.

“This is a great, special moment for me but at the same time you’ve got to move forward,” Ingram said. “We still have a national championship game to play in.”

When asked what he thought of the Heisman “curse” or “jinx,” where Heisman winners usually lose championship games, Ingram dodged the question and answered about the only way he could.

“It doesn’t phase me at all,” Ingram said. “Some people, when they have success, they let it get to their head, but when I get to practice on Friday, that will be my main focus, the national championship game, doing whatever I can to get us ready for this. My team is looking forward to it, I’m looking forward to it, and I will do whatever I can not to let them down.”

Alabama’s head coach Nick Saban also spoke at the press conference, and he called it a great honor for the university to have “the best player in college football.”

Saban has now accomplished something the legendary coach Paul “Bear” Bryant never did. Bryant coached some of the game’s greatest players — from Joe Namath to John Hannah, Ken Stabler to Ozzie Newsome — but he never had a player finish in the top three of the Heisman voting.

“The legacy of Alabama football certainly had a void filled,” Saban said when asked about it.

Once the emotion died down somewhat for Ingram, he was able to joke about what it’s been like around campus since his name surfaced as a possible Heisman winner.

“Everybody in the Alabama family has been supporting me,” Ingram said before hoisting the 25-pound bronze statue. “Walking to class, students flashed me the Heisman pose.”

The stats that mattered according to ESPN

1. Toby Gerhart, Stanford: The senior is second in the nation in rushing (1,736 yards) and first in scoring (26 touchdowns). He never had a bad game and he had plenty of good ones, especially down the stretch. In the Cardinal’s last four games, when the aches and pains of the autumn have accumulated, Gerhart averaged 29 carries and 185.5 yards per game. Want a tiebreaker? He is an outstanding student. At Stanford. Bottom line: Gerhart has the best stats and played the most consistent football of any of the Heisman contenders.

2. Mark Ingram, Alabama: Like Gerhart, the Alabama sophomore is a money player who shrugged off the first contact. Like Gerhart, Ingram got stronger as games got longer. In the fourth quarter against South Carolina, Ingram got every one of the 68 yards the Crimson Tide needed to score the touchdown that put the Gamecocks away, 20-6. Ingram rushed for 1,542 yards, an Alabama record, and 15 touchdowns. He is the best offensive weapon on the No. 1 team in the nation.

3. Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska: Most defensive tackles who dominate games clog up the middle of the field so their teammates can make the stops. The Nebraska senior is so strong and mobile that he does both. Suh’s 4.5 sacks Saturday night in the 13-12 loss to Texas will be remembered as long as quarterbacks run in fear. He has 12 sacks. Suh might not overcome the natural bias against defensive players — it’s hard for voters to take a leap without stats to guide them — but his play attracted enough attention for him to become a Heisman finalist.

5. Colt McCoy, Texas: The senior and 2008 Heisman runner-up overcame a slow start to the season with a fantastic second half, peaking with 479 yards of total offense in the Longhorns’ 49-39 defeat of Texas A&M. That made McCoy the favorite until his offensive line fell apart against Nebraska in the Big 12 championship game. Still, McCoy has thrown for 3,512 yards and completed more than 70 percent of his passes. He also is the Longhorns’ second leading rusher with 348 yards.

Tebow, who won the award in 2007 but did not make ESPN’s top five, was trying to join Ohio State’s Archie Griffin as the Heisman’s only two-time winners.

Other winners from the SEC include Florida QB Danny Wuerrfel in 1996, Auburn RB Bo Jackson in 1985, Georgia RB Herschel Walker in 1982, Auburn QB Pat Sullivan in 1971, Florida QB Steve Spurrier in 1966, LSU HB Billy Cannon in 1959 and Georgia HB Frank Sinkwich in 1942.

Previous Alabama Heisman Candidates

Jay Barker, quarterback, 1994: Barker finished fifth behind Colorado RB Rashaan Salaam, Penn State RB Ki-Jana Carter, Alcorn State QB Steve McNair and Penn State QB Kerry Collins.

Barker is best remembered for winning games. He had a 35-2-1 record as a starter and guided the Tide to a 12-1 record this season — the only loss a 24-23 setback to Florida in the SEC title game. Still, his senior season numbers show 1,996 passing yards and 14 TDs as he finished as the nation’s third-rated passer and won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award.

David Palmer, wide receiver, 1993: Deuce finished third behind Florida State QB Charlie Ward and Tennessee QB Heath Shuler.

David Palmer’s third-place finish in the 1993 Heisman voting is the highest an Alabama player has placed in the balloting.

Just as Alabama’s first 1,000-yard passer and first 1,000-yard rusher had finished in the top five of the Heisman balloting, so did the Tide’s first 1,000-yard receiver. Palmer had 61 catches for 1,000 yards and seven TDs in 1993, but his contributions went far beyond pass catching. Although he sometimes lined up in the backfield, Palmer was most dangerous in the open field as a punt and kickoff returner. He piled up 1,961 all-purpose yards in 1993, still second-best in Alabama history and his average of 163.4 all-purpose yards per game is second, too.

Terry Davis, quarterback, 1972: Davis finished fifth behind Nebraska WB Johnny Rodgers, Oklahoma RB Greg Pruitt, Nebraska NG Rich Glover and LSU QB Bert Jones. Davis, not Jones, was the SEC MVP in 1972.

Alabama’s wishbone QB led the Tide to 400 points for the second time in school history. Davis had directed Alabama to a 10-0 record and the No. 2 ranking in the nation when the Tide fell to Auburn 17-16 in the Punt Bama Punt game. Alabama still won the SEC championship.

As the ballhandler in the triple-option attack that averaged more than 300 rushing yards per game, Davis ran for nine TDs and threw only 94 passes, but he completed 50 for 777 yards and six TDs.

Johnny Musso, running back, 1971: The Italian Stallion finished fourth behind Auburn QB Pat Sullivan, Cornell RB Ed Marinaro and Oklahoma RB Greg Pruitt. Musso, not Sullivan, was the SEC MVP in 1971. Musso’s Tide also gave Sullivan’s Tigers their only loss of the year in the final regular-season game.

Alabama’s first 1,000-yard rusher in 1970, Musso followed that with another 1,000-yard season and became the first Tide player to score 100 points in a season in 1971. It was another 15 years before another Alabama player reached 1,000 (Bobby Humphrey in 1986).

Alabama opened the season No. 16 in the AP poll, but Musso led the unbeaten Tide into a No. 1 vs. No. 2 showdown with Nebraska in the Orange Bowl, where the Cornhuskers crushed Bama 38-6.

Lee Roy Jordan, linebacker-center, 1962: Jordan finished fourth behind Oregon State QB Terry Baker, LSU HB Jerry Stovall and Minnesota LB/OT Bobby Bell. Jordan came closer to the top of the Heisman balloting than any Alabama player. His 321 points were 45.4 percent of Baker’s winning total of 707.

Although a two-way player, Jordan was the anchor for another outstanding defensive team. For the second straight season, Alabama did not give up more than seven points in any game.

While that helped carry Alabama to the national title in 1961, in 1962 a 7-6 loss to Georgia Tech on Nov. 17 knocked Alabama out of the top spot in the AP poll (for the third time that season) and cost the Tide the SEC championship, since Bama went 6-1 in conference play while Ole Miss was 6-0.

Alabama finished 10-1 by beating Oklahoma 17-0 in the Orange Bowl, with Jordan making an astounding 31 tackles. Unfortunately for Jordan, that came almost a month after the Heisman had been awarded.

Pat Trammell, quarterback, 1961: Bear Bryant’s favorite player finished fifth behind Syracuse HB Ernie Davis, Ohio State HB Bob Ferguson, Texas HB Jimmy Saxton and Minnesota QB Sandy Stephens. Trammell’s 362 points were 43.9 percent of Davis’ winning total of 824.

Trammell led Alabama to an undefeated record, the top spot in the final AP and coaches polls for the first time and a then-school record 11 victories. Along the way, he became the first Alabama player with 1,000 passing yards in a season (while throwing a measly two interceptions) and ran for nine TDs.

This was Alabama’s first universally recognized, proclaimed-at-the-moment national championship — or as it was often referred to at the time — the mythical national championship. No wonder Bryant loved Trammell, who died of cancer at age 28.

Harry Gilmer, quarterback, 1947: Gilmer finished fifth again, this time behind Notre Dame QB Johnny Lujack, Michigan HB Bob Chappuis, and Ole Miss QB Charlie Conerly and SMU HB Doak Walker, who finished tied for third.

For Gilmer, his senior season did not quite measure up to his previous three by stats or by team results. After all, as a junior he’d led the nation in interceptions and punt return yards. In 1947, Alabama finished 8-3 after losing to Texas 27-7 in the Sugar Bowl.

Still, after a rough start, Gilmer led the Tide to seven straight wins as Alabama rose from unranked to No. 6 in five weeks. He completed his career as the only player to lead Alabama in passing for four seasons and also was the Tide’s leading punt and kickoff returner for all four years. He held Alabama’s record for TD responsibility for 60 years and still has the best kickoff-return average and punt-return average in school history even as Javier Arenas approaches the NCAA record for most punt-return yards.

The Washington Redskins made Gilmer the No. 1 pick in the 1948 NFL draft.

Harry Gilmer, quarterback, 1945: The triggerman for Alabama’s highest scoring team, the sophomore finished fifth behind Army FB Doc Blanchard, Army HB Glenn Davis, Oklahoma A&M HB Bob Fenimore and St. Mary’s HB Herman Wedemayer. Davis would win the Heisman in 1946 as the Cadets’ Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside dominated college football’s headlines.

In 1945, Gilmer led the nation with 13 TD passes and maybe would have fare even better in the Heisman balloting if the voters could have taken his Rose Bowl performance into account. Gilmer ran for 116 yards and a TD and threw a scoring pass in the Tide’s 34-14 victory over Southern Cal. That capped a 10-0 season in which Alabama averaged a school record 43 points per game.

And that wasn’t his best game of the season: Against Kentucky, Gilmer ran six times for 216 yards, including a 95-yarder that’s still the second-longest run in Alabama history, and completed both his passes for another 50 yards.

Alabama finished third in the final AP poll, taken at the end of the regular season, behind Army and Navy.

Joe Kilgrow, halfback, 1937: Kilgrow finished fifth for the third Heisman behind four players now in the College Football Hall of Fame — winner Clint Frank of Yale, Colorado HB (and future U.S. Supreme Court justice) Byron “Whizzer” White. Pittsburgh HB Marshall Goldberg and Fordham C Alex Wojciechowicz. Kilgrow is not in the College Football Hall of Fame even though he had a fine career as a triple-threat back, the once revered standard for a great player.

He could run, pass, defend, punt and kick. Unfortunately, he’s probably most remembered now in Crimson Tide lore as the player who was lining up to kick a field goal when coach Frank Thomas sent Sandy Sanford into the game to try a critical kick against Vanderbilt in 1937′s final regular-season game. Kilgrow had passed for Alabama’s only score, but missed the goal or placement, as they called it then (today, we’d say he missed the PAT or extra point). With Alabama trailing with six minutes left, Sanford, whose 41-yard field goal had beaten Tulane 9-6 three weeks earlier, converted a 23-yard field goal, the Tide beat Vandy 9-7 and Bama went to the Rose Bowl instead of the Commodores.

Alabama, which finished No. 4 in the final AP poll, lost to No. 2 California in the Tide’s only defeat of the season. 13-0 in Pasadena, where they return Jan. 7 to face Texas, from the home state of former president George W. Bush.

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